13 catersource rising-food-costs
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TACTICS TO COMBAT RISING FOOD & OPERATIONS COSTS
WARREN DIETEL, CEO, PUFF ’N STUFF CATERING, ORLANDO & TAMPA, FL
GREG KARL, PRESIDENT, EPICUREAN CULINARY GROUP, DENVER, CO
JIM ZILLI, CEO, ZILLI HOSPITALITY GROUP, WAUKESHA, WI
It is a fact of life that food and operations costs continue to rise. The financial squeeze between the retail price and the cost of food and operations often results in a reduction of bottom line profits. In today’s session we share a number of our best practices for combating these rising costs while protecting and increasing margin.❖ Develop standardized systems to reduce costly waste❖ Use menu engineering when designing cost-effective menus❖ Determine true production and overhead costs❖ Different factors to consider when strategically raising prices❖ Effective purchasing practices
TACTICS TO COMBAT RISING FOOD AND OPERATIONS COSTS
Presentation available at: http://www.slideshare.net/WarrenDietel
DEVELOP STANDARDIZED SYSTEMS TO REDUCE COSTLY
WASTE
Quality Control Team• Involve all department managers
• Meet weekly• Focus on top 3-5 goals per department• Take ownership & report minutes
• Director of Purchasing• Identifies cost effective items • Looks forward to both short & long term needs• Educates sales – promotions, new recipes, A-B-C list
BUILD A SYSTEMS-FOCUSED TEAM
• Form an executive team focused on quality• Develop Food and Service Standards – every member
looking out for quality, hospitality and service. • Involve the team in full strategic plan - Great for
culture.• Helps waste with hours, safety, efficiency of decision
making, four eyes on each event• Entire company knows who the QC Team is. • Review food before departure
QUALITY CONTROL TEAM
Velocity Reports• MPM velocity report by menu item • Friday report by month, YTD, by concept • Pricing & purchasing strategy direction
PEAR Report “Post Event Analysis Report”• Caption completes 8-9 pages• Average portion/person• What was returned? (Interview Dishwashers, look at
garbage)• Cost out party after the fact to measure GOP
REPORTING: WORK SMARTER, NOT HARDER
• 80% of your business comes from 20% of your clients (75/25) – focus on those clients
• Charging for tastings now to those clients who don’t hit our 75/25
• 80% of your sales come from 20% of your menu items – study what sells and what doesn’t.
• Be efficient and price items higher that sell.
80/20 RULE
Blend food & labor costs • Labor is a significant portion of menu cost• Example: Lobster is a high food cost, low labor cost
Utilize technology to:• Scale recipes & prep• Determine required items
Leverage small efficiencies• How many chefs chop parsley each day?• Consider offering screw top wine
EFFICIENT TEAMS
Epicurean used over 11,000 pounds of beef
tenderloin in 2012
Fancy word for Meat Glue, but it is better than it
sounds!
Use Transglutaminase
for a cost of $13 per pound
It’s not just for meat anymore
Cryovac Everything!
• Returned event food, can be made into small plates, apps, stocks, sauces
• Sautee & freeze Spinach/Greens in advance to save time• Fish can be turned into Tacos, Lobster Meatballs
PRESERVING THE ‘SERVE LIFE’ OF YOUR PRODUCT
Create hors d’oeuvres based on your typical waste
Leftover and end products of Cheese, Beef, Fish
Selling: Hors d’oeuvres offer a mouthful of
profit Full Quantities of each @ 4 Bites & Adjusted Quantities of each @ 4 bites
Epicurean purchased no herbs in the 2012 season.
Grow what you use!
Great marketing and sales tool to demonstrate fresh
product.
Grow a Garden
MENU ENGINEERING
• Designing Menus for in-season foods• When food is in-season, what can you make, can or cryovac?• When designing a Seasonal Menu, Seated Dinner or Suite
Experience – design for use of same product throughout the menu to reduce the amount of items to purchase and prep labor.
