Customers are plastering dollar bills on a restaurant’s entrance to help the family-owned business survive an expansion that came with an unexpected $64,000 fee from Marco Island officials.

The plight of Chefs’ Express was first heard when co-owner Anne Feinman pleaded with Marco Island City Council members in October to make utility impact fees reasonable. Defining reasonable seems to be the challenge and the answer depends on who you ask.

Several other Marco Island restaurant owners and business leaders are standing behind the Feinmans in hopes the council will choose next week to implement at least a temporary reprieve from utility impact fees at a meeting scheduled for 5:30 p.m. Monday.

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Recession-sapped diners will splash a little more cash eating out this holiday season, and restaurant chains will cash in by offering special festive flavors to keep consumers coming back for more.

From Starbucks’ Christmas blends to egg nog ice cream shakes at Jack in the Box and pumpkin cheesecake at California Pizza Kitchen , restaurants hope diners order drinks, starters, desserts and ‘feel good’ items that weren’t on the dollar menus they chose the last two years.

Companies across the board will be looking for a festive fillip after same-store sales dropped significantly in the past two years, said KeyBanc Capital Markets analyst Brad Ludington.

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Starbucks may soon serve your morning coffee in a used paper cup that has been recycled into a new paper cup, as the coffee chain aims to ensure that 100% of its cups are reusable or recyclable by 2015.

Starbucks (SBUX, Fortune 500) has been using fiber from recycled office paper for its cups since 2006, but most of its cups end up in the trash after use.

But now the company plans to take its green initiative a step further thanks to Mississippi River Pulp’s success in recycling used Starbucks paper cups into fiber suitable for producing new cups during a recent six-week pilot program.

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Patina Restaurant, the award-winning Relais & Chateaux restaurant that represents the highest culinary contemporary French cuisine, announced today a new prix fixe $59 four course offering, a $34 three course dessert and wine pairing menu, and no corkage fee Tuesdays. From the Butternut Squash Risotto to the Grapefruit and Tarragon Parfait paired with the Scacco Matto, Albana di Romagna (2004), Patina invites guests to take part and taste the tantalizing menus created by Executive Chef Tony Esnault, that demonstrate all the innovative twists Patina has to offer.

Four course $59 Market Menu includes:

• Maine Lobster and Chesnut Veloute with vegetable paysanne, crostini
• Butternut Squash Risotto with mustarda di cremona, sage emulsion
• Roasted Jidori Chicken with fall vegetables, jus vinaigre
• Green Apple and Coconut Battera with crispy meringue

Dessert /pairing tasting include:

• Exotic Fruit Salad, Ginger Glace with lychee gelee paired with Moscato D’Asti, Barolo, Itali (2006)
• Grapefruit and Tarragon Parfait with black olive tuile paired with Scacco Matto, Albana di Romagna, (2004)
• Valrhona Chocolate Coulant with Thyme Ice Cream and Tea Clouds paired with Rooiblos Late and Caramel Bailey’s

“We have created these special menus so our guests can sample and experience the many tastes of Patina,” said Master Chef Joachim Splichal. “Also to say thank you to our guests, we will have no corkage fee on Tuesdays.”

Patina is one of L.A.’s finest and most elegant dining destinations known for their tasting menus – from a vegetarian menu, to daily market menus, to seasonal specialties including wild game and truffles. Patina also offers an acclaimed wine list of more than 1,600 selections from around the world.

For more information on Patina Restaurant and to view complete menus, please visit: www.patinarestaurant.com.

Located in the spectacular Walt Disney Concert Hall in Downtown Los Angeles, our flagship restaurant Patina expresses the highest culinary ideals of Master Chef Joachim Splichal. This Relais & Chateaux property pampers its guests with seasonal tasting menus, gourmet cheeses, caviar service, and an award-winning wine list. The recipient of a prestigious Michelin star, Patina’s elegant al fresco dining, stylish late night cocktail bar and always-impeccable service, define luxury dining on the West Coast.

NEW YORK, NY  (RestaurantNews.com)  The secret to successful breakfast innovation is tapping into breakfast’s beloved qualities and making them more accessible and appealing to contemporary consumers, according to the Breakfast Trends: Culinary Trend Mapping Report from the Center for Culinary Development (CCD) and leading market research publisher Packaged Facts. This means offering savvy and demanding consumers creative breakfast foods in more dayparts, in portable forms and sizes, with better-for-you recipes, and with new flavors and higher quality ingredients.

“Breakfast continues to transcend into an any-time-of day meal,” says Kimberly Egan, CEO of CCD. “Leveraging breakfast’s warming comfort, its ease of eating and memory-laden flavors, and marrying them with current consumer needs opens up breakfast to new horizons.”

Fierce competition to meet consumer needs for breakfast on-the-go, at all hours, and in more nutritious forms is pushing innovation and creating a dynamic set of breakfast trends to inspire new product development. CCD profiles seven hot trends using its proprietary Trend Mapping^® methodology:

• Stage 1: Artisan Breakfast — Traditional breakfast dishes are being re-made by contemporary restaurant chefs using fresh, high-quality ingredients and accented with global flavor twists.
• Stage 2: Third Wave Coffee — Post-commodity, post-espresso, Third Wave coffee redefines quality: It comes from meticulously sourced beans that are painstakingly roasted in “micro” batches and brewed with the upmost attention to maximum flavor.
• Stage 2: New Whole Grains — New grains like sorghum, quinoa, and amaranth add excitement to breakfast cereals while new styles of bread and even gluten-free products expand the A.M. offering with better-for-you options.
• Stage 3: Waffles Gone Wild — Waffles go beyond the morning daypart, into savory lunch and dinner dishes, as carriers for sandwiches and dessert concoctions.
• Stage 3: Breakfast Pizza — Pizza topped with breakfast ingredients such as eggs, bacon and fruit becomes a versatile form the consumers crave at every hour of the day.
• Stage 4: Eggs All Day — More than ever, the egg is being placed front and center as a food that is both healthful and adaptable, whether for a sandwich or wrap, to accompany a salad, on a pizza, or mixed with pasta.
• Stage 5: Breakfast in a Bowl — The flexibility of the breakfast bowl defines the appeal of this morning powerhouse, but new sweet and savory flavor combinations continue to expand the trend.

