News W/e 2 December

Restaurants want to put brakes on food trucks

 At first, the Tempest Bar's Tony Cooney welcomed Off The Grid, a convergence of five to six food trucks that parked several feet away from his Natoma Street restaurant every Wednesday. "Our lunch crowd was down by about 75 percent," he said. "But it was cool. They were bringing people to the area and it was good for our business"  

GQ's Chef of the Year: David Kinch

The gray light filters through the coastal clouds above David Kinch. It is ten in the morning, and the chef—six feet, solid, his face as passive as a Buddha's—is wandering his tiered farmland high on the slopes of the Santa Cruz Mountains. This place, Love Apple Farms, is Kinch's laboratory, the source of nearly every bit of produce he uses in his restaurant.

Tips for Transitioning into the Restaurant Biz

 If all introductions into the quick-serve market were as relaxed as Tal O’Farrell’s, everyone would be tempted to sign up. O’Farrell is one of San Diego’s skateboard celebs as pioneer of the long-board and co-owner of Sector 9 skateboards. Looking to differentiate his portfolio with something that would appeal to the interests of other skateboarders he moved into the fast food business, as an an entrepeneur from outside of F&B he gives some great advice on how to move successfully into our business.

The Five Most Annoying Current Fast Food Trends

From Fake freshness, to fake upsscale dining here are the five worst fast food trends in the US.

Food prices expected to keep rising in 2012

 A trip to the grocery store is going to cost more next year, according to a new report by the U.S. Department of Agriculture. Federal officials expect grocery prices to rise 3 to 4 percent overall in 2012. That change represents a slight tapering off from the 5 percent jump seen this year. But it's still dramatically higher than 2009 and 2010, when food-price inflation was the lowest since the 1960s

Why the Diner is the symbol of America

 Sitting in a diner, on the inside looking outside. This is a quintessential American experience. Add a booth, a Formica counter and a cup of joe - as diner patrons call their coffee. Themed restaurants and burger chains from Mumbai to Manchester aim to replicate this chrome-flashed experience, and diner fare such as home fries and fluffy pancakes are now global fast food staples  

The Sustainable White Truffle

I wasn't thinking about sustainability when I entered the room. In fact, I was thinking about a high school locker room and how I hoped the exhibition hall didn't smell like one. The place didn't have the faintest smell of truffles until you reached the center, and even then you couldn't get a true sniff of the so-called "white diamonds" until the hunters opened their precious case.  

Ethical Caviar back on the menu

Once the preserve of Russian tsars and British royalty, caviar was described by the great Renaissance writer François Rabelais as the finest titbit in the world. But recently it has been disappearing from dinner menus, amid concerns that traditional methods of harvesting the roe involve killing the majestic sturgeon that produce it. Now, however, ethical caviar, produced without harm to the fish.

Oyster norovirus fears 'out of proportion' says restaurateur

Oyster supplier and restaurateur Robin Hancock has criticised the wider-press for taking the risks associated with eating raw or lightly cooked oysters 'out of proportion'.

Raw oysters blamed for Fat Duck closure

Restaurant gift card launches in time to grab share of Christmas gift frenzy

 Making sure that Australia's restaurants get a share of the millions of dollars that will be spent on Christmas gifts this year is a new restaurant gift card launched this week.

Restaurant reviews (and revenues) could jump with Yelp's launch in Oz

 US review website, Yelp, has hit Australian shores, and if people's response to it is anything like what has been seen in its hometown, the restaurant industry could be in for a surprise.

You've had cat poo coffee, now try the bird version

Coffee drinkers have gone crazy over coffee made from beans excreted by Indonesian native cats but the next big thing is expected to be a coffee that's collected from bird droppings, Jacu Bird Coffee.

Can you mix coffee with your business idea?

Although books and caffeine are an ideal mix, the possibilities don’t stop there. In the same area there are upmarket car showrooms combined with an equally upmarket short-menu bistro, furniture

Old school cocktails making a serious comeback

Gone are the days of the almost fluorescent cocktails brimming with slices of fresh fruit and donning a tiny umbrella. To­day's cocktail drinkers have toned it down and now prefer the drinks that

Fridges are making VB cool again