Label That Menu Launches Campaign

(via Inside Today's Bulletin)

Philadelphia - This fall, City Council will have to vote on a bill that would change the look of fast-food menus throughout the city.

As part of what some called Menu Labeling Action Day, a group of health advocates joined with city lawmakers in support of pending legislation that would require fast-food restaurants to post the caloric intake of food on their menus.

Early February, City Councilwoman Blondell Reynolds Brown, D, introduced a bill that would alter the city's health code and require chain restaurants and retail food establishments to make available certain nutritional information next to menu items.

Yesterday, the Label That Menu Coalition lobbied members of City Council for the passing of the measure. Similar bills have been passed in California, Oregon and New York.
(...Read the rest of the article here)
If passed, the legislation would enforce all chain restaurants throughout the city, with 15 or more locations, to post the caloric information.

Oktoberfest in Villanova

via TheFullPint.com
“Oktoberfest is an exciting time of year for beer enthusiasts, and here in Pennsylvania it coincides beautifully with the fall harvest,” explains Terence Feury. “This is a natural way for us to shine a spotlight on local produce and meats, which has always been one of our passions at Maia, alongside some award-winning local beers.”

Philadelphia Fall Restaurant Preview 2008

via zagatbuzz

The temperature may be cooling, but the restaurant scene heats up this fall with a slew of new openings all over town (and beyond), including three swank new steakhouses and the return of two Chinese icons.

Alison Two: Alison Barshak (of the central Montgomery County fave Alison at Blue Bell) is penciling in late September for her high-style New American (424 S. Bethlehem Pike, Fort Washington).

Butcher & Singer: This swank steakhouse from Stephen Starr, a luxe retooling of Striped Bass, is planned for the third week of November (1500 Walnut St.).

Del Frisco’s Double Eagle: With locations in New York, Vegas and elsewhere, this meatery chain comes to Philly in mid-November, taking over a former law firm in the heart of Center City (111 S. 15th St.).

El Camino Real: This “Mexican border bar” from Owen Kamihira (Bar Ferdinand) will specialize in tacos and Texas barbecue when it opens in Northern Liberties’ former Deuce space in late September (1040 N. Second St.).

Du Jour Market & Café: No sooner did this casual spot debut in Center City’s Symphony House than plans were announced for another outpost to open in Commerce Square in late fall (2001 Market St.).

Earth Bread + Brewery: Hearth-baked flatbreads and brews, from the couple who founded Heavyweight Brewing, will be touching down in a Mount Airy storefront in late September (7136 Germantown Ave.; 215-242-6666).

Fiesta Acapulco: Gabriel Bravo (of Italian Market’s La Lupe) is looking at late September for this Mexican seafood BYO (1122 S. Ninth St.).

Ho Sai Gai: The Chinatown favorite reopens its long-closed second location in late September (10th and Race Sts.).

Izakaya: The Academy House dining space that briefly housed the ambitious but ill-fated Kaizan is due to reopen in October with a more casual Japanese drinking concept (1420 Locust St.).

Izumi: A casual sushi spot from the team at South Philly’s Paradiso is opening down the street in late September (1601 E. Passyunk Ave.).

Joe's Peking Duck Original 1984: Quirky chef/culinary figure Joe Poon sets up shop in Old City, and the ducks come out September 28th (108 Chestnut St.).

Mémé: Rustic New American fare in minimalist surroundings is the promise from chef David Katz (ex Restaurant M) when he opens shop September 21st (2201 Spruce St.).

Pickled Heron: This white-tablecloth American bistro in Fishtown, featuring house made charcuterie, is slated for late November (2218 Frankford Ave.).

Sticks & Stones: East Passyunk, the stretch of South Philly known for its Italian restaurants, is getting more than its share of gastropubs, including this October arrival from the owner of the former Felicia’s (1909 E. Passyunk Ave.).

Union Trust: What promises to be Center City’s only homegrown steakhouse will fill a former bank building (with a soaring ceiling) near Washington Square – projected opening is October 15th (717-719 Chestnut St.).

Pensylvania Smoke-Free Dining Starts Thursday

"Under the new Clean Indoor Air Act, which was 15 years in the making, restaurants will be required to prohibit smoking. But smaller bars and taverns, where on-premises food sales don't exceed 20 percent of total revenue, can ask the state Health Department for an exception to the smoking ban." via Post Gazette

Green Fish: Frozen is Fresher than Raw

Culinary leaders who care about reducing greenhouse gases linked to global warming need "to get people to understand that frozen is fresher than raw" most of the time, according to Food Network host Alton Brown.

Transporting what we eat accounts for 80 percent of the U.S. food system's greenhouse gas emissions, according to scientific studies, and the average American's eating habits account for 2.8 tons of carbon dioxide emissions each year, compared with the 2.2 tons of carbon dioxide the same person generates by driving.

via Washington Post

CompetitiveEdge Tip: Make Eating Healthy Easier for your Patrons

With economic trends beating up independent operators from both ends -- higher operating costs and lower dispensable income to splurge dining out-- restaurateurs need to embrace every opportunity to promote their business and to differentiate from their competitors. This article from CNN details a practical method to stand out to your prospective customers.

