Cherry-picked Promos
Looking for a great promo or business-builder but feel you've already been there, done that? Don't be so sure. Here are some fresh ideas and a few new takes on tried-and-true classics. Go ahead, take one. Who's looking?
Julie Mautner reports.
Great Idea: Gastronomic Tour de France
Where: Various restaurants in New York City
When: Sundays in July 2007
The Tour de France Restaurant Group, home to eight restaurants representing different regions of France, will team up with Bike the Big Apple to bring its own version of the Tour de France bike race to Manhattan. While cyclists in France are busy tackling 3,500 kilometers (2,175 miles) of the French countryside, their New York counterparts will follow a leisurely course through the regional cuisines of France. Starting on the Upper East Side, a group of 20 guests (maximum) will pedal across Central Park to Nice Matin for the Mediterranean influenced flavors of Southern France. They'll move on to savor the coastal flavors of Brittany at Maison, followed by the rustic cuisine de terroir of Southwest France at Pigalle. No trip to France is complete without something Parisian, which they'll enjoy at French Roast or L'Express, before finishing with Alsatian treats at Café d'Alsace. At each restaurant, bikers will sit together or break up into smaller groups. The $95-per-person cost includes a bike and helmet, guides, and preset plates at every stop. Tours will leave at 10 a.m. every Sunday in July. The tour was the idea of Simon Oren, who heads the popular restaurant group.
Great Idea: The Uncookie Plate
Where: Scala's Bistro, San Francisco
When: Mid-2006
Scala's previous pastry chef, Mimi Young, created this dessert sampler of four types of raw cookie dough (three of them turned into truffles), and so popular was it that it's certain to be revived at some point. (Pasteurized eggs made them safe to eat.) The Rocky Road Cookie Truffle was a thin brownie base topped with creamy ganache, toasted almonds, and house-made marshmallows; the Peanut Butter Cookie Truffle a rich peanut butter dough in a sweet milk chocolate shell; the Oatmeal Cherry Cookie Truffle an oatmeal cherry dough dipped in butterscotch white chocolate. The inevitable fourth? Chocolate chip cookie dough.
Great Idea: In-House Iron Chef
Where: The Stanton Social, New York City
When: Four times a year, beginning March 2007
Executive chef/partner Chris Santos launched his own Iron Chef competition to instill team spirit and inspire his crew to create new seasonal dishes. Cooks battle it out to make the best dish with the chosen seasonal ingredient. The winner gets a full day "food excursion" followed by dinner with Santos at any restaurant of their choice, all expenses paid, in New York City, Philadelphia, or Boston. The winner also gets to choose the main ingredient for the next round of the competition.
Great Idea: An Organic Experience
Where: Poste, Washington, D.C.
When: July through November, since 2006
At Poste, which serves "sustainable brasserie-style cuisine," executive chef Robert Weland rides his bike to work every day and is devoted to spreading the gospel of environmentally friendly food. Every Thursday in summer and fall, he takes a small group of guests to the local Freshfarm Market, where they select ingredients, meet farmers, and discuss growing, shopping, and cooking sustainably. The group then returns to Poste, where guests enjoy Champagne and hors d'oeuvres while Weland prepares a multicourse meal from the foods purchased that day. He serves it paired with biodynamic wines in either the dining room or on the patio, which is surrounded by the restaurant's organic vegetable and herb garden. The market visit and meal, with wine, costs $65 per person, plus tax and tip. Weland also offers private dinners (10 people max) at his Chef's Market Table, with a menu comprised of foods bought from small local producers, family farmers, and "responsible fishermen."
Great Idea: Worst Table in the House
Where: Providence, Los Angeles
When: Ongoing since February 2007
"At Providence we frequently get requests for the "best table in the house," says co-owner Donato Poto. "We wanted to turn that request on its ear by offering a 10 percent discount for those who want the worst table. The consensus is that it's table seven, a two-top in the main dining room. To book it, simply call and request the worst table in the house and it's yours, subject to availability, of course."