Because of its beloved nature, breakfast is welcome at any time of day in about any format. Manufacturers and restaurant operators can tap into these trends to have consumers smiling over morning comfort more often.

For more information on Breakfast Trends: Culinary Trend Mapping Report, please visit: http://www.packagedfacts.com/Breakfast-Trends-Culinary-2517248/. 

The Culinary Trend Mapping Report is co-published by the Center for Culinary Development and Packaged Facts. Individual issues and annual subscriptions are available at www.packagedfacts.com/landing/culinarytrends.asp.

About the Center for Culinary Development – CCD is a full-service food and beverage strategic innovation company that successfully blends culinary creativity with consumer insights, trends and marketing expertise. Visit www.ccdsf.com, or contact Kara Nielsen at (415) 693-8900 x110, kara@ccdsf.com.

About Packaged Facts — Packaged Facts, a division of MarketResearch.com, publishes market intelligence on a wide range of consumer market topics, including consumer goods and retailing, foods and beverages, demographics, pet products and services, and financial products. Packaged Facts also offers a full range of custom research services. To learn more, visit: www.packagedfacts.com. Follow us on Facebook, LinkedIn and Twitter.

Cracker Barrel Old Country Store (NASDAQ: CBRL) has always tried to offer the genuine hospitality and honest value associated with times past, and now the popular family restaurant is looking to the future with its new pilot project – installing Blink electric vehicle (EV) chargers, provided by ECOtality, Inc., (NASDAQ:ECTY), at select restaurant locations across Tennessee. Cracker Barrel today announced that it will become a major participant in The EV Project, an initiative to increase the adoption of electric vehicles by creating a solid charging infrastructure across the country. Cracker Barrel is pleased to be an early participant and anticipates that its guests will also be pleased regardless of what kinds of vehicles they drive as this initiative clearly looks at the future of travel in America. The EV Project is managed by ECOtality, a leader in clean electric transportation and storage technologies.

“Cracker Barrel was founded along the interstate highways with the traveler in mind and has always tried to anticipate what our guests might want and need as they stop in for some good country cookin’ and to experience genuine Southern hospitality,” said Cracker Barrel Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, Michael A. Woodhouse. “Becoming a leader in The EV Project continues our tradition of striving to anticipate and meet our guests’ expectations and, at the same time, allows us to participate in a meaningful way in the nation’s explorations of energy independence.”

Woodhouse added, “While ownership of electric cars is small compared with traditional vehicles, there’s great curiosity about them, and so we expect our guests will be quite interested in seeing these charging stations when they stop in with us. We like to think that our guests will be pleased to see Cracker Barrel taking an active role in exploring energy alternatives that are aimed at protecting the environment, as well as strengthening our economy. This is a way of showing that Cracker Barrel is focused on the future even as we provide guests with a genuinely hospitable experience reminiscent of times past.”

Installing EV charging stations at select Cracker Barrel locations keeps the Cracker Barrel brand relevant to changing times, but it’s also a nod to the company’s past. Woodhouse pointed out that the original Cracker Barrel locations sold gasoline because founder Danny Evins was an oil “jobber” who wanted to sell more gasoline as well as to offer the food and hospitality he grew up on in rural Tennessee. Fueling pumps were removed in the early 70s during the oil embargo, and Woodhouse sees the new electric car charging stations as being consistent with the company’s roots. “In the early days, Cracker Barrel provided food for our guests and fuel for their cars. While we expect that use of the electric chargers will be light during this pilot project, making this available to our guests is consistent with our brand reputation of hospitality, service, and value.”

Guests will be able to get an 80% charge – the recommended charge – in just under a half hour at the 12 Cracker Barrel locations which will have the DC Fast Charging stations. These guests will essentially be able to “fill ‘er up” in about the same amount of time it takes to order and eat a meal. Guests visiting the 12 locations that will have the Blink EV L2 chargers, which are slower than the DC Fast Charging stations, will be able to top off their tanks, so to speak, while eating some good country cookin’ and browsing in the retail shop.

Cracker Barrel is working with ECOtality, the project manager for The EV Project, to install Blink electric vehicle chargers at select locations in “The Tennessee Triangle,” the 425-mile stretch of interstate highway that connects Nashville, Knoxville, and Chattanooga. Twenty four Cracker Barrel locations will have chargers. A guest could, if desired, drive the entire 425 miles of the Tennessee Triangle, re-charging at Cracker Barrel locations along the way.

Plans are to start installation of the electric vehicle chargers in the spring of 2011 and to be completed within a few months. Guests will be able to check the Cracker Barrel website to see which locations have installed EV chargers.

“We are very pleased that Cracker Barrel Old Country Store has become an EV Project partner,” said Jonathan Read, CEO of ECOtality. “Our goal is to make sure there are readily available Blink public chargers stations where people need them, in convenient locations. Cracker Barrel is a place that people like to visit and is uniquely located to provide a great service and convenience to the public. Cracker Barrel’s work with ECOtality will allow us to move a step closer towards creating an interconnected network of EV infrastructure.”

Twelve of the 24 Cracker Barrel locations that will have chargers installed have been identified. Located along the Tennessee Triangle, these locations will support EV drivers traveling along the corridor connecting Nashville, Knoxville, and Chattanooga:

• Athens
• Cleveland
• Cookeville
• Crossville
• East Ridge
• Farragut
• Harriman
• Kimball
• Lebanon
• Manchester
• Murfreesboro
• Nashville – Stewart’s Ferry Pike

The other 12 sites will be in and around the cities of Nashville, Knoxville, and Chattanooga to support more local users. Specific locations will be announced as The EV Project progresses.

Baskin-Robbins, the world’s largest chain of ice cream specialty shops, has selected the top 10 finalists of its national online flavor creation contest and is now calling on ice cream lovers across the country to select the winning flavor that will be featured in Baskin-Robbins shops nationwide June 2011.    

