Harvest America CUES BLOG

restaurants

  • FULL-FLAVORED FALL and RESTAURANT PROFITABILITY

    Well, it is definitely fall. To most people this is the beginning of close family events and memories. A time when we begin to hunker down for a winter season and start to fill our pantry with those ingredients that… Continue reading

  • IS YOUR RESTAURANT STRUGGLING TO MAKE A PROFIT? LET’S LOOK AT THE MENU.

    The restaurant business is built on very narrow margins. We are constantly faced with decisions that nip away at the pennies that operators try to make on every dollar in sales. Let’s look at some basic facts that have placed… Continue reading

  • SOUP’S ON!

    The air is crisp, fog sits on the lake every morning, leaves are turning to vibrant colors, sweaters come out of hiding, the sun burns off the fog but still leaves a chill in the air, and cooks are busy… Continue reading

  • LIKE HIM OR NOT, BOURDAIN’S CURRENT MESSAGE IS ON THE MARK

    Initially known for his not so favorable depiction of life in a professional kitchen, Bourdain drew praise as a writer, comradery from many “pirate” cooks, and frequent distain from those in the food industry who were trying to build a… Continue reading

  • LABOR DAY THOUGHTS

    This picture was a perfect opening for some Labor Day musings. I am part of an industry that is interesting to many on the outside, challenging to those who own restaurants, exciting to those who find themselves in the grips… Continue reading

  • SHORT ORDER COOKS WERE MY HEROS

    I can still remember that day in my hometown of Buffalo, New York. I was 10 years old and on a shopping trip downtown with my mother as we came upon that restaurant with a full picture window framing in… Continue reading

  • 100 IDEAS A WEEK, IS ONE OF THEM BRILLIANT?

    So here is the dilemma – I can’t turn it off! I can’t stop designing the next great restaurant concept in my head. Is this a problem? A good friend of mine, in a totally different field, suffers from the… Continue reading

  • Chefs and Servers with Different Motivations

    When chefs and service staff are not on the same page the guest experience is confused and disjointed. When I have referenced the importance of team in the kitchen I am concerned that some might think that if that “culinary… Continue reading

  • The Spark of an Idea – A Restaurant is Born

    Are you an idea person? Maybe you are more of an implementor. Or are you a bit of both? Does this picture represent you: * I can’t stop my brain from working overtime * I have lists of ideas everywhere… Continue reading

  • Every Picture Tells a Story

    Ever since I came across this photo I have not been able to get it out of my mind. The photographer caught what every artist and craftsman gets up in the morning to do: move people. Music, like cooking is… Continue reading

  • Realistic Expectations for Culinary School Graduates

    This is an article that I posted two years ago regarding the expectations that young graduates of culinary education oftentimes have when first entering a professional kitchen. I felt that it fit well with the series of recent posts that… Continue reading