PRS Newsletter – Volume 9

PRS Client Partner Spotlight – G R A C E
Adam Jones, the driving force behind Fort Worth landmark restaurants Prego Pasta House and Del Frisco’s Double Eagle Steakhouse, returned to downtown Fort Worth on November 17th, 2008 with the opening of G R A C E. Preferred Restaurant Services is proud to service our new Client Partner for Property and Casualty, Health Benefits, Workers Compensation and Payroll services. Dave Hovey, Director of Sales Operations says “we are proud to have a high profile restaurant in Fort Worth and look forward to working the entire team at Grace.”

With two years of planning and refining every detail, G R A C E is the culmination of Jones’ lifelong experience in the restaurant industry. Known as the city’s host for the unparalleled level of hospitality and service that his restaurants provide (and his civic involvement), Jones not only understands Fort Worth’s dining culture - he has played a large part in defining it. For G R A C E, Jones has put that experience into the creation of a restaurant that epitomizes the vibrancy of downtown Fort Worth’s renaissance. Everything from the menu, location and design of the restaurant, were part of Jones’ plan to deliver a dining experience like no other in the city.

"After a decade of success as the general manager at Del Frisco’s, I began thinking about Fort Worth as a dining destination," says Jones. "The city had recently completed a convention center expansion and announced the addition of an adjoining hotel. Coupled with several other hotel renovations downtown, and the development and growth of Fort Worth’s cultural district, I believed there was a shortage of restaurants that reflected the excitement of what was happening in our city."

The design and interior of the restaurant provide the perfect backdrop to the cuisine. G R A C E not only sets the scene for Fort Worth dining, it includes more than 10,000 square feet of space - offering private dining rooms with multimedia capabilities, an outdoor terrace, a spectacular bar and a glass-enclosed wine cellar. Caroline, Jones’ spouse and interior designer, knew the effect they aimed to achieve. They sought inspiration during 5 years of travels to Napa, Chicago, New York and Italy. "The Four Seasons never goes out of style, and that’s what we want here," states Caroline. "We didn’t want trendy, we weren’t looking for a steakhouse or anything with a theme." It’s a comfortable modern design that embodies the city’s energy.

To find just the right chef, Adam Jones employed a headhunter. "I chased people all over the country. I knew I needed a Hyde Park Culinary Institute graduate." Someone suggested Jones look at Blaine Staniford, wunderkind chef at Fuse and Scene in Dallas, and everything fell quickly into place. Jones says that Staniford - who graduated from the Culinary Institute of America at age 19 and has worked at such high-profile places as Aquavit in New York and Michael Mina in San Francisco - prepared a six-course meal to show what he’d do with modern American. "The moment I tasted the things he wanted to create here, I knew. I said, ‘This is it,’" Jones said. These include a lovely charcuterie of meats and cheeses served on a block of Himalayan salt; a melt-in-your-mouth, crisp slab of pork belly with ciderbraised cabbage and roasted pearl onions; a plate of delicate ravioli stuffed with butternut squash; a sublime filet of Meyer Ranch natural beef; asparagus and mushrooms topped with a poached egg.

"Blaine is one of the most innovative chefs in the Southwest," says Jones. "His ability to take traditional fare and transform it into something completely fresh and exciting, is exactly what I’d been searching for. G R A C E will give him the opportunity to redefine modern American classics."

Jones is focused on providing the best dining experience possible for patrons. "I strive to provide a level of service that would make any occasion special. It’s important to me that each trip to G R A C E will be an experience they will remember, and that they will return regardless of the occasion."

Formed by Restaurateurs for Restaurateurs

Our value proposition is simple. We can better serve you and provide you with a single source solution because we specialize in and understand the restaurant industry. Preferred Restaurant Services continues to provide superior and specialized services in third party management, marketing, restaurant specific accounting, insurance programs and employee benefits to our shared clients. PRS is a single source provider – we identify needs that are unique to restaurateurs and tailor our services to meet each need.

If you are interested in benefiting from all that Preferred Restaurant Services has to offer please respond to this email or call PRS at 1-866-749-1939 and we will be glad to serve you.

What’s Preferred and Not Preferred

Top Food and Beverage Trends for 2009 - What’s Hot?
Restaurateurs are finding it more necessary than ever to stay ahead of the up and coming trends in the restaurant industry. Keeping a close eye on the curious and spontaneous taste buds of restaurant diners is essential in providing guests with the variety and innovative menu items they seek. From bite-size, mini desserts to organic wine, consumers are expecting unique offerings from today’s dining hot spots. Trends for 2009 will bring restaurateurs back to the grass roots of menu planning with locally grown and organic produce, nutritionally balanced children’s entrees with fruit and vegetable based side dishes, and exotic as well as super fruits like dragon fruit, guava and the goji berry. Placing creative, more health conscience items in key locations on the menu is vital as the modern day restaurant diner is closely watching their waistline without wanting to pass up a fun and unique dining experience.