During October, ice cream enthusiasts had a unique opportunity to play mix-master and create their own ice cream flavor with the Baskin-Robbins virtual Flavor Creator. Nearly 20,000 people channeled their imagination to mix their own ingredients to create a signature ice cream flavor from 31 base flavors, a variety of ribbons such as fudge or peanut butter and oodles of different mix-ins ranging from candies to cookies. People can vote for their favorite ice cream creations beginning today through December 12 at http://bit.ly/aQxxIP.

“We were extremely impressed with the creativity and novelty of all the ice cream fans who created their dream Baskin-Robbins ice cream flavor,” said Brian O’Mara, Baskin-Robbins Vice President of Marketing. “We salute our top 10 finalists and thank everyone who participated in the online contest, and we look forward to seeing which one of the flavors will be added to our expansive ice cream library alongside our world famous flavors such as World Class Chocolate, Jamoca Almond Fudge and Gold Medal Ribbon.”

The 10 finalists and their outstanding ice cream creations include:

• Blueberry-Lemon Trifle, Paula Tribe, Olyphant, PA: Blueberry ice cream with golden cake pieces and a blueberry ribbon.
• Bunches of Crunches, Diane Sroga, Chicago, IL:  Chocolate ice cream with pecans, Heath Bar pieces and a caramel ribbon.
• Cherry Berry Swirl, Stefani Gabrielsen, Poachontas, AR:  White Mousse ice cream with cherries, strawberries and a raspberry ribbon.
• Cherry Pie, Roxanne Savedra, Lebanon, OR:  Vanilla ice cream with cherries, pie crust pieces and a cherry ribbon.
• Heavenly Cloud, Christine Karpinski, Albany, OR:  White Mousse ice cream with chocolate flakes, caramel-filled chocolate cups and a caramel cinnamon cream ribbon.
• Pineapple Cherry Inside-Out Cake, Beth Lovestead, Branford, CT: Pineapple ice cream with golden cake pieces, cherries and a cherry ribbon.
• Pecan Pie on the Fly, Lane Kessler, Medina, OH: Brown Sugar ice cream with pecans, pie crust pieces and a caramel cinnamon cream ribbon.
• Rally Round the Flag, Darlene Morris, Baton Rouge, LA: Vanilla ice cream with strawberry and golden cake pieces and a blueberry ribbon.
• Strawberry-Chocolate Mousse Pie, Catherine Gillund, Brentwood, CA: White Mousse ice cream with chocolate flakes, graham cracker pieces and a strawberry ribbon.
• The Red, White and Mousse, Megan Peregory, Middleburg, FL: White Mousse ice cream with golden cake pieces, strawberries and a blueberry ribbon.

Each finalist wins free ice cream for a year and the grand prize winner will have  their flavor immortalized in the Baskin-Robbins ice cream library and featured as the June 2011 Flavor of the Month.  The grand prize winner will also receive a trip for two to Boston that includes a three-night stay at a landmark Boston hotel, an evening at the theatre, $1,000 in spending money and a trip to Baskin-Robbins’ headquarters where he or she will meet the Baskin-Robbins culinary team and spend a day bringing their flavor to life. For more information and official rules, please visit www.BaskinRobbins.com/flavorcreatorrules.

WASHINGTON  (RestaurantNews.com)  Fueled by improving same-store sales and customer traffic levels, the National Restaurant Association’s Restaurant Performance Index (RPI) rose to its highest level in more than three years.  The RPI – a monthly composite index that tracks the health of and outlook for the U.S. restaurant industry – stood at 100.7 in October, up 0.4 percent from September and strongest level since September 2007.  In addition, the RPI stood above 100 for the second consecutive month, which signifies expansion in the index of key industry indicators.

“October’s RPI gain was driven by continued improvements in the same-store sales and customer traffic indicators,” said Hudson Riehle, senior vice president of the Research and Knowledge Group for the Association.  ”Most notably, a majority of restaurant operators reported higher same-store sales in October, the first such occurrence since August 2007.  As a result, the RPI’s Current Situation Index reached the 100 plateau for the first time in more than three years.”

“In addition to improving current situation indicators, restaurant operators are increasingly optimistic about sales growth in the coming months, and also reported a positive outlook for staffing levels for the first time in six months,” Riehle added.

The RPI is constructed so that the health of the restaurant industry is measured in relation to a steady-state level of 100.  Index values above 100 indicate that key industry indicators are in a period of expansion, and index values below 100 represent a period of contraction for key industry indicators.  The RPI consists of two components, the Current Situation Index and the Expectations Index.

The Current Situation Index, which measures current trends in four industry indicators (same-store sales, traffic, labor, and capital expenditures), stood at 100.0 in October – up 0.6 percent from September and its second consecutive solid gain.  In addition, the Current Situation Index reached the 100 level for the first time since August 2007, which meant 37 consecutive months below 100 in the contraction range.  

Restaurant operators reported a net increase in same-store sales for the second consecutive month in October.  Fifty-one percent of restaurant operators reported a same-store sales gain between October 2009 and October 2010, up from 44 percent of operators in September and the first time since August 2007 that a majority of operators reported higher same-store sales.  Meanwhile, only 33 percent of operators reported a same-store sales decline in October, down from 38 percent of operators who reported negative sales in September.    

Restaurant operators also reported an increase in customer traffic levels in October.  Forty-four percent of restaurant operators reported an increase in customer traffic between October 2009 and October 2010, up from 38 percent of operators who reported higher traffic in September.  In comparison, 34 percent of operators reported a traffic decline in October, down from 37 percent in September.

While sales and traffic levels improved, capital spending activity remained relatively steady.  Forty-two percent of operators said they made a capital expenditure for equipment, expansion, or remodeling during the past three months, matching the proportion of operators who reported similarly last month.

The Expectations Index, which measures restaurant operators’ six-month outlook for four industry indicators (same-store sales, employees, capital expenditures, and business conditions), stood at 101.4 in October – up 0.3 percent from September and its strongest level in six months.      

