The Dallas Morning News’ Post

Imagine seeing your restaurant's signature dishes on grocery store shelves. Our Menu to Market On-Demand Webinar teaches you how to make it happen. This is your chance to expand beyond the restaurant and into the retail world. Watch our webinar anytime and start your journey to becoming a retail powerhouse. Register now: https://lnkd.in/gfujSQF6 #MenuToMarket #CPG #restaurants #growthstrategies #groceryindustry #grocerystores #grocery #cpgbrands #foodindustry #restaurantgrowth

#FunFoodFactFriday The first Waffle House opened on September 5, 1955. The restaurant was a collaboration of neighbors in Avondale Estates, Georgia, about 10 miles outside of Atlanta. Joe Rogers Sr. and Tom Forkner decided that the area needed a 24-hour, sit-down restaurant for their friends and neighbors that combined the speed of fast food with the round-the-clock concept. They opened the first Waffle House on Labor Day in 1955. The venture was named Waffle House to promote their highest-profit item—the waffle. Because the waffle did not lend itself to takeout, the owners also thought that encouraging waffle ordering might encourage diners to stay and linger. Forker would say, “We are not in the food business. We are in the people business.” The restaurant signs were painted bright yellow to attract drivers' attention, and menu items included waffles and eggs for 40 cents, hash browns for 20 cents, Coca-Cola for 10 cents, and a filet mignon for $1.50. Waffle House continues to be an icon, with more than 2,000 locations across 25 states. Every minute, Waffle Houses serve an average of 341 bacon strips, 238 orders of hash browns, 145 waffles, and 127 cups of coffee. Other Fun Facts: *** Waffle House used to serve Chick-fil-A. The chain was once licensed to sell fellow Atlanta-based CFA sandwiches. However, the sandwiches got so popular that orders were impacting Waffle House’s regular menu, so the partnership was stopped. *** The original Waffle House location still exists, but it has now been turned into a museum containing Waffle House memorabilia. It can be toured only by appointment, and the tours fill up months in advance. *** Waffle House releases its own custom waffle-based songs, starting with “Waffle House Family.” A full selection can be found on jukeboxes in Waffle House locations. *** FEMA uses the “The Waffle House Index” to determine how hard a natural disaster has hit a town: Code Green means Waffle House is open and serving a full menu, Code Yellow means Waffle House is serving a limited menu, supplies may be low, and power may be off, and Code Red means Waffle House, Inc. is closed and the area needs immediate assistance. #cpgindustry #wafflehouse #nowyouknow #forhireresults The Newell Group

Imagine seeing your restaurant's signature dishes on grocery store shelves. Our Menu to Market On-Demand Webinar teaches you how to make it happen. This is your chance to expand beyond the restaurant and into the retail world. Watch our webinar anytime and start your journey to becoming a retail powerhouse. Register now: https://lnkd.in/gpm4J8U9 #MenuToMarket #CPG #restaurants #growthstrategies #groceryindustry #grocerystores #grocery #cpgbrands #foodindustry #restaurantgrowth

Thinking tacos with friends for Cinco de Mayo? 🛒 Grocers sell 47% more taco ingredients leading up to May 5 — and shoppers can expect to spend ~$57 while they’re at it. 🌮 Or maybe you’re thinking of going to your favorite taco restaurant? You won’t be alone, as we usually see a 12%+ increase in foot traffic. #grocery #restaurant #foodandbeverage #consumerinsights

Great coverage on this stark reality. Operating on razor-thin margins, with '10% profit if you're lucky,' independent restaurants are further squeezed by the 3% card processing fees, consuming 30% of their potential profit pie. While platforms like Doordash impose a hefty 30% delivery fee on independent eateries, major chains leverage 'delivery auction systems' to force delivery services to compete on the cheap. For instance, on a $24 lunch order at a local eatery, Grubhub/Uber Eats might pocket $8, leaving the business owner with a meager $1 profit after accounting for tips and costs.

Darden Restaurants, owners of Longhorn Steakhouse and the Olive Garden, among others, is paying an amazing 20X profits for Chuy's. As a strategic buyer, Darden knows that they can plug the successful 100+ restaurant chain (vs Okive Gardens 90+ locations) into their formula and turn a profit within a handful of years. The playback? Taking more of your eating out dollar. Have you noticed how you find many of these family-friendly, mid-tier restaurants all together? That's because they know you will eat a variety of foods, but if they can keep you locked into a single location, that location will win more of your dollars. The next step up from there is to own more brands in the location. And that is Dardens play. https://lnkd.in/gJhNDwrb

• What is your favorite RESTAURANT in the Farmington Valley? Answer here in the comments and you'll likely be included in Today Magazine's coverage of ... you guessed it, restaurants in the Valley and CT — Valley towns: Avon, Canton, Farmington, Granby, Simsbury • Option #1 — explain why in 10 words or less • Option #2 — if it's too tough to pick just one, list up to three

A love letter to authentic Mexican food? Yes, please. The best Insights & Action Planning team available in the world of #customerexperience? That’s SMG - Service Management Group Check out the video below to learn how we helped elevate the #cx program: a brand that was previously “data rich, but insights poor”.

Finally, meaningful conversation about smaller portions in restaurant meals. Restaurant and take-out meals have become the portion size benchmark for many, and many are too big! https://lnkd.in/ecRpABBy

An interesting value proposition - do you think we'll get on board? I attended a webinar this morning, which showed some survey results from the UK indicating the top three reasons someone chooses to dine out where they do are: 1. Familiarity, they've eaten there before 2. Convenience, it's close to where they are at the time 3. Value, it's a good bang for their buck Further down the list are things like quality of ingredients (No. 5), friendly service (No. 8), or locally sourced ingredients (way down at No. 16). Although this doesn't reflect an American consumer population, I'd venture to guess the rankings would be similar. In this era of heightened consciousness about food waste + price sensitivity, what do you think about reduced portion sizes in restaurant settings? (webinar presented at the Food Navigator Digital Summit for Climate Smart Food)