Category: Foodservice

Discover the dynamic world of food and beverage services, where industry trends, consumer preferences, and innovative practices come together to shape the dining experience. This category covers all aspects of the food service industry, from quick-service restaurants and fine dining establishments to catering, hospitality, and food delivery services. Stay informed on the latest developments in menu innovation, service models, technology adoption, and customer engagement strategies that are driving the evolution of food and beverage services.

Brinker International names senior vice president, chief supply chain officer

DALLAS — Casual dining restaurant company home to Chili’s Grill & Bar and Maggiano’s Little Italy brands, Brinker International Inc., welcomed James Butler as the new senior vice president and chief supply chain officer.

Butler will oversee Brinker’s supply chain operations, including procurement, food safety and quality assurance, distribution and logistics, and brand program management.

“James is a visionary leader who builds collaborative, integrated teams and coaches future leaders to continually improve and drive results,” said Kevin Hochman, president and chief executive officer at Brinker International. “He will play a key role in executing on our new strategic pillars, working cross-functionally to help us improve and innovate on the core Chili’s food categories we want to win on — including burgers, fajitas, chicken crispers and margaritas — to improve our guests’ experience and increase traffic.”

Before joining Brinker, Butler led supply chain management for several restaurant brands. Most recently he served as senior vice president of KFC Supply Chain at Restaurant Chain Solutions LLC. He also previously served as vice president, strategy and integrated business planning at Georgia Pacific and as a management consultant with Deloitte Consulting LLC.

“I’m ready to roll up my sleeves and work with the Brinker teams on exciting new initiatives to help transform supply chain and procurement strategies that will drive growth, impact the bottom line and maintain operational excellence,” Butler said. “This is an exciting time for Brinker, and I’m thrilled to join the team on this new journey.”

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Chipotle tests automated digital makeline

NEWPORT BEACH, CALIF. — Chipotle Mexican Grill Inc. is testing technology that will automate some of the operations in its restaurants. An automated digital makeline, recently installed at the company’s test kitchen and design lab, assembles burrito bowls, potentially offering increased capacity and improved speed and accuracy, said Brian R. Niccol, chairman and chief executive officer.

Another tool under development cuts, cores and scoops avocadoes and, Niccol said, “could save time and eliminate a less favorable task, but still allow for one of their favorite parts of the job, which is to add in chopped onions, jalapenos and cilantro, seasoned with some citrus and salt, and hand mash our signature guac.”

Both require iterations prior to rolling out to restaurants, Niccol said, noting the test kitchen team “did a great job of kind of pressure testing all aspects” of a prototype of the automated makeline.

“We learned a lot, right?” he said. “There’s work to be done on how you export things. There’s work to be done on how you clean it. There’s work to be done on how we actually provide portions. And the good news is this is why we use the stage-gate process so that we learn, we iterate and then hopefully, we get to a faster solution. So, I’m excited to see what the next prototype holds, but the team is working on some of those key things that we learned on.”

John R. Hartung, chief financial officer and chief administrative officer, said in the medium or long term he sees the technology as “opportunities for us to try to offset some of the labor inflation.”

The executives detailed the initiatives during an Oct. 26 conference call with securities analysts to discuss third-quarter financial results.

Net income for the third quarter ended Sept. 30 was $313.22 million, equal to $11.37 per share on the common stock, up 22% from $257.14 million, or $9.26, in the prior-year period. The current quarter included unusual expenses related to corporate restructuring.

Total revenue advanced 11% to $2.47 billion from $2.22 billion the year before.

Comparable restaurant sales increased 5%, driven by higher transactions and an increase in average check.

During the quarter, the company opened 62 new restaurants, including 54 locations with a Chipotlane drive-thru pickup option.

Net income for the nine-month period was $946.65 million, equal to $34.31 per share, up 41% from $675.37 million, or $24.20 per share, in the comparable period. Total revenue increased 14% to $7.36 billion from $6.45 billion.

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Verde Farms appoints VP of operations

BOSTON — Verde Farms announced on May 29 that Troy Hoover was appointed vice president of operations for the grass fed, pasture-raised beef company.

In his new role, Hoover will lead all production and logistic activities at Verde Farms. He will oversee all operations at the company’s manufacturing facility based in Pedricktown, NJ, manage vendor relationships, partner with the procurement team, ensure safety and quality, improve efficiency and capacity, and enhance the overall cost structure.

“We are excited that such an accomplished operations leader recognizes the importance of organic and sustainable beef,” said Brad Johnson, chief executive officer of Verde Farms. “We are proud to have Troy join us and bring his expertise from a powerful brand like Starbucks to help drive the new wave of premium, responsible meat production.”

Most recently, Hoover served as vice president of supply chain operations at cold-pressed juice company Evolution Fresh (previously owned by Starbucks). There, Hoover led strategic planning and oversight of a comprehensive supply chain, creating significant cost savings and operational improvements. Previously, since 2012, he served as director of technical services at Starbucks Coffee Co.

“I am thrilled to join Verde Farms and contribute to their mission of providing high-quality, organic beef to health-conscious people around the US,” Hoover said. “I look forward to leveraging my experience to drive operational excellence and support the company’s growth.”

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