Restaurant operators remain solidly optimistic about sales growth in the months ahead.  Forty-three percent of restaurant operators expect to have higher sales in six months (compared with  the same period in the previous year), matching the proportion who reported similarly last month.  Meanwhile, just 12 percent of restaurant operators expect their sales volume in six months to be lower than it was during the same period in the previous year, down slightly from 14 percent who reported similarly last month.

Restaurant operators also remain relatively optimistic about the direction of the overall economy.  Thirty-five percent of restaurant operators said they expect economic conditions to improve in six months, down slightly from 38 percent last month.  In comparison, only 12 percent of operators said they expect economic conditions to worsen in the next six months, down from 16 percent who reported similarly last month.  

Along with a positive outlook for sales and the economy, restaurant operators’ plans for capital expenditures also remained solid.  Forty-eight percent of restaurant operators plan to make a capital expenditure for equipment, expansion or remodeling in the next six months, up slightly from 47 percent who reported similarly last month and the strongest level in six months.  

For the first time in six months, restaurant operators reported a positive outlook for staffing gains in the months ahead.  Sixteen percent of operators expect to increase staffing levels in six months (compared with the same period in the previous year), and just 11 percent plan to reduce staffing levels in six months.  

The RPI is based on the responses to the National Restaurant Association’s Restaurant Industry Tracking Survey, which is fielded monthly among restaurant operators nationwide on a variety of indicators including sales, traffic, labor, and capital expenditures. The full report is available online  at www.restaurant.org/pdfs/research/index/201010.pdf.

The RPI is released on the last business day of each month, and more detailed data and analysis can be found on Restaurant TrendMapper (www.restaurant.org/trendmapper), the Association’s subscription-based service that provides detailed analysis of restaurant industry trends.

For additional information and a video of Hudson Riehle providing an industry update, including the October RPI and a holiday season outlook, visit http://www.restaurant.org/pressroom/.

Founded in 1919, the National Restaurant Association is the leading business association for the restaurant industry, which comprises 945,000 restaurant and foodservice outlets and a work force of nearly 13 million employees. Together with the National Restaurant Association Educational Foundation, the Association works to lead America’s restaurant industry into a new era of prosperity, prominence, and participation, enhancing the quality of life for all we serve. For more information, visit our Web site at www.restaurant.org.

Tossed, home of garden fresh salads, crepe wraps and sandwiches, today announced its first expansion outside the United States via a new franchise agreement with Jeff Potoroka, an entrepreneur from Abbotsford, British Columbia, Canada.  Following an initial store opening planned for the first quarter of 2011, Tossed will work closely with Potoroka to develop as many as three additional Tossed locations in and around the Vancouver Island region in the coming year, bringing the company’s famous reputation for gourmet-quality salads and sandwiches to a new base of North American consumers.

Potoroka is an experienced home appraiser, having been in the field for the past eighteen years.  Since 2003, Potoroka has operated his own home appraisal company, with staff appraisers positioned throughout the Lower Mainland.  Earlier in his career he also operated his own pizza business.

“Tossed Franchise Corporation is pleased to welcome Jeff Potoroka as its first international franchisee.  Jeff’s knowledge and background in commercial real estate, along with his food service experience, is exactly what we look for in a franchisee,” said Eric Schmitt, Tossed Chief Executive Officer.  ”British Columbia has a reputation for environmental sustainability and healthy living.  Tossed plans to work with the communities and local farmers throughout the Vancouver region to bring fresh and locally produced food products to Tossed’s new customers.”

Founded in 1998, Tossed restaurants are known for their ultra-fresh, made-to-order gourmet salads with over 50 choices of toss-ins, along with signature dressings, whole wheat crepe wraps and sandwiches served on artisan bread.  With locations in the Northeast, East Central and Southeast U.S., Tossed’s distinctive menu and fast-casual service has attracted an extremely loyal following among patrons who appreciate lighter and more wholesome fare for lunch and dinner.

In British Columbia, Tossed and its new franchisee plan to establish a new presence across Vancouver Island and into the lower mainland region.  Tossed’s concept is designed for both full-service and free-standing kiosk stores; because of the brand’s flexibility, Potoroka is investigating office building, food court and quay locations.

“With people looking for healthier dining options, Tossed’s unique menu and commitment to fresh food is a natural.  Our process of evaluating franchise alternatives led us to Tossed earlier this year—and once we visited a Tossed location in Boston, we knew it would work well in Vancouver,” said Potoroka.  ”Tossed offers not only a healthier way to eat, thanks to its lineup of salads, soups, sandwiches and crepe wraps, but also the kind of service extras people like including online ordering.  We believe Vancouver is going to love Tossed.”

As Potoroka’s new company grows its Tossed locations in the region, it intends to develop close relationships with local farmers to bring seasonal produce directly to customers.  ”Tossed is committed to supporting local growers wherever possible in all its stores.  Considering the strengths of British Columbia’s ‘greenbelt’ in the lower mainland, fresh and nutritious fare should be something our customers will enjoy daily,” he said.

Tossed’s salad menu includes wheat-free and gluten-free options.  To learn more about Tossed, visit www.tossed.com.

Guests frequenting Stonewood Grill & Tavern will encounter new flavors as the popular restaurant unveils a new menu this fall. This is the first of many scheduled enhancements to the popular steak and seafood restaurant.

After a three-month review of restaurant guests’ consumptive behavior, Stonewood made menu changes to reflect better what guests want.

“Our goal is to evolve the restaurant menu by striking a delicate balance between continuing to serve our loyal guests and attracting new guests simultaneously,” said CEO and President Geoffrey D.K. Stiles. “We consider the newly refined menu an enhancement to our overall environment. And, so far, our customers are confirming we have made the right choices.”

In September, Stonewood management quietly tested the menu with the Heathrow location guests. The initial response was positive. Company officials state that the new menu brought a significant percent increase in sales. This sales increase pushed the company to hire additional staff and increase its planned investment in employee training programs at all locations.

Stiles, who considers himself a steak lover, was instrumental in adding a new rib eye steak to the new menu, and the new Florida Orange Cake, a three-layer cake reminiscent of a Dreamsicle dairy dessert.

