FOOD: Boneless vs. Bone-In: It's the Matchup You Didn't Know You Wanted to See
Did you know that 60% of chicken wings ordered at restaurants are bone-in? The rise in popularity of boneless wings, however, means restaurants have two great options to offer guests. And operators should take advantage of both.
DID YOU KNOW…
Run Away Pig
Sometimes animals escape. Usually it’s family pets – cats & dogs. Other times, it’s a giant pig. A pig “the size of a mini horse” escaped from its owners in California. Local police managed to lure the pig back to its pen, however, with a bag of Doritos. To be fair, that’s how you could get us to walk into a pen, too. Watch the video here.
3,844 Likes, 238 Comments - San Bernardino County Sheriff (@sanbernardinocountysheriff) on Instagram: "Well if this doesn't go on the list of unusual calls... 🐖 Highland Station received a call..."
The Away Game
Ready to wipe some tears from your eyes? Check out this amazing video produced by Tim Hortons. They brought Kenya’s lone hockey team to Canada so they’d have someone to play. Those someone’s, however, included NHL stars Sidney Crosby and Nathan McKinnon. Really cool story.
Subscriptions Lead Digital Content Spending
One of the key challenges for content owners & publishers has been how to get people to pay for digital content that they were used to getting for free. One way of getting people to pay for digital content is to create a product/service that takes advantage of its digital nature by offering something that no physical product could. Take music streaming services for example: for a modest monthly fee, subscribers get access to millions and millions of songs, creating a service whose advantages clearly outweigh the disadvantage of not owning an actual record, at least for most consumers. As the following chart, based on data from Statista’s Global Consumer Survey, shows, subscription services are currently the most popular way of consuming paid digital content in the US and the UK.
TALE OF TWO 2018s
Why it matters to you: Ruby Tuesday’s and Texas Roadhouse going is totally different directions and it pays to understand why.
You have to wonder if there is any news you can consume about our industry that won’t tell you contradictory stories about the health of our industry. It was recently revealed that Ruby Tuesday’s has closed 51 locations this year so far. It’s indicative of what many believe is the end of the casual-themed dining run that has lasted since Bennigan’s and TGIFriday’s exploded on to the scene in the ‘70s. But then you hear about the astounding success the Texas Roadhouse has been experiencing and you have to wonder what the heck is going on!
Let’s be honest: we can’t have it both ways. Things are horrible, things are great is not an estimable approach to what’s happening in the industry. The truth is actually simple, although, it might sting some of you that are struggling. Texas Roadhouse is better at this than Ruby Tuesday’s. From site selection to daily operations, Roadhouse has a great formula, employee a better quality of staff, and run a far better operation.
We often times talk about location as the only determinative factor in the success of restaurants, but it DOES matter how well you run it. To survive in the modern hospitality industry, with so many competitors from all food service segments, you’ve got to be better than your competitors. So, if you are feeling a downward sales trend and you aren’t honestly addressing your operations, maybe you should.
BREW-I-Y
Why it matters to you: Brewpubs aren’t the only ones that can serve fresh-brewed beer.
When you are marketing your restaurant, you look for ways to differentiate yourself from your competition. However, when it comes to brewpubs many of them have everything you have except they serve fresh-brewed beer. Why does that have to be the case? It doesn’t. In fact there are several ways you can brew your own beer and differentiate yourself from your competitors. Certainly, you can work with a local microbrew to create a beer just for your location. They will enjoy the exposure in your restaurant and you get a great beer that can only be purchased at your location. Instant differentiation.
But you don’t have to be limited to a local brewer, because you can brew your own. There are several small batch systems you can employ to brew your beer. Because the ingredients are so cheap, you can also see an improved profit margin. There may be local regulations you have to overcome, but so what? You overcome those same regulations every day as you operate your location. No doubt the affection for great brewed beer on the current consuming class of guests will only reward your effort.
It’s also a great promotion to run. Why not invite your guests that are home brewers to provide an example of their favorite recipes? You can host a tasting event and the winner’s beer would be your first batch of brew for the restaurant. This combines great promotion with great product and that’s a winner for every part of your business, IMHO.
[Source: FSRMagazine]
