Page 18 - MENU Mag - July/August 2017

CELEBRATIONS AT FOODSERVICE SKEW HEAVILY TOWARDS FULL-SERVICE RESTAURANTS (FSR)– 68% OFALLOCCASIONSWEREDRIVENBY
CELEBRATING A SPECIAL EVENT.
THE AEC (AVERAGE EATER CHECK) IS MUCH HIGHER DURING
OCCASIONS DRIVEN BY CELEBRATION (ACROSS ALL OPERATOR TYPES), INDICATING HIGHER REVENUE-GENERATING OPPORTUNITIES DURING THESE SPECIAL EVENTS.
CELEBRATIONS AT FSR ARE MAINLY HELD DURING
DINNER (61%), ON-PREMISE (61%) AND SKEWS HEAVILY TOWARDS WEEKENDS (41%).
(58%) FEMALES ARE MORE LIKELY TO CELEBRATE AT FSR.
DAY OF THE WEEK FOR FSR, CELEBRATION OCCASIONS WEEKDAY: 59.5% WEEKEND: 40.5%
BACK OF HOUSE
“ CHEFS CAN GET BORED WITH CHURN
ING OUT THE SAME FOOD... AND AS
FOODIES WE WANTED TO TRY SOME FUN
STUFF, USING OUR LOCAL PRODUCE.”
Chris Cornhill - Food and Beverage Manager of Fredericton's Crowne Plaza, on his establishment's desire to challenge themselves.
2. MEET THE CHALLENGE
Chris Cornhill, Food and Beverage Manager of Fredericton’s Crowne Plaza, says his establishment’s entry into the event market came from a desire to challenge themselves. “Chefs can get bored with churning out the same food,” he says, “and as foodies we wanted to try some fun stu , using our local produce.” They organize a series of one-o experiences at Crowne Plaza’s restaurant, The Maverick Room, that involves food,
fun, and creativity, including:
• Adinnerthatfeaturesproducegrown
on their rooftop garden, where the menu is presented as a riddle
• “O al-lyGood”evenings,wheretheyshowcase less popular cuts of the whole
animals they buy for the restaurant
• Fire:Adinnerfromthe ames,
where ve courses are cooked outside over various res
Cornhill says the guests love these events. At one of the “O al-ly Good” evenings,
a group of strangers bonded over food and drinks, “toasting animal parts and cheering...I’m sure a night to remember for those involved!”
They host groups of up to 28 people, selling tickets in advance through Eventbrite to en- sure a guaranteed minimum of customers.
Cornhill says they’ve achieved what they hoped to: giving his food and beverage team the challenge they were looking for, and giving customers an event to remember
and a reason to come back.
3. GO BIG OR GO HOME
André Saint-Jacques, founder of Bearfoot Bistro in Whistler, BC says the restaurant has hosted events since it opened in 1995, starting with holiday parties and charity functions. The events gradually got bigger, and required more attention.
The restaurant responded by opening a catering division in 2010 to focus on the event market. They have hosted events in the restaurant, the parking lot, and other venues, including festivals. And their events can be huge: they have served anywhere between 100 and 30,000 guests.
Events have boosted the restaurant’s pro t- ability, but that’s just one of the advantages. They do a lot of fundraising work, so their brand is exposed to supporters of those charities. And on the sta ng side, they bene t from a large pool of occasional sta . “These events give us the chance to road- test the occasionals,” he says. “If they’re good, we hire them full-time.”
Bearfoot Bistro started small in the events market and have grown very big—and their brand has grown along with them.
(Source: Ipsos FSM)
18 MENU
JULY / AUGUST 2017