Tough Economy Operations
Q. What Trends Do You Foresee Developing or Diminishing Over the Next Few Years?
Rich Chey, owner of HomeGrown Restaurant Concepts
With the way the economy is, value is going to continue to be a huge part of the restaurant business. We’ve always been really conscious of making sure we’re giving people a lot of bang for their buck. With the economic conditions and people looking to pinch pennies, it’s going to be more and more of an issue. From the operator’s standpoint, I think it’s a little more difficult because you’re running on tighter margins. With all the cost pressures we’ve been facing, whether it’s supplies or utilities or occupancy costs, you just have to be really careful with how you’re running your business and really paying attention to the details. I think the interest in ethnic foods will also continue. We’ve seen pretty good growth at our Asian concept, Doc Chey’s. People are looking for bolder flavors and fresher ingredients – things other than your typical hamburgers.
Scott Crawford, Chef of the Georgian Room at Cloister Hotel
From a chef’s standpoint, I’ve got to say that buying local-relationships with local farmers and growers instead of larger produce companies – is here to stay. It started off as a trend when I was introduced to it in California years ago. The fact was, we did it for flavor, but it’s also the right thing to do. We save a ton of money on shipping, and we’re using a safer product. In most cases, these are organically grown products. Now I’m seeing it developed into a standard in the industry. I think it’s definitely here to stay, and I think it’s fantastic.
I’m seeing a diminishing demand for ridiculously high-end products such as caviar. At one time, when the economy was very strong, it was almost a status thing to be ordering these items. What I’m seeing now is more of a demand for just excellently prepared food. People in fine dining are actually really into pork belly and local food that’s not flown in, like Dover sole. I’ve seen a greater demand for fish that were just in the water hours ago. It doesn’t have to be overly expensive product; it just has to have the love put into it.
Riccardo Ullio, Chef/owner of U Restaurants
Everything will have a lot to do with the way the economy goes. If the economy takes a long time to recover and there continues to be this economic crisis, I think we’re going to see two trends. The first one is comfort food. When people are having a hard time and they want to make sure their dining dollar is spent wisely, they’re going to be more likely to go eat steak and mashed potatoes or eat at an Italian restaurant versus going to try some experimental cuisine somewhere, because they don’t want to take any chances. The other thing I’ve noticed is that low-end restaurant concepts are going to continue to do well and thrive – taquerias and pizza by the slice, those kinds of restaurants – because people seek out value, and they will see that as being of value.