Founded in 1999, Stonewood Grill offers a comfortable and inviting dining experience to its guests. With a stacked stone and mahogany decor, Stonewood offers a variety of hand-cut steaks and market-fresh seafood cooked over an oak-burning grill. The restaurant features a diverse wine selection, including 27 brands available by the glass and 58 brands available by the bottle. Stonewood Grill has 16 locations in Florida and one in Cary, N.C. For more information, visit http://www.stonewoodgrill.com.

Happy Meals have taken a bit of a beating lately. First there was that six-month-old Happy Meal hamburger that didn’t grow mold or decompose, and then San Francisco tried to ban toy inclusion in kids’ meals. With the iconic product in the critics’ crosshairs, we wondered, just how valuable is the Happy Meal to McDonald’s?

The company is rather guarded about specifics, but a spokeswoman offered that Happy Meal sales account for less than 10% of McDonald’s U.S. business. Given McDonald’s massive size — it notched about $30.9 billion in U.S. systemwide sales in 2009, according to Ad Age’s DataCenter — that’s nothing to sneeze at.

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Restaurant.com is running Cyber Monday restaurant deals, but you’ll have to act fast because this deal ends soon.   Now through Tuesday, November 30th, Restaurant.com offers restaurant diners nationwide an opportunity to save 80% on restaurant gift cards and certificates. 

Restaurant gift cards and restaurant gift certificates are already expected to be a hot holiday gift item.  According to the National Restaurant Association, 78 percent of adults say they would like to receive restaurant gift cards or certificates on gift occasions.

Restaurant.com’s gift cards come in denominations of $25, $50 or $100. 

To take advantage of Restaurant.com’s deal, use the code DEAL at checkout when placing an order on their website. 

• Get 80% off Restaurant.com Gift Cards!
  Use code DEAL at checkout now through 11/30/10.
• Get 80% off Restaurant.com $25 Gift Certificates & enter to win an iPad!
  Use code DEAL at checkout now through 11/30/10.

Restaurant.com offers more than 35,000 gift certificate options daily, served up by more than 15,000 restaurants.  The company is currently celebrating ten years of “Savings, Meals & Memories”.

On September 30, 2010, Restaurant.com offered its first ever daily deal, providing restaurant diners with great savings.  Over 1.5 million gift certificates were sold as a result, which could potentially drive $105 million in revenue to restaurants nationwide. 

Last week, Restaurant.com named the entire city of New Orleans as its November “Restaurant of the Month”.  The announcement, meant to pay homage to the city’s cultural cuisine, puts a new spin on the company’s monthly restaurant spotlight.

Hiring in the restaurant industry is picking up steam, experts say, and has been a major contributor to the economic recovery across the nation and in the Miami Valley.

Since the beginning of the year, U.S. bars and restaurants have added 143,000 jobs, growing at four times the rate of the rest of the economy, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Restaurant jobs historically have been seen as a bellwether of the economy. When the local economy suffers — the Dayton area lost an estimated 37,000 jobs from 2005 to 2009, according to the Ohio Department of Job and Family Services — so too do local restaurants, as budget-conscious consumers cut back on eating out.

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Restaurants that earned one star in the inaugural Chicago Michelin Guide are likely to see the biggest lift in business among their two- and three-star counterparts, if the experience of New York and San Francisco establishments is any indicator.

The French-based Michelin Guide published its first Chicago edition this month, assigning coveted star ratings to a total of 23 restaurants here.

Based on the experiences of some newly crowned one-stars in San Francisco and New York, which received their 2011 ratings in October, Chicago restaurants could see a jump in revenue and bookings of 10% to 25%.

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A federal judge has ordered Restaurant Opportunities Center of New York to avoid contact with Mario Batali’s restaurants during litigation between the two parties.

The advocacy group for restaurant workers helped 27 current and former workers file a suit against Batali’s acclaimed Del Posto restaurant in October seeking owed wages and tips. Since then the group has been holding regular protests outside of the Chelsea restaurant.

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An hour before lunchtime at My Sister’s House, food service supervisor Carlyn Ashley watched as a load of steaks and potatoes from a restaurant across town were placed in her storage closet. For Ashley, it was time to plan a menu for the women in the program that is connected to the Atlanta Mission.

“They might have some LongHorn for lunch,” she said.

Behind the scenes, a sophisticated logistics network connects some of the country’s biggest restaurant brands — KFC, Pizza Hut, the Cheesecake Factory, Panera Bread, Chipotle Mexican Grill and Darden Restaurants — with nonprofits, charities and other groups that need prepared food. It’s a tougher job than collecting canned goods; prepared food is harder to keep fresh. There are food safety regulations and quick shelf lives to consider. But food retrievers have found allies among chefs and restaurant executives in salvaging food that might otherwise go to waste.

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Garbanzo Mediterranean Grill, a Denver-based fast casual restaurant concept featuring an authentic Mediterranean menu, today announced its second location to open in Colorado Springs on December 3 in the First and Main Town Center. The 12th Garbanzo restaurant is located at 3779 Bloomington Street, Colorado Springs, CO 80922, and is open daily from 10:30 a.m. to 9:00 p.m.
 
The newest Garbanzo restaurant joins the Broadmoor Towne Center location in Colorado Springs, as well as 10 Denver-metro locations in Highlands, Greenwood Village, Denver, Aurora, Littleton, Park Meadows, Highlands Ranch, University Hills, Lone Tree and Glendale. The restaurant concept is set to open another location in Boulder before the end of 2010.
 
“We are excited to open our second restaurant in Colorado Springs and continue expanding our concept of fresh, healthy and authentic Mediterranean cuisine,” says Alon Mor, Garbanzo founder. “We received such a warm welcome from the area since our first location opened in June, and we are thrilled about the opportunity to keep strengthening our connection with the Colorado Springs region.”
 
On grand opening day, the first 100 guests will receive a free Garbanzo tote, and all guests will be able to give the prize wheel a spin to win fun Garbanzo items. This new location will continue to support the efforts of The Home Front Cares through ongoing partnerships to raise awareness and funds for the organization.
 