"The idea that eating healthy doesn't mean feeling deprived is something restaurants see as a vehicle for change, as a way to differentiate their offerings from their competitors," says Master Chef Mark Erickson, vice president for continuing education at the Culinary Institute of America.
Rock Creek restaurant in Bethesda, Maryland has reinvented their menu by offering "what you're supposed to eat -- proper portions, great flavor-and we use fresh, local ingredients as much as possible," says co-owner Tom Williams, who, with partner Judith Hammerschmidt, opened Rock Creek two years ago. The pair worked with Cynthia Payne Moore, R.D., a Baltimore, Maryland-based dietitian, to obtain nutritional analyses for every item on the menu, and they adjust recipes to avoid unnecessary fat and determine portion sizes.

They even put the nutritional information in the back of the menu, "so people who want to look at it do, and those who don't, don't," Hammerschmidt says.

Rock Creek is great example of a leader in our field. The nutritional analysis requirements for all food service establishments are coming... it's started in New York with multi-unit chains. Ruby Tuesday's is one of many national chains who have already dedicated their resources to labeling all menu items with their nutritional data. Even Dunkin' Doughnuts is offering healthier menu items starting August 6th! Like the smoking ban, it's only a matter of time before Philadelphia picks up similar legislature to force chains and independents to display their nutritional information.

Chef's Palette offers menu nutritional analysis and website design for restaurants at an affordable rate. Visit www.chefspalette.us for more information about menu nutritional analysis, recipe consultation and your website design needs.

Buy Fresh Buy Local Week

Next Saturday kicks off Buy Fresh Buy Local week in the greater Philadelphia area and here are some highlights.

• Saturday, July 12th - Ultimate Philadelphia Ice Cream Festival at the Reading Terminal Market
• Sunday, July 13th - Kickoff party at Philadelphia Brewing Company
• Wednesday July 16th - Local Beer and Local Hors d’oeuvres at Standard Tap
• Thursday July 17th -Southwark Happy Hour with Bluecoat Gin and Sly Fox beers
• Saturday July 19th - Good Food, Good Beer, and the Rest is History food and beer tastings at Headhouse Square
• Sunday July 20th - Cooking Demonstrations and Cookbook Swap at Headhouse Farmers’ Market

A complete list of events as well as tickets to the Kickoff at PBC can be found on Local Food Philly.

Buy Fresh Buy Local Week [Local Food Philly]

via foobooz.com

How's your Font?

via Time

In a paper that will appear in the October issue of Psychological Science, Hyunjin Song and Norbert Schwarz suggest that small changes in menu fonts can significantly alter people's perceptions of dishes' complexity and value.

"People infer that if something on a menu is difficult to understand or hard to read that it takes great skill and effort to prepare," says Song, a Ph.D. candidate in psychology at the University of Michigan. "When I go to an expensive French restaurant, I can hardly pronounce the words on the menu, so I take for granted that it's expensive because it's not comprehensible."

Minuscule menu print has become so commonplace that some restaurants, such as Eleven Madison Park and the Union Square Cafe in New York City, offer reading glasses for guests who need them, in the same way other restaurants offer dinner jackets. They do so not because their menus are poorly designed, which they are not, but because some guests, particularly those with declining vision, have grown accustomed to using reading glasses in dim light for menus with fine print. In Baltimore, an eye-care firm launched a program called MenuMates providing upscale area restaurants four pairs of reading glasses in a wooden recipe box.

What strategies do you use to make the most of your menu?

Green Savings for Small Restaurants

Via SF Gate

"Used cooking oil from American restaurants could provide enough biodiesel fuel to cut oil consumption by 350 million gallons a year - enough to eliminate imports from Syria, Yemen, the United Arab Emirates, Qatar, the Ukraine and Bolivia," said Michael Oshman, executive director of the Boston association.

High-profile restaurants that promote themselves as green typically talk about their food: Is it organic and sustainably grown? Do they limit greenhouse gas emissions by buying local ingredients that don't need to be flown halfway around the world?

But there's a second, behind-the-scenes aspect to being a green restaurant that diners rarely see.

This involves the same challenges faced by other kinds of small businesses trying to be environmentally sensitive - conserving water and electricity, choosing greener cleaning products, recycling and composting more of their trash.

Scott Tuffnell introduced recycling to Bianco's Deli in El Sobrante, placing empty pickle barrels at each workstation for compostable food waste. He has managed to reduce the trash that Bianco's sends to the landfill from four large bins each week to less than two.

Meanwhile, owner Alice Wan took a host of behind-the-scene steps to green Tin's Tea House Lounge in Walnut Creek - from replacing Styrofoam takeout containers with biodegradable ones made of cornstarch to installing low-flow nozzles and faucets in her busy kitchen.

The Green Restaurant Association provides information on how to green your restaurant at www.dinegreen.com.

What are you doing to simultaneously cut costs and go green?

