1. Chapter 6: The Restaurant Business

2. Chapter 6 The Restaurant Business
Classical Cuisine
Food Trends and Practices
Developing a Restaurant
Menu Planning
Classifications
Trends

3. The Restaurant Business
Vital part of everyday life
As a society we spend about 50% of our food dollars away from home
The word restaurant comes from the French word meaning restore
Multi-billion dollar business employing 12.5 million people

4. Classical Cuisine
North America gained most of its culinary legacy from France through 2 main events:
French Revolution in 1793—caused the best French chefs of the day to lose their employment because their bosses lost their heads! Many chefs came to North America as a result.
In 1784, Thomas Jefferson spent five years as envoy to France, and brought a French chef to the White House when he became president.
Mari-Antoine Careme (1784–1833) is credited as the founder of classical cuisine
August Escoffier (1846–1935) is also noted for his many contributions to cuisine

5. Classical Cuisine
There are five mother sauces: Béchamel, velouté, espagnole, tomato, and hollandaise
Nouvelle cuisine is a lighter cuisine and is based on simpler preparations—with the aid of processors, blenders, and juicers—using more natural flavors and ingredients

6. Food Trends and Practices
Chefs will need:
A strong culinary foundation.
Multicultural cooking skills and strong employability traits.
Additional management skills.

7. Developing a Restaurant
The restaurant:
Operating philosophy represents the way the company does business.
Market is composed of those guests who will patronize the restaurant.
Concepts are created with guests in mind and should fit a definite market.
Location should also appeal to the target market.
Ambiance, or the atmosphere, that a restaurant creates has both immediate conscious and unconscious effects on guests.

8. Menu Planning There are six main types of menus:
A la carte menus—items are individually priced
Table d’hôte menus—a selection of one or more items for each course at a fixed price
Du jour menus—lists the items “of the day”
Tourist menus—used to attract tourists’ attention
California menus—are so named because in some California restaurants, guests may order any item on the menu at any time of the day
Cyclical menus—repeat themselves

9. Menu Planning The many considerations in menu planning include:
Needs and desires of guests
Capabilities of cooks
Equipment capacity and layout
Consistency and availability of menu ingredients
Price and pricing strategy (cost and profitability)
Nutritional value
Accuracy in menu
Menu analysis (contribution margin)
Menu design
Menu engineering
Chain menus

10. Independent Restaurants
Typically owned by 1 or more owners—usually involved in the day-to-day operation of the business
Not affiliated with any national brand or name
They offer the owner independence, creativity, and flexibility, but are accompanied by the risk of failing

11. Chain Restaurants
A group of restaurants identical in market, concept, design, service, food, and name
The same menu, food quality, level of service, and atmosphere can be found in any one of the restaurants—regardless of location

12. Fine Dining
May be formal or casual and may be further categorized by price, decor/atmosphere, level of formality, and menu
Many serve haute cuisine—a French term meaning “elegant dining,” or literally “high food”
Most are independently owned and operated by an entrepreneur or a partnership
The level of service is generally high

13. Theme Restaurants  
A combination of a sophisticated specialty and several other types of restaurants
Generally serve a limited menu

14. Theme Restaurants Of the many popular theme restaurants, 2 stand out:
First, the nostalgia of the 1950s—as done in the T-Bird and Corvette diners
Second, the dinner house category—among some of the better-known national and regional chains are TGI Friday’s, Houlihan’s, and Bennigan’s
Casual, American bistro-type restaurants that combine a lively atmosphere created in part by assorted bric-a-brac to decorate the various ledges and walls

15. Celebrity Restaurants
Growing in popularity
Wolfgang Puck, Naomi Campbell, Michael Jordan, etc.
Celebrity restaurants generally have an extra zing to them—a winning combination of design, atmosphere, food, and perhaps the thrill of an occasional visit by the owner(s)

16. Steak Houses  
Adding additional value-priced items like chicken and fish to their menus in order to attract more customers
Upscale market leaders are Ruth’s Chris, Morton’s, and Flemings
The mid-price market leader is Outback Steakhouse

17. Casual Dining
Relaxed—includes restaurants from several classifications:
Mid-scale casual restaurants: Romano’s Macaroni Grill, The Olive Garden
Family restaurants: Cracker Barrel, Coco’s, Carrow’s
Ethnic restaurants: Flavor Thai, Cantina Latina, Panda Express
Over the past few years, the trend in dinner-house restaurants has been toward more casual dining

18. Family Restaurants Evolved from the coffee shop style of restaurant
Most are individually or family operated
Located in, or with easy access to, the suburbs
Most offer an informal setting with a simple menu and service designed to please the whole family

19. Ethnic Restaurants Majority are independently owned and operated
Mexican restaurants are the fastest growing segment
Our major cities offer a great variety of ethnic restaurants, and their popularity is increasing

20. Quick-Service/Fast-Food Restaurants
Included in this category: Hamburger, pizza, chicken, pancakes, sandwich shops, and delivery services
Increasing in popularity because of their location strategies

21. Hamburger McDonald’s New menu items (salads, breakfast, etc.)
Expanding overseas
Co-developing sites with gasoline companies
Each of the major hamburger restaurant chains has a unique positioning strategy to attract their target markets
Burger King hamburgers are flame broiled
Wendy’s uses fresh patties

22. Pizza Continues to grow $21 billion market Some major chains:
Pizza Hut
Domino’s Pizza
Papa John’s
Little Caesars

23. Chicken Perceived as a healthier alternative to burgers
KFC is market leader
Other chains:
Church’s Chicken
Popeye’s

24. Sandwich
Recently, menu debuts in the sandwich segment have outpaced all others
Classics, like melts and club sandwiches, have returned—but now there are also wraps
The leader in this segment is Subway—which operates more than 20,000 units in 75 countries

25. Bakery Café Headed up by Panera Bread
Goal is to make specialty bread broadly available to consumers across the United States
Focuses on the art and craft of bread making with made-to-order sandwiches, tossed-to-order salads, and soup served in bread bowls

26. Trends Demographics Branding Alternative outlets Globalization
Continued diversification
More twin and multiple locations
More points of service

27. The End