Garbanzo offers guests a variety of healthy, high-quality Mediterranean items with an emphasis on flavor, freshness and authenticity, as well as a trans-fat free menu. Guests have the ability to customize every meal with items such as pita, laffa, falafel, shwarma, hummus, seasoned rice, sauces and dressings. All Garbanzo salads and sauces are prepared on-site daily, and the pita are baked fresh on-site throughout the day in every restaurant. Additionally, several ingredients are bought locally and some are imported directly from the Mediterranean region. The menu features simple and easy definitions and descriptions of each item in an effort to make guests feel comfortable trying food that may be new to them.

For more information about Garbanzo, please visit www.EatGarbanzo.com.

Ed Bianchini, owner of Tweed restaurant is a huge wine fan and he is very excited about the wine list. “There are so many different kinds of wines out there and now you can get great quality for more affordable prices. We are taking full advantage of it! I have personally handpicked each bottle to make sure they at least meet my standards.”

Ed Bianchini had a Michelin awarded restaurant in south of France for over 20 years, and his passion for food and wine has now been transferred to his hometown Philadelphia.  Together with Chef David Cunningham he opened Tweed in the summer of 2010. They serve food from local farms and their goal is to use 100% locally farmed produce throughout the restaurant. They are working very hard to have a gastronomic menu based on the season for reasonable prices using local and organic farms.

“I want to show people it is possible to be sustainable and use local farmers from the tri-state area with out it costing you a fortune. It taste much better and nothing is better than knowing where your food is coming from. It is the way we have been eating for centuries, but it seems like we got lost somewhere in between the computers and the fast food.”

When you ask the servers where the meat is from they can actually give you the exact location and the name of the farm. This is why Tweed got selected to participate in the City Food Tour’s “Homegrown” special tour. It is a 2-hour tasting adventure taking you to the best organic spots in the city to teach you about the philosophy behind organic and locally farmed food. Chef David Cunningham will talk about the easy access to great produce and the importance of organic food. He will also provide tastings from his decadent menu.

The Homegrown food tour will continue on until Saturday December 18th. To get more information visit the web site: https://www.zerve.com/PhillyFoods/HoGrow

To learn more about Tweed go to: http://www.tweedrestaurant.com
Be a friend on Facebook: http://facebook.com/tweedrestaurant and follow them on Twitter: http://twitter.com/tweedphilly.

CHICAGO  (RestaurantNews.com)  Fast-casual restaurants, already the darlings of the U.S. restaurant industry, are continuing to gain market share in the U.K.– growing at a faster rate than their limited-service counterparts, according to Technomic’s 2010 Leading 100 U.K. Chain Restaurant Report.

The term fast-casual applies to limited service restaurants that provide a sophisticated, upscale experience with made-to-order preparation using fresh, gourmet ingredients at a price point between quick- and full-service offerings — generally 7-12 pounds. In 2009, the leading fast-casual chains grew their sales at a rate of 28.2 percent, with unit counts increasing 19 percent during the same time period.

According to Technomic EVP Darren Tristano, the trend could have staying power. “Consumers are frequenting fast-casual concepts for a number of reasons, but it really comes down to how these restaurants appeal to a consumer’s lifestyle, offering a small upgrade from traditional quick-service, with healthier, fresher menu items.” Tristano points out that after this growth, the category occupies slightly over 10 percent of the limited-service portion of the leading 100 U.K. restaurant chains.

The Technomic Leading 100 U.K. Chain Restaurant Report is the most comprehensive ranking, analysis and overview of the U.K. chain restaurant industry. The report helps develop sales and marketing strategies, identify growth opportunities and monitor segment and menu category performance. Interesting findings include:

• The Bar and Grill category, made up of casual-dining and pub chains, continued to be the leader in total sales and units for the full-service restaurant segment.
• The Coffee and Other Beverage category was the second largest in the limited-service segment, with total 2009 sales exceeding £1.2 billion, an increase in 13.5 percent over the prior year.
• The fastest growing menu categories for full-service restaurants were Asian, up 12.9 percent; and traditional, up 11.3 percent. In terms of unit growth, French and Asian were the best performers, up 9.6 and 9.5 percent respectively.

To purchase or learn more about this report or other services for U.K. foodservice companies please visit Technomic.com or contact one of the individuals listed below.

About Technomic

Technomic provides food and foodservice clients within the restaurant industry with the facts, insights and consulting support they need to enhance their business strategies, decisions and results. Its services include numerous publications and digital products, as well as proprietary studies and ongoing research on all aspects of the food industry.

McDonald’s is introducing its own degree course in business management for its restaurant bosses in the UK.

The foundation degree, which will be accredited by Manchester Metropolitan University, marks the fast-food company’s latest move into education.

McDonald’s apprenticeship scheme, launched 18 months ago, has been given a “good” rating by Ofsted.

Senior vice-president David Fairhurst says it challenges “snobbish” misconceptions about McDonald’s staff.

Continue reading . . .

Bradley Chong had a McRib for lunch Nov. 13. He had another the next day, and the next day, and the next. In fact, he says he’s eaten a McRib practically every day since McDonald’s brought back its sauce-laden, processed pork patty this month.

Chong knows his access to the McRib won’t last forever. On Dec. 5, it will disappear from the McDonald’s near his home in Honolulu and from every McDonald’s in America. There’s no telling when it will return.

Is a McRib shortage to blame? No. McDonald’s sells the sandwich year-round in Germany. But even though fans clamor for it in the United States, McDonald’s spokeswoman Ashlee Yingling says “it’s always been a promotional menu item” available for just a few weeks at a time.

Continue reading . . .

Dean Ogan, owner of Rocky Top Hospitality, has announced that on Cyber Monday, Nov. 29, through the Rocky Top Hospitality website, the company will be offering $40 gift cards for the cost of $20. This sale is only good on Monday, Nov. 29. Customers can sign up for the Rocky Top Hospitality newsletter at http://rockytophospitality.com/contact/newsletter.php and will receive a reminder Monday morning about the special that day.  Certain Restrictions may apply – please refer to the newsletter for details.
 
“Purchasing a half-priced gift card to any of our restaurants is so easy, plus it’s a great deal,” said Ogan. “We love rewarding our customers and future customers.”
 
