Oser Communications Group

Restaurant Daily News May 17 2013

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R e s t a u r a n t D a i l y N e w s F r i d a y, M a y 1 7 , 2 0 1 3 8 0 KM: I design unique tabletop products for hotels and restaurants worldwide. We work mostly with highly durable, food and dishwasher safe resin. Our resin is unique in its ability to withstand the heat from industrial dishwashers. More importantly, the colors and textures I work with are limitless, and all of my designs are made with the colors added into each piece. The color will not come off during use or washing. RDN: Tell us more specifically how you conceptualize your designs? KM: The textures and colors I use emu- late many organic properties. I can real- ly create any texture needed, but I prefer creating ones that are familiar to all of us. I often work with a beautiful hand- carved texture and when I add black or brown to the resin, it looks like wood. When I add colors like red or orange, it looks like translucent glass. So you can serve anything on this design that emu- lated wood but you know the piece won't collect bacteria or dry or crack like wood does after a few uses. Some other fun and recent creations occurred by simply adding various shades of whites to bright, pop colors. Suddenly, my pieces took on these amazing effects of shades or stone. RDN: What would you say makes your designs unique? KM: I think there are two simple things that make Kenny Mack Designs a unique brand and company. First, as mentioned above, the materials I work with are unique. I know of no other company working with food and dish- washer safe resin and marketing it to hospitality professionals or even to the consumer market. Secondly, I'm com- Kenny Mack (Cont'd. from p.1) mitted to keeping the designs looking and exclusive and hand-made, which they are. My designs are not for every hotel brand. I want to work with cre- ative professionals who want and expect great design and those who want to set themselves apart from their com- petition. Furthermore, I want to work with the client that stops to think about what they are serving their food on. I'm not a brand that will ever appeal to the chef who doesn't have a great eye and expectation for how he or she presents their culinary wonders. RDN: In what hotel or restaurant setting would a guest most likely see your designs? KM: Wow, there are so many. However, to mention a few, the guest would see them as vessels on banquet displays at a business conference or an elite wedding. They are frequently used poolside or sea- side as they do not shatter and are safe to use in these areas. Many chefs create beautiful amenities on my pieces for VIP arrivals and photograph and list them on their room service menus. RDN: Why did you choose to market you designs to the hospitality industry? KM: Formerly, I was a wholesale execu- tive for exclusive tabletop brands that sold mostly to retailers and to the con- sumer. I knew about the world of Hospitality and the great need for unique products so I made it my mission to intro- duce these companies to this world. Without a doubt, I enjoyed these clients and the relationships we built more than all others. Visit Kenny Mack Designs in booth 9712 or at www.kennymackdesigns.com. For more information, call 212.666.3261 or email kenny@kennymackdesigns.com. of friends, family, and future customers. Only instead of a cash return, backers receive perks and rewards like free dessert, discounts, and cooking work- shops. Founder Alex Sheshunoff explained its appeal. "We allow own- ers to tap into the emotional relation- ship people have with food and restau- rants. The result? Debt-free capital that also creates a built-in customer base." Foodstart has been up in beta for just a few months, but already more than 60 restaurants and food trucks have signed on, perhaps enticed by its low 5 percent fee and no setup costs. Among Foodstart.com's unique (and free) offerings: physical cards for backers, a complete, social-media mar- keting program, and printed promo- tional materials. One client, Ed Wilson with Wilson's BBQ in Connecticut said of Foodstart, "They sent me some great-looking custom fliers. Turns out, one of my customers is an investment banker, and it looks like we're going to get all $300,000 in funding we were looking for." Another Foodstart client, Sarah Cate with the Saucy Sicilian in Tennessee said, "The response we've received in pledges and people contacting us, liking our Facebook page, etc. has been over- whelming—in all the ways I hoped it Foodstart.com (Cont'd. from p.1) would be!" Foodstart Advisory Board mem- ber, Steve Rockwell, a restaurant industry consultant and former equity research analyst, said this kind of com- munity-funding model will be a key part of restaurant finance in the future. And Rockwell should know. He's helped companies such as Ruby Tuesday, Outback Steakhouse, Papa John's, and Jamba Juice raise over $1 billion in public and private equity. "Most independent restaurant owners have limited financing options," Rockwell said. "A platform like Foodstart's not only helps them raise capital, but almost as importantly, it creates a network of loyal cus- tomers. And that's something tradi- tional sources of capital have a hard time doing." Sheshunoff admits that raising money from a broad group isn't a new idea. "The Green Bay Packers first sold shares to the public in 1923. Even though