The top 10 hot trends in the National Restaurant Association What’s Hot Chef’s Survey\

• Locally grown produce
• Bite-size / mini desserts
• Organic produce
• Nutritionally balanced children’s dishes
• New fabricated cuts of meat (e.g. Denver steak, pork flat iron, bone-in Tuscan veal chop)
• Fruit/vegetable children’s side items
• Superfruits (e.g. acai, goji berry, mangosteen)
• Small plates/tapas/mezze/dim sum
• Micro-distilled/artisan liquor
• Sustainable seafood

The top 5 concept trends

1. Experimentation &Innovation: Operators are becoming more creative from experimenting with new menu items, delivery services, price/bundling schemes and unit designs (including smaller, more efficient footprints)
2. Ethnic Flare: Restaurateurs are differentiating themselves by centering their menu or restaurant around a specific cuisine, ethic flavors or country or region. Examples include Korean or Vietnamese instead of just "Asian".
3. That’s What I Call Fresh!: To keep with the "going green" trend, consumers are also interested in all things local. Utilizing regionalized menu offerings and locally grown food products will generate greater diner support for local restaurant operators.
4. Goldilocks and the Three Bears - Too little? Too big? Or just right?: Look for smaller plate, prix-fixe or bar menus as well as family-style entrees to cut food costs. Keep large catering bookings coming!
5. Kids’ menus that "Wow": Put that mac-and-cheese at the bottom of the kids menu and showcase your seafood restaurant with a crab cake or an Italian restaurant with Sundried Tomato and Chicken Gnocchi.
   

Ask Dean McSherry

Q: Dear Dean: My restaurant has 24 4-tops and Valentine’s Day typically brings in parties of two. Do you have any suggestions for maximizing Valentine’s Day revenue?

A: If you have storage space, I would recommend putting your 4-tops in storage and renting thirty 2-tops. With three turns at $60 a head, you can make $10,800 on Valentine’s Night alone. Because Valentine’s Day falls on a Saturday, use this to your advantage and completely book your restaurant Thursday night through Sunday night. Aim for at least two turns on Thursday, Friday and Sunday. This could bring you more than $32,400 in a single weekend for dinner only. Don’t forget about the lunch crowd!

Now, how do you fill the seats? Send an email to your customer database advertising your Valentine’s Day menu specials as well as complimentary roses and champagne, neither of which will increase your cost by much. Advertise with online websites who promote wine dinners and events in your local area. Contact guests who have participated in wine dinners or visited your restaurant on anniversaries or for special occasional in the past and personally invite them to be a part of the Valentine’s Day festivities. Best of luck to you and your restaurant during the Valentine’s Day weekend!

Q: Dear Dean: How is the restaurant industry being affected by the economic slowdown? And how does that, in turn, affect your restaurant services business?

A: The casual dining restaurant segment has seen sales drop about 20%; fine dining is down between 8% and 10%. The problem is compounded because the cost of goods – from fuel to grains and produce – is rising. We’re blowing and going. Outsourcing services do well in an economic downturn because companies look for leaner ways to operate their businesses. They consider ways to consolidate or eliminate their corporate office, for example, and for ways to operate more efficiently in general. We have a lot of opportunity because outsourced services are not as prevalent in restaurants as in other industries.

More News From Restaurateurs for Restaurateurs

Healthwise

Hilda Bessire (Director of Benefits) invites you to check this section out each month with tips and information you can use to enhance your health benefits program and promote healthier lifestyles for you and your restaurant employees. We will also provide resources like Healthwise, an online library that’s filled with thousands of health topics that may help you in designing new menu items for your guests.

January Tip of the Month
If you lost sight of your health goals over the holidays, these simple steps will help to get you back on the right track for balanced eating. Visit myCIGNA.com for more healthy tips.

• Don’t skip meals to compensate for earlier calorie overload - just return to “normal” portions.
• Be sure to drink plenty of water every day - it helps to keep you feeling less hungry.
• Replace holiday snacks with fruits or raw vegetables.
• Limit sugary and alcoholic drinks.

Customized Health Tips for Your Lifestyle

Help your employees stay healthy this year! Click on the myHealth tab on myCIGNA.com to complete a health assessment. You will get customized information about what you should focus on this year and what changes you need to consider living a healthier, happier 2009. It can help you:

• Identify medical conditions and health risks;
• Monitor your personal health status; and
• Learn more about preventive care.

This assessment is available to CIGNA members age 18 and over.

Health-Conscious Menu of the Month - Jimmy Wilson’s

In honor of New Year’s Resolutions, Jimmy Wilson’s Seafood & Chop House has created a Healthy Dining insert for their menu featuring selections from their current menu to assist guests in making wise and healthy choices. Their Healthy Dining menu features all sorts of fresh fish and crab that are flat grilled in olive oil. Delicious salads, vegetable sides, appetizers and fruit drinks all promote making wise eating choices. More tips for healthy ordering are also given to assist diners in their selection process.