Great Idea: Kids Cooking Club
Where: Jar, Los Angeles
When: Ongoing since 2005
About four times a year, chef/owner Suzanne Tracht offers Saturday morning cooking classes for kids (ages 10 and up) in her restaurant kitchen. The kids eat what they've made—Caesar salad with butter croutons, for example, spaghetti with meatballs and sauce, and chocolate pudding with real whipped creamgo home with the recipes. Classes are $75 per child and last about two and a half hours; special sessions can be arranged for groups and birthday parties. Tracht, a mother of two, teaches the classes herself with help from her chef de cuisine, and she guesses about 100 kids have come through the program to date. "I spend my down time watching Spongebob Squarepants," she says, "but all the kids are watching Food Network these days! Truthfully, it's most common for households to have two working parents, and this makes kids more independent. Also, we give them an early education in fresh products and eating healthy." Jar holds monthly classes for adults as well.
Great Idea: Academy Award-Winning Cocktails
Where: Bambara, Cambridge, Massachusetts, and Salt Lake City
When: February 2007
This year, the two Bambara restaurants were both serving an Academy Award-Winning Cocktail Menu to salute the Best Film nominees in the run-up to the awards. The drinks were available from January 23 (Salt Lake City) or February 1 (Cambridge) through February 25 (Oscar night). Ingredients and drink names differed in the two cities, but the ingredients, for the most part, creatively reflected the movie's theme, location, or actors. For example, The Queen in Cambridge was a regal Martini with Bombay Sapphire gin, a dash of rose essence, and dry vermouth, while Letters from Iwo Jima was vanilla vodka, orange juice, Godiva liqueur, and cream. In Salt Lake City, The Departed was Jameson Irish Whiskey, sweet and sour, Sprite, and bitters. In Cambridge, management kept track of sales and announced a Best Cocktail winner, which will stay on the normal drink list. In Salt Lake City, the winner was determined by customer vote. Made from fresh premium ingredients, drinks were $10 in Cambridge and $7.50 in Salt Lake City. Also in Salt Lake City, a local artist designed a clever promo piece and drinks list, which was printed and inserted into empty plastic DVD cases to look like real films. "Our patrons loved this Oscar theme and really got behind the voting, says Salt Lake City head bartender Ethan Moore.
Great Idea: Cooking with Spirits Classes
Where: Two Chefs, South Miami, Florida
When: Ongoing since 2006
Two Chefs chef/owner Jan Jorgensen spent 10 years and more than $50,000 assembling his 400-item spirits menu, which lists, among other things, 70 vodkas, 38 rums, 20 Tequilas, and 175 varieties of whiskey. And since his occasional Spirits Tastings—a selection of drinks paired with foods were so popular, he decided to create a Cooking with Spirits class, to complement the cooking classes he's offered for more than a decade. "We invited local media to a mock class several weeks before its launch," he reports. "Everyone loved it, and we received great coverage." The $85-per-person classes max out at 25 people, and Jorgensen says they almost always sell out. Class recipes include lobster bisque with Cognac, poached shrimp with Bloody Mary cocktail sauce, grilled jumbo asparagus with Tequila/orange beurre blanc, Bourbon glazed yams, dried apricot-stuffed chicken roulade with dark rum, steak au poivre with sauce Robert, amaretto/peach soufflé, and crêpes Suzette. Jorgensen says the spirits tastings and classes have contributed to "a huge increase" in his spirits sales at the bar. "I've become known as the spirits guy," he explains. "My customers have become more comfortable with drinking on a whiskey throughout dinner instead of sipping wine. I even have people sit at the bar for dinnerchat about different spirits and try a bunch, all while they eat."