• Considering labor intensive vs. labor efficient menu items
WHAT IS MENU ENGINEERING?
The Basics:• Avoid too much variety and menu waste• Train to prepare low volume purchases• Tenderloin – Sirloin – Rib eye• Cut to first Tenderloin, even if it’s a smaller portion• Custom proposals
Bonus: • Put more expensive Items at end of buffet on the left • Less people tend to eat these items
STREAMLINE YOUR MENUS
• Understand your clientele• Rural people• Women drink
coffee, men indulge in protein
• Portion vs. production waste
PRACTICE PORTION CONTROL
Chef/Management is allowed to reduce quantities based on knowledge of events or
guest counts.
Guests Go Right – for station events, put more expensive items to the left and reduce
quantities.
Quantities: Tricks of the
Trade
EFFECTIVE QUANTIFICATION
EFFECTIVE QUANTIFICATION
• Start with a common item/sauce/ concept for variations• High-end menu items can be tailored for the appropriate
course and portion size• Lobster Mac ‘n Cheese = 7 service options• Hors d’oeuvre (2), buffet, plated, family style & action
stations (2) • Find a winning balance between budget and brilliance!
VALUE ENGINEERING
Lobster Mac ‘n Cheese is a rich interpretation of a classic comfort
food. This dish debuted on our menu an a luxurious hors d’oeuvre Chef Bar
combining fresh Maine lobster meat, savory pasta, Prosciutto de
Parma, petit pois, and rich cream in a decadent eighty pound Grana
Padana cheese wheel. The finished dish is garnished with
a basil leaf and presented to delighted guests on a crisp
Cheddar and Edam cheese tuile.
LOBSTER MAC ‘N CHEESE
Options 1 & 2: Hors d’Oeuvre•Smallest portion sizes•Tray passed•Perfect for large groups
•Medium portion size•Cost effective service style•Presented in chaffing dish
OPTION 3: BUFFET
• Plated meal • Medium portion size• Elegant service style• Introduce refined ingredients to
more simple meals
OPTION 4: FIRST COURSE
Options 5: Family Style• Presented on a shared
platter • Most generous portion• Relaxed service style
fosters conversation
Options 6 & 7: Action Stations•Prepared to order vs. pre-prepped•Most exciting and original presentation•Most expensive execution•Cost can be controlled by adjusting chef’s service style
1. $ Hors d’oeuvre – Butler-passed in an edible cup2. $ Hors d’oeuvre – Butler-passed as a mini plate3. $$ Buffet – presented in chaffing dishes4. $$ Plated – as a first course5. $$$ Family Style – presented on a platter6. $$$ Action Station – served from a chaffing dish or cooked to
order
VARIED OPTIONS FOR VARIED BUDGETS
• Develops all menus two seasons ahead.• Responsibilities: Recipe, Method, Pictures,
Teach Cooks how to Cook it and Back Captains how to prepare on site
• Great personality: help Sales People to sell what is in season and convince clients to use what is in season.
2013: THE YEAR OF THE R&D CHEF
DETERMINE TRUE PRODUCTION & OVERHEAD
COSTS
REMEMBER THE 80/20 RULE! 20% of Costs - impacted by smart purchasing
Remaining 80% - managed by operational controls “What you do once products arrive at your backdoor”
• When creating menus, we calculate labor, OT and fudge factor into the mix by historical numbers
• Four kitchens around the city and a Food Truck. Chefs speak to each other weekly to see what food items we can reuse. Chefs do cost transfer between profit centers.
• Certain kitchens are slower/busier at different times of the year. Use those down times to trade staff, save overtime, make and freeze bulk items that hold up.
• Stagger Staff in and out of parties. Tell staff that they must sign out at X time and that they need to come to the Captain. Force efficiency.