Rocky Top Hospitality has been devoted to improving Raleigh, North Carolina’s local dining scene since 1998, when its first restaurant opened.  Michael Dean’s Seafood Grill and Oyster Bar was the culmination of years of planning by Dean Ogan. Seven other restaurants have now opened under the Rocky Top Hospitality name and include The Twisted Fork Grill, Market & Bar, The Red Room Tapas Lounge, Bogart’s American Grill, Hi5, The Mash House Brewery & Chophouse, Tribeca Tavern, and 1705 Prime Catering & Events, a thriving events facility and catering business. Rocky Top Hospitality always builds restaurants from the menu-out, so the emphasis is always on the food and how to create an experience you cannot find anywhere else. For more information visit the website at http://www.rockytophospitality.com.

While turkey traditionally takes the spotlight this time of year, Papa John’s, the world’s third-largest pizza company, is offering consumers something that they love all year long – bacon. And more bacon.

Now through Dec. 26, Papa John’s is introducing the Double Bacon Six Cheese pizza, a specialty pizza made with a six-cheese blend of Mozzarella, Parmesan, Romano, Asiago, Provolone and Fontina, and topped with both hickory-smoked bacon and Canadian bacon.

“Our newest pizza creation definitely answers the call for anyone looking to ‘bring home the bacon’ Thanksgiving Eve and throughout the holiday season,” said Papa John’s Chief Marketing Officer, Andrew Varga.

In 2009, U.S. consumption of turkey averaged 17 pounds per person, while the average American eats 17.9 pounds of bacon per year, making bacon an equally popular choice for not just Thanksgiving leftovers, but pizza, too. So Papa John’s is using its better ingredients to satisfy bacon cravings all holiday season long.

“We think this is the perfect time to introduce a new bacon pizza,” Varga said. “Year after year, we see a huge spike in pizza sales the day before Thanksgiving. Add to that the hundreds of bacon fan pages, dedicated blogs, its pervasiveness in pop culture and the fact that it is one of our top selling ingredients, it is clear that consumers have an enormous appetite and affinity for bacon.”

The Double Bacon Six Cheese pizza is available for only $11.00 at all Papa John’s restaurants, and can be ordered online at the recently revamped Papa John’s online ordering site, www.papajohns.com. The new site includes pizza builder graphics that allow customers to put together their own pizzas through an interactive pizza-making application, showing them a visual of their finished product that matches in-restaurant topping specifications.

The site also offers consumers the only national online pizza loyalty program, Papa Points, in which customers can earn points towards free pizza with each online purchase. Once enrolled, customers earn one point for every $5 spent online; when customers accumulate 25 points, they receive a free pizza with their next online pizza purchase.

Headquartered in Louisville, Kentucky, Papa John’s International, Inc. (NASDAQ: PZZA) is the world’s third largest pizza company. For 10 of the past 11 years, consumers have rated Papa John’s No. 1 in customer satisfaction among all national pizza chains in the American Customer Satisfaction Index (ACSI). Papa John’s also was honored by Restaurants & Institutions Magazine (R&I) with the 2009 Gold Award for Consumers’ Choice in Chains in the pizza segment. Papa John’s is the Official Pizza Sponsor of the National Football League and Super Bowl XLV, XLVI and XLVII. For more information about the company or to order pizza online, visit Papa John’s at www.papajohns.com.

Be sure to check out this nice series of articles from the folks at Minyanville.

The Origins of Cult-Favorite Fast Food Restaurants: Chick-fil-A

The Origins of Cult-Favorite Fast Food Restaurants: Domino’s

The Origins of Cult-Favorite Fast Food Restaurants: In-N-Out Burger

The Origins of Cult-Favorite Fast Food Restaurants: McDonald’s

The Origins of Cult-Favorite Fast Food Restaurants: Sonic

The Origins of Cult-Favorite Fast Food Restaurants: Starbucks

The Origins of Cult-Favorite Fast Food Restaurants: White Castle

The Origins of Cult-Favorite Fast Food Restaurants: Yoshinoya

After years of steadfast resistance, Tim Hortons Inc. is bowing to consumer pressure and will now accept debit-card payments in the bulk of its Canadian stores, the Star has learned.

Canada’s iconic coffee chain, which is set to announce its national debit rollout on Tuesday, says customers have been increasingly asking to pay with their bank cards.

The move comes about three years after the company first gave consumers the option of paying by MasterCard and a reloadable Tim Card.

Cash is still king with Tim Hortons customers. But with non-cash payments the wave of the future for quick-serve restaurants, Tim Hortons is finally confident the technology won’t slow down its service.

Continue reading . . .

As expected, the Board of Supervisors today bucked Mayor Gavin Newsom, and overrode his veto of legislation to bar fast-food restaurants from giving away toys in kids meals sold in San Francisco unless they have reduced calories, salt, fat and sugar and also include fruit and vegetables.

The restrictions, vigorously opposed by McDonald’s, the California Restaurant Association and other representatives of the fast-food industry, are set to take effect in December 2011.

Continue reading . . .

Mesob Ethiopian Restaurant, a local ethnic restaurant in Montclair, NJ, introduces QR codes, also called a “2D barcode” or “smart tag.” When a user scans a QR code, they gain access to rich multimedia on their smartphone. QR codes are square, patterned, black and white symbols which are actually bits of information which can be scanned using a free bar code scanner app readily available on smartphones. Tech-savvy Marketing Manager for Mesob Ethiopian Restaurant of Montclair, NJ, Vickie Smith-Siculiano is enriching the customer experience with them.

“Restaurants have to stay on the cutting edge of technology. At Mesob, we are all about experience, and we are taking the traditional authentic Ethiopian experience to the next level with the use of QR codes. A lot of our restaurant customers are already tech-savvy, integrating mobile technology into their everyday lives. Customers check in on Yelp, Foursquare and Facebook Places. Restaurants cannot ignore the power of mobile technology, as people will use mobile more and more to find restaurants in their local area. They can tweet about their meal while they are enjoying it and take pictures of their dishes to share with others on sites like Urbanspoon and Foodspotting.”