Media -- Great Wednesday Night Spot

Tonight I went to a PA restaurant association mixer in Media, PA and had a great time! It was hosted by Brodeurs on State Street, a charming spot owned and led by Chef Dan Brodeur. Dan has initiated a new Wednesday night tradition for the summer months, a "dining under the stars" night with live entertainment and outdoor seating. Apparently he has coordinated with multiple local businesses and restaurants to make this a community event, where they block off the street and put out tables for the evening. They're right along a trolley line, so they're hoping to encourage out-of-towners to save gas by hopping on public transportation and dining with them for a midweek retreat.

I will definitely be back, Dan Brodeur has a good thing going on in Media.

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Restaurant Neighbor Award

How do you contribute to your neighborhood? Taking part in your local soup kitchen is not the only way you can make a difference. Associations and groups are always fundraising for clinical research to cure diseases or to help the less fortunate members of the community. Service projects can also be great team-building activities for your staff. The National Restaurant Association wants to recognize your efforts.

The Restaurant Neighbor Award is presented to a restaurant or company for its outstanding community service programs or project. Four national winners will be selected to receive $5,000 each for their philanthropic efforts and a trip to Washington in September to accept their awards. The application deadline is June 20. Click on the banner to apply.

Nutrition in NY

Chain restaurants in NY are being required to display their nutritional information, much to their dismay. The rules require calorie counts to be posted next to foods on display and on price boards and lists for all restaurant chains with more than 15 outlets nationwide.

Independents should take note, revealing your menu's nutritional content to your patrons will be a part of your future. Embrace this opportunity to be ahead of the curve by using your resources to determine your menu's nutritional content. (I'm talking about your food service distributor: Offer the opportunity to your primary and secondary sales representatives as an opportunity to increase their business with you, they won't pass it up!)

If you have not incorporated nutritional content into your menu before, why not start with calorie counts for two or three of your lighter fare dishes? Most people want to eat healthier, but they don't know how, or where to start. Help them by serving smaller portions with lean protein and steamed vegetables. Spice things up and focus on texture rather than rich fatty or sugary ingredients. Draw attention to these items with a special section on your menu, or promote it through word of mouth with your servers.

While the restaurant association may be fighting these regulations in court, it would not hurt for their constituents to be proactive in giving customers an opportunity to life a longer, healthier life.

To Compete with Chains

Before I went back to school for my degree in Culinary Arts and Restaurant Management, I frequently visited chains with friends. We had a good time and knew what we could expect -- from the menu, to service, to atmosphere. It was in our comfort zone. But early in my kitchen classes, one of Chef Reid's passionate rants about the industry resonated with me. His eyes glistened as he spoke of his heart breaking when he saw crowds at the local Olive Garden. Of patrons patiently waiting two hours+ to be seated when a local Italian independant restaurant struggled to make tables turn every night.

Sunday's Inquirer put a spotlight on Cherry Hill's Dream Cuisine, a 40-seat French Bistro, which made my mouth water as I read about their four-course prix-fixe menu and their intoxicating ingredients. Craig LaBan described "the distinct feeling that the chef is actually cooking here with heart," which I think is absolutely priceless. It's why I go out to eat now -- to share in a thoughtful chef's presentation of flavors and textures. It's an art form.

He also describes the unfortunate nature of the masses "But to watch the crowds steadily packing in for chain-level Italian food on the pergola-decked terrace of Toscana, an elaborately overdone faux-Tuscan villa from the owners of Italian Bistro, has been a challenge to [Chef] Fanari's morale."

I applaud LaBan for drawing our attention to the independents of the Greater Philadelphia Region. And I encourage the masses to support our local businesses such as Dream Cuisine. You might even find a little adventure in dining at a non-chain where you don't know what to expect, but you can trust a chef who cooks with heart.

Hungry Travelers

In 2007, Philadelphia hosted an additional 100,000 international visitors than the year prior. Did your establishment show up on their search via iPhone or wifi hotspot? Today's traveler keeps technology at their fingertips to find their next meal. "The United States Department of Commerce Office of Travel and Tourism Industries (OTTI) announced on Friday that Philadelphia hosted a record-breaking 550,000 international visitors in 2007, an increase of more than 100,000 from the previous year. Philadelphia is one of only two cities that reached a record level of international visitors in 2007." Hotel Interactive.com reports.


Google Maps provides an effective tool for travelers to quickly find businesses within walking distance of an address or intersection. Try searching for "cafe near 12th and walnut street, Philadelphia PA" and you'll find a number potential dining and sipping spots. Some locals sport rave reviews such as La Bohem Cafe. "This is a cute place where you can get good French bistro style food and wines by the glass" a May 9, 2008 visitor comments. I'm interested, but where's the menu and the pictures of the atmosphere? Are they on opentable.com so I can check for last minute reservations? The best way reassure out-of-towners that your restaurant should be a part of their Philadelphia experience is to catch their eye with an interactive website.

Thank You for Visiting

Welcome to the new Chef's Palette Blog! We have implemented a more streamlined look for our site and we plan to start reaching out to prospective customers in the coming weeks.

Stop back soon to check on our progress.