HOW TO MAKE YOUR KITCHEN LABOR WORK FOR YOU
Pricing• Set a base sell price for each menu item• Use software to mark-up based on venue commission, other
factors• Put a per person “Cleanup and Disposables” charge into
every menuVenues• Develop different menus for different venuesLabor• Electronic & smart phone tech for time & attendance• Stagger labor arriving and departing• Capture accurate time for work produced
LET YOUR SOFTWARE DO THE HEAVY LIFTING
STRATEGICALLY RAISING PRICES
• Know what prices went up and what didn’t• Know your place - a position of strength vs. weakness • Raise prices all at once
• Go up on only 1/3 of each menu – by 3 years, all up.• All prices across board rise 5%.• Administrative Service charge rise 2%
• Create a cycle, review prices each November• Menu type and by guest size volume
NOT IF, BUT WHEN YOU RAISE PRICES…
• Give away less! • Use a charity/donation
response form
DONATIONS
EFFECTIVE PURCHASING PRACTICES
1. Build and leverage relationships
2. Negotiate3. Manage
ordering/payments4. Manage in-house
processes
EFFECTIVE PURCHASING STRATEGIES
• We have an exclusive agreement with one major purveyor, but we still constantly shop. Other purveyors still know we can buy from them and bring us great deals.
• Go direct to manufacturers. Negotiate hard with purveyors. Remember BATNA for negotiating and Wayne Gretzky.
• Alcohol – saved us a ton of money going with one distributor. Better price on all products. Great incentives when we need to close and event or save money. 30 cases of Breckinridge Vodka and Bourbon for Skin & Bones.
• After negotiating to the bone with one purveyor we asked them to buy half of our box at Sports Authority Field and they did. It came from a different budget.
PURCHASING: DON’T BUY ALL YOUR EGGS FROM ONE BASKET
• Financial Consultant• Understand pricing
seasonality• Meat prices go up in the
fall• Sign one vendor contract,
but still shop around• Produce it yourself!
• Herbs, stocks, etc.• Liquor distributors donate
products
TIPS OF THE TRADE
THE CARDINAL RULE“Don’t chase the lowest price.”
Buying from multiple distributors dilutes your purchasing power.
THE CARDINAL RULE• Leverage your volume with a select few• Create win-win relationships with
distributors by clearly explaining your “definition of success”
• Listen to distributors’ challenges and needs• Remember – loyal and educated customers
receive better pricing
GROUP PURCHASING ORGANIZATIONS• Goal is simple: Contribute to the bottom line of the
members while increasing sales for participating suppliers• Analyze your organization and specific purchasing history,
needs, and future requirements• Develop unique purchasing strategies• Leverage the combined purchasing power with Distributers
and Manufacturers• Negotiate Master Distribution Agreement with Distributers
and Manufacturer Agreements
• Reduce your time “chasing the deal”
• Track and manage your refunds
• Identify manufacturer opportunities
• Piggy back on others • Typical Fee Structure
• 1% - 2% of Annual Purchases
• Percentage of Rebates • Manufacturer
GPO BENEFITS
Distribution Agreement Points• Financial
• Annual sales/commitments• Growth incentives• Deviated pricing • % of overall broad line business, 70% +• Audit privileges• Terms – payment and length (typically 1, 3 and 5 years)
• Logistics • Delivery $$$ or drop size, $1,500+• Delivery frequency, delivery day & time
• Product • Number of proprietary items stocked• Distributor branded items
NEGOTIATNG
• Receiving product• Invoice price• Product handling• Portioning/menu item
costs• Waste• Theft (Industry average
= 3%)• Appropriate pricing• Implementing systems
and controls
YOUR ROLE
FOOD FOR THOUGHT…
Develop your own network of fellow caterer’s of similar
size and philosophy to share best practices and learn from
each other
THANK YOU!PRESENTATION AVAILABLE AT:
HTTP://WWW.SLIDESHARE.NET/WARRENDIETEL