The restaurant enjoys communications with fans on their Facebook fan page which Smith-Siculiano moderates. She discovered that customers are hungry not only for the savory Ethiopian cuisine but for knowledge about Ethiopian culture.

One of the first QR codes to debut is found at each table. When scanned, the diner will be connected to a video taped behind-the-scenes, showing the process of making the traditional Ethiopian injera, a crepe-like spongy bread used to scoop up the selection of stews and vegetable dishes. The footage was produced by video journalist and blogger Melody Kettle, whose show Hot From the Kettle is featured on Montclair TV Channel 34.
Customers can also scan these new QR codes to connect with Mesob in social media on Facebook and Twitter. The restaurant openly shares its customer reviews with everyone and a passerby can scan a QR code in its window, directing them to Google Places or Yelp or Mesob’s website. Geo-location fans can check in on Yelp, and customers can sign up immediately for the restaurant’s email club, powered by Fishbowl. QR codes will be refreshed with new content regularly, to keep the restaurant experience fresh.

The restaurant has long been acclaimed for its interior design noted for displaying Ethiopian art and crafts on its walls to educate their diners. The addition of these Quick Response codes throughout now enables those with smartphones to immediately view videos and articles about traditional Ethiopian culture, such as the process of growing, harvesting and processing Ethiopian coffee beans, and also a video with footage of a traditional Ethiopian coffee ceremony. Content also includes features about the mesob, the traditional Ethiopian woven table, and Ethiopian fashion.

Smith-Siculiano ensures that Mesob restaurant owner, Berekti Mengistu, and staff are up to date on technology their customers are engaging with and marketing communications that she creates regularly, such as current check-in offers, important Facebook comments that need a response and e-mail announcements that are sent out. A new menu insert also alerts customers that there are new QR codes for them to discover throughout the restaurant.

Says Mengistu, “When we opened Mesob, we wanted it to be a blending of ancient cuisine with modern attitude. It is exciting for us to immerse ourselves in technology and social media, and by having online conversations with our customers, we have learned more about them than we ever imagined. We want to create the best restaurant experience for them, and QR codes were a natural progression to engage our patrons with content they regularly ask for.”

Mesob Ethiopian Restaurant is located at 515 Bloomfield Avenue, in Montclair, NJ. For reservations or more information, call 973-655-9000 or visit Mesob online at http://www.mesobrestaurant.com.

McCormick & Schmick’s Seafood Restaurants, Inc. (Nasdaq: MSSR) today announced that two of its subsidiaries have entered into a Third Amendment to the Amended and Restated Revolving Credit Agreement with Bank of America, N.A. as Administrative Agent and Collateral Agent; Bank of America, N.A. and Wells Fargo Bank, N.A. as the lenders; Wells Fargo Bank, N.A. as Syndication Agent; and Merrill Lynch, Pierce, Fenner & Smith Incorporated, successor by merger to Banc of America Securities LLC, and Wells Fargo Bank, N.A., as Joint Lead Arrangers and Joint Book Runners. The amendment modifies several financial covenants to make them less restrictive, reduces the facility from $90 million to $40 million (which can be increased to $60 million under certain circumstances) and extends the term to November 17, 2015.

Michelle Lantow, Chief Financial Officer, said, “We are happy to have concluded a five-year extension on our existing credit line. The amended facility contains less restrictive financial covenants than our former arrangement, and we believe these terms allow us to undertake a variety of measures to reinvest in our existing restaurant portfolio and opportunistically expand our fresh seafood concept through new development. We are pleased that we were able to structure an amended loan agreement that is more in line with our future strategic initiatives.”

In an industry that requires disciplined management, a persistent focus on results, ongoing flexibility and boundless creativity, two individuals helped guide Brinker International, Inc. (NYSE: EAT) brands’ Chili’s Grill & Bar and Maggiano’s Little Italy through a time of challenge and change over the past year. Proving their mettle, Maggiano’s managing partner, Jennifer Zielinski, and Chili’s managing partner, Jaimi Phelan, distinguished themselves from more than 800 general managers nationwide to be named the 2010 Brand General Managers of the Year as part of the company’s 5-Star Challenge program designed to reward top restaurant operators.

Touting the brand’s highest guest satisfaction scores, Jennifer Zielinski, Maggiano’s Brand GM of the Year, embraces the Brinker culture’s exclusive brand of hospitality at her Indianapolis restaurant. When Maggiano’s introduced menu changes this year, Jennifer took those changes in stride with a positive attitude, working with her team members to ensure the guest experience remained superior. Jennifer is also committed to growing future leaders, developing more than 25 managers over a three-year period and helping to create a new training program. From charity cooking classes to partnering with other restaurants to raise funds for local organizations, Jennifer is equally dedicated to giving back to her community.

In August 2005, Jaimi Phelan, Chili’s Brand GM of the Year, said goodbye to New Orleans when she was displaced from her home and left without a job after Hurricane Katrina. Relocating to Tahlequah, Okla., she applied to the local Chili’s as a server, where she was quickly promoted to manager. In a short time, Jaimi became general manager of the Tahlequah Chili’s where she’s achieved positive sales results for three years running. Additionally, Jaimi mentors her management team and team members, constantly praising and sharing priceless feedback with them. Jaimi also engages her team members to give back to the community and supports a dozen local organizations, going the extra mile to raise more than $30,000 over the past two years for organizations inside and outside Tahlequah County.

“Jaimi and Jennifer consistently drove their individual restaurant sales in a highly challenging environment while empowering their team members to win together by creating an environment that offers guests a place to escape from the many demands of their busy lives,” said Valerie Davisson, Chief PeopleWorks Officer for Brinker International.

The nominees were selected for this honor based on key results criteria regarding outstanding performance and profit achievements as well as demonstrating commitment to guests, team members and their surrounding community. Brinker’s Top GM of the Year will be announced in Dallas, Dec. 8 at the Brinker corporate all-team member meeting. The winning GM will receive a crystal trophy to display in the restaurant, a trip to Hawaii, a one-year lease on a new Lexus and $25,000. Additionally, all team members at the winner’s restaurant will enjoy a party for their team and a cash bonus.