their shareholders only get a paper certificate and a behind-the- scenes tour, they have 360,000 share- holders—and the most passionate fans in football. We're just applying the same concept to restaurants." For more information, visit www.food- start.com, email Alex directly at AlexS@foodstart.com, or stop by booth 5525. beverage presentations. Tillen Farms uses a unique preserva- tion method to insure the exceptional crispness of its range of asparagus, beans, carrots, snap peas and more, all grown in Washington's agriculturally rich Yakima Valley. Unlike most picklers who cook their vegetables in the jar, Tillen Farms blanches and shocks its vegetables prior to brining. By minimizing the exposure to heat, Tillen Farms' vegetables retain their "fresh from the field" flavor, rich color and exceptional crispness. While the entire range is shelf stable, when chilled, the vegetables taste like they've just been picked. The most popular varieties, Asparagus and Spicy Beans, are now available in 12 x 26.5-ounce food service sized jars.All products are trimmed and hand packed to minimize breakage. Recognizing the growing allergen concern with children as well as adults, all Tillen Farms vegetables and cherries are gluten-free, vegan and nut-free. Tillen Farms expanded the range several years ago with the introduction of the first clean pitted and stemmed Maraschino cherry. These cherries are grown and processed in Oregon's Willamette Valley. They are made with only natural ingredients and contain no preservatives, no artificial flavors, no red dye No. 40 and no corn syrup. All Tillen Farms cherries are kosher certified, too. And unlike traditional maraschinos, Tillen Farms' cherries will not stain wait staffs' or bartenders' fingers! The cherry range has expanded to the very popular Bada Bing Cherry™, a Tillen Farms exclusive which many Tillen Farms (Cont'd. from p.1) restaurants now claim to be the "ulti- mate" Manhattan cherry. Both Tillen Farms Bada Bings and Merry Maraschinos are now available in ½-gal- lon sizes for the food service trade. In early 2013, Tillen Farms expand- ed the cherry range to include two more pitted, stemmed offerings: Rainier Reserve and Pink Blush Maraschinos. The Rainier Reserve, a yellow blush cherry from Mt. Rainier, Wash., is wide- ly considered the most prized and pam- pered cherry of all. Normally, only avail- able for a brief four to six-week period during the summer, Tillen Farms is now offering this beauty year round. The Pink Blush Cherry is a joint venture project between Tillen Farms and the Oregon Cherry Growers, a leading co-op in Oregon. Oregon Cherry Growers has committed an annual dona- tion of a minimum $10,000 to help fund research for early detection and to find a cure for breast cancer. Tillen Farms proudly supports this initiative and is marketing Pink Blush to all specialty trade channels. With the growing popularity of so many classic drinks like Manhattans and the discovery by a younger generation of Bloody Marys, Tillen Farms invites all interested parties to booth 7688 to expe- rience the complete range of veggies and cherries. The company will be serving a special infusion and samples are avail- able upon request. More information can be found at www.tillenfarms.com or by calling 212-957-0055.Visit the company at the 2013 National Restaurant Association Show booth 7668. ENGLISH MANUFACTURING JOINS LEED, AUTOQUOTES, KCL The U.S. Green Building Council devel- oped a framework and system to notice, educate and commend building owners and companies who are dedicated to improving performance in saving energy, saving water, reducing CO2 emissions, reducing waste and ultimately improving overall environmental quality. As the first sneeze guard manufacturer to become a member of LEED through the USBGC, English Mfg. knows how important LEED points are in the planning, build- ing, and maintaining of projects. By working to maintain sustainabili- ty through passive solar power systems, recycling and using natural resources as well as enacting systems to maximize productivity, English Mfg. strives to con- stantly improve environmental quality, product quality and service quality while minimizing its carbon footprint and assisting designers and architects in achieving green status in their building of projects. English Mfg. products are also in AutoQuotes. AutoQuotes is an important systems application as well as a great marketing tool. AutoQuotes provides reps, consultants and dealers quick and reliable access to the latest pricing and specifications throughout the industry all in a single library. Many customers wouldn't even consider a new product that isn't listed in AutoQuotes ... and unlike typical businesses, AutoQuotes is always open. The KCL Cadalog contains thou- sands of CAD drawings from hundreds of foodservice equipment manufacturer's product lines. These drawings represent accurate views of foodservice equipment models and are an important tool for designers. Like AutoQuotes, KCL is also accessible at all hours of the day. Being in KCL is very important for English Mfg., as sneeze guards are one of the most cus- tom pieces of food service equipment. When designers have access to drawings, it makes it easier for them to design their counters and serving lines accordingly. Look for English Mfg. in KCL! Visit www.englishmfg.com or call 800- 651-2711 for more information.

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