Great Idea: Slow Season Theme Nights
Where: The Coach House at the Harbor View Hotel, Edgartown (Martha's Vineyard), Massachusetts
When: February to April, since 2001
To appease restless locals and entice off-season visitors, the hotel's general manager and food & beverage director conceived Thursday theme nights at this popular Vineyard restaurant. Headed by chef Joshua Hollinger, the kitchen turns out a full menu of shareable dishes based on a particular ethnic cuisine. This year's theme season kicked off February 22 with an ambitious Mediterranean menu of traditional Greek dishes and a few North African and Italian specialties. Previous themes have included sushi, barbecue, Southwestern, Thai, and Belgian. "Theme nights are a way for me to keep my staff motivated and inspired by studying the different areas, cultures, and foods of the world," Hollinger says. "Each person on my line is responsible for educating himself about a certain dish." But the off-season theme nights, which can pack the restaurant, have yet another benefit. "In the winter, the population on Martha's Vineyard decreases by 80 percent," Hollinger explains. "We have great relationships with the island's farmers, fishermen, and purveyors and source almost 90 percent of our kitchen's ingredients from them, so the fact that we're open year-round helps these guys out immensely."
Great Idea: Authors' Luncheons
Where: Bartolotta's Lake Park Bistro, Milwaukee
When: Ongoing since 2002
Struggling to compete with large booksellers, Harry W. Schwartz, a popular independent bookstore with five Milwaukee locations, lobbies publishers hard to get their authors for in-store appearances. They host an impressive five to seven authors per week, the occasional cookbook author among them. In 2002, Schwartz was hosting chef/author Anthony Bourdain, and they approached the Bartolotta Restaurant Group about doing a tie-in lunch event at Bartolotta's Lake Park Bistro. Director of operations John Wise agreed to give it a try, and the program took off. To date, visiting foodie authors have included Andrea Immer Robinson, Patricia Wells, Ruth Reichl, Rick Bayless, Steven Raichlen, Lidia Bastianich, Dorie Greenspan, Mireille Guiliano, and Jacques Pépin (twice). "TV chefs draw very well," Wise says. Event specifics vary, but typically Wise, his chef Adam Siegel, and the author write the menu together, using dishes from the book. ("The authors are always a bit nervous about strangers doing their dishes," Wise reports. "But then they're always happy with the results. The key is that Adam sticks to their recipes and doesn't put his ego or ideas in.") The events typically start at noon, with the author giving a 10 minute talk, then, between courses, speaking briefly about each dish. After the meal the author takes questions, Siegel and his team are introduced, and guests line up to have books signed. The $75- or $80-per-person price includes the book. "The luncheons have been a huge success for us," Wise says. "We make money we wouldn't have; we cook food we wouldn't have normally; we meet great people with cool backgrounds; we provide education, meals, and entertainment for our guests and employees; and we benefit from the nice press items that come out&ellipe;like this one!"
Great Idea: Monday Night Fight Night
Where: Sibling Rivalry, Boston
When: Mondays, since November 2006
Usually the two chef/owners of Sibling Rivalry, Bob and David Kinkead, duke it out, but on Mondays sous chefs Jake Smith and Simon Restrepo compete against each other, using the same basic ingredients to make two different three course prix-fixe menus for only $35 each. The chef with the most orders for his menu gets bragging rights for the week.
Great Idea: Toast for Dessert
Where: Ansill, Philadelphia
When: Since February 2006
At Ansill, French born pastry chef Catherine Gilbert-Ansill offers two "toast" desserts, with seasonal fruits or homemade jam. The Panino du Jour combines brioche with dark chocolate pistoles, fresh raspberries, and a scoop of mascarpone. "It's so easy," says executive chef Kibett Mengech. "We just put the pistoles in the center of the brioche with whatever fresh fruit is in season, pop it the panini press, and we're done. It's a great seller: we have six desserts on the menu, and the panino probably accounts for 30 percent of sales. Chocolate/banana and chocolate/raspberry are particularly popular." Another toast dessert, Cathy's Jams, is a plate of three little pots of homemade jam (blackberry, apricot, cherry), with triangles of toasted brioche. All breads are made for the restaurant by the local baker Wildflour. The desserts are priced at $6 each.