“We have always been a choice for customers when it came to healthy dining because we cook it your way!” states Ellen Gonzalez, Partner of Jimmy Wilson’s Seafood & Chop House. “Since seafood has been our basis for so many years it was easy to be a heart healthy, Mediterranean diet, fresh not frozen with added sulfites choice for Houston diners. Any special request that comes up, we seem to be able to accommodate customers and with more than one selection that would fit their need.”

Jimmy Wilson’s is also our newest client to take advantage of Marketing Services. Please contact Eva Mangas at emangas@prslp.com for information about Marketing Services through PRS.

Please join me in welcoming Preferred Restaurant Services New Client Partners. Best wishes for a successful 2009.

New Clients

Gravitas, Kraftsman Bakery, Textile - Chef Scott Tyser, Owner
807 Taft, Houston, Texas (3 locations)
Services: P&C, Payroll, N/S, Benefits

Bedford - Famed Chef Robert Gatsby
1003 Studewood, Houston, Texas
Services: P&C, Payroll, N/S, Benefits

Killgore’s - Mike Haney, Owner
211 FM 1960 W., Houston, Texas
Services: P&C, Payroll, N/S, Benefits

Stadia - Sammy Vela, Owner
22762 Westheimer Parkway, Ste 400, Houston, Texas
Services: P&C, Payroll, N/S, Benefits

El Ranchito & La Calle Dolce - Laura Sanchez, Owner
(3 Locations) Dallas, Texas
Services: P&C, N/S

The God Father Seafood Grill - Jerry Forte, Owner
200 route 10 West, East Hanover, New Jersey
Services: P&C

The Inn Flight Restaurant - Scott Martin, Owner
284 East Street Road, Feasterville, Pennsylvania
Services: P&C, Payroll, WC

Katzenberg’s - Denise Maples, Owner
Greenwich Connecticut; Westport, Connecticut; Scarsdale, New York (3 Locations)
Services: Accounting, Payroll, WC

The Mill In Spring lake Heights - Tamar Torching, Owner
101 Old Mill Rd, Spring Lake, New Jersey
Services: P&C

Haakon Hall NYC - James Lenzi, Owner
1187 Amsterdam Avenue, New York, New York
Services: P&C, Payroll, WC

Frisco - Stan Miller, Owner
Austin, Texas
Services: P&C Non sub payroll

Vino 313 - Michael Sosankin, Owner
201 East 31st, Manhattan, New York
Services: Benefits

Rolly’s Bistro - Roland Baarer, Owner
Cranberry, New Jersey
Services: P&C

Greek Olive South - Tony Antonakis, Owner
100 Church Street, New Haven, Connecticut
Services: Payroll, WC

South Side Fish and Clam - Sal Gambino, Owner
1095 Jericho Turnpike, Commack, New York
Services: P&C, Payroll, WC

Mother Kelly’s East Express - Lisa Lanese, Owner
575 Underhill Blvd, Syossey, New York
Services: P&C, Payroll, WC

Flanigan’s Boat House - Jim and Bill Flanagan, Owners
118 North Wayne Ave, Wayne, Pennsylvania
Services: P&C, Payroll, WC

Bella Restaurant & Bar - Anthony Porcaro, Owner
2626 Howell Street, Suite 100, Dallas, Texas
Services: P&C, N/S, Payroll

Added Services
Jimmy Wilson’s Seafood & Chop House - Marketing Services

Employee Spotlight

Shannon Gilbert
Welcome Back Shannon Gilbert, Controller who returned to Preferred Restaurant Services in October 2008.

We are pleased to have her back on the team and heading our accounting department. Shannon has nine years accounting experience in accounts payable, accounts receivable, billing and Customer Service. Shannon also has background in accounting and Human Resources recruitment. Shannon is a specialist in conflict resolution and is available to advise anytime.

Shannon has two children, Chad (13) and Cori (10) and enjoys riding her bike and training for decathlons and triathlons in her free time. Shannon’s favorite food is Mexican and enjoys dining with the entire family when ever she gets a chance. Shannon love’s Mattito’s and is so glad they opening their second location in Frisco as that is where her and her husband Jason and children live.

“I missed everyone and I am looking forward to servicing you again” Shannon can be reached at (972)764-5209 or sglilbert@prslp.co

Heather Hancock
Meet Heather Hancock, Marketing Coordinator and Executive Assistant, who joined Preferred Restaurant Services in December of 2008.

Heather graduated from the University of North Texas with a Bachelor’s Degree in Hospitality Management in 2008. She brings three years of experience in the club industry and restaurant industry. Most recently Heather worked for Stonebriar Country Club in Frisco, Texas where she also completed an internship in Private Events, Membership, and Member Relations Management.

Heather also partnered with her husband in opening a dueling piano bar in Lewisville, Texas in 2007. “If only Preferred Restaurant Services were around when we had our restaurant”.

“I am excited to be a part of our Preferred Restaurant Services and I look forward to helping our Clients achieve their revenue goals.” Heather can be reached at (972) 764-2753.