More than 75 percent of 367 patrons of a restaurant here said they would be willing to dine during off-peak hours in exchange for discounted prices, according to a research paper produced by Cornell Hotel School Professor Alex Susskind and published in a recent issue of the Cornell Hotel and Restaurant Administration Quarterly.
Two of every three respondents even said that they would be able and willing to change their dining time to earn such an incentive.
“Study results suggest that restaurant managers who do not take reservations may want to consider using incentives to increase business during off-peak hours,” Susskind said. “That strategy could result in both increased revenue and a more satisfied customer base, one that no longer must endure long waits for a table?
Respondents completed questionnaires while queued up for dinner at this popular, casual-dining restaurant, which does not take reservations.
Other key findings: Read the rest of this entry »
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A360-2004Apr9.html
McDonald’s plan to begin offering bunless sandwiches next month was directed at dieters who watch their carbohydrate intake. The company said that many customers already ask for bunless burgers, which will become a bona fide offering at the chain’s 13,000 restaurants. The meat will be served with knife and fork on a piece of lettuce in a plastic bowl normally used for salad. A bunless sandwich will cost the same as one with a bun.
Low-carb dishes are showing up on fast-food menus across the nation as restaurants seek to tap into the surge of protein-loving consumers. Hardee’s offers a low-carb breakfast bowl. Burger King has a bunless Whopper. Subway serves “Atkins-Friendly Wraps.” Blimpie has come up with a “Carb-Counter Menu.” Chili’s menu lists options for low-carb dieters.
http://just-food.com/features_detail.asp?art=853&lk=rss
Most segments of the frozen food market have shown growth over the last few years, with particularly strong gains in ready meals, snack products and seafood. As with many other sectors, the emphasis is on convenience, as Euromonitor reports.
The frozen food market offers manufacturers a variety of opportunities to exploit the prevailing trends shaping packaged food consumption, according to Euromonitor’s newly published report.
The dominant trend driving growth in the global frozen food market is convenience. The most successful new product developments reflect growing consumer demand for products that ease the effects of increasingly busy lifestyles and the consequent constraints on food preparation and shopping time.
APRIL 21, 2004 — TAMPA, FL — Outback Steakhouse’s sales slump of 2002 can be partly traced to a seemingly small change that apparently had big implications: the way it used butter on its steaks.
CFO Bob Merritt told analysts yesterday that Outback changed the way it cooked its steaks a few years back. The chain began brushing butter on its beef rather than first applying it to the grill, as it did previously.
Consumers noticed. Outback reported flat comparable sales in 2002. The company went back to the old method and quickly saw comparable sales improve.
http://www.restaurantbiz.com/restaurantbusiness/headlines/article_display.jsp?vnu_content_id=1000492537
http://www.altomkost.dk/Presse/Presse/Nyheder/kostraadenestaarvedmagt.htm
Der har har været en del debat om Atkins kostrevolution i den seneste tid. Menerdet vejen til sundhed at følge den, og kan det være rigtigt at man kan tabe sig på denne måde?
Nej, Fødevaredirektoratetkan ikke kan anbefale denne diæt. Den er ikke i overensstemmelse med den viden vi har i dag om, hvilke næringsstoffer der har betydning for forebyggelse affx fedme, hjertekarsygdomme, diabetesog visse kræftformer. Kostrådene står stadig ved magt.
Atkins kostprogram er markant anderledes end de nuværende kostrÃ¥d og vores kendte “Brugsens” kostpyramide, og i stedet for at anbefale at spise masser affrugt oggrønt og fuldkornsprodukter, som indeholder mange kulhydrater, anbefales det at spise masser af proteiner dvs. kød, og fedtholdige produkter som vejen til vægttab, men ogsÃ¥ som en mere generel anvisning pÃ¥ kostens sammensætning.
