Four years in the making The NAFEM Show 2023 and the events leading up to it did not disappoint.

Is it time for restaurants to check out solar power?

With a new year fast upon us, you can’t help but wonder what is in store for the foodservice industry in 2023. I am very optimistic about this year, both personally and professionally. For one, having lived the last few years, I am convinced the restaurant industry is so resilient and strong, that we can endure almost anything; sometimes we even come through trying times stronger than we were before.

Recently, I was invited to a gathering of chain restaurant operators and the support centers of said chains.

Everyone keeps saying that automation and robots are coming. In reality, though, they are already here.

The idea that foodservice lags behind other industries when it comes to adopting new technologies is nothing new. But the fact remains that automation and robotics will continue to become a bigger part of providing effective and efficient foodservice operations. That point was never clearer to me than after having spent a few days walking the National Restaurant Association’s 2022 show in

We have made it! It is with great pleasure that I can say foodservice industry gatherings are back!

After a pandemic-induced, two-year hiatus, the National Restaurant Association’s trade show was back in business in Chicago. And, wow, did it feel great to catch up on some of the newest equipment innovations and, more importantly, reconnect with our great industry colleagues. There was so much to see and take in, but here are a few thoughts and observations.

When the pandemic hit, self-serve foodservice options, including buffets, received unprecedented scrutiny.

Despite all the advances in off-premises options like delivery, full-service restaurants remain a great place for people to have a good time and enjoy great food together and for that reason this dining option continues to hold a special place in society.

In a recent call to kick off a prototype design initiative, I was surprised the operator had all of its executives participate. Several times over the course of the meeting, the executives referred to themselves as “the village.”

Speed of service represents a metric all foodservice concepts want to improve.

Prior to the pandemic, with few exceptions, there was plenty of labor to go around. As a result, restaurants could deploy the right labor, in the right place, at the right time, doing the right things.

Over the years, drive-thru as a sales channel has been the cornerstone of many successful quick-service restaurants. During the pandemic, though, the importance of drive-thru sales became even more important when this form of service became one of the only ways customers could get food from restaurants. While all of this may seem alluring to some, never lose sight of the simple fact that a poorly designed and poorly run drive-thru will impact a restaurant’s ability to generate revenue.

Restaurant staffing has remained an issue since the start of the pandemic. A combination of increasing wages, unemployment checks and people trying to stay safe create a perfect storm for many restaurants, making it difficult to remain fully staffed with fully trained employees. To help foodservice operators alleviate their labor issues, here are 6 design and process-related tactics that can lead to doing more with less.

As hard as it may be to imagine, the dark cloud of the pandemic did produce some silver linings for the foodservice industry. Two that come to mind immediately are the off-premises boom and customers’ willingness to use digital means to remotely interact with restaurants. While those trends were already in motion pre-pandemic, the pandemic accelerated them exponentially, generating faster growth than would have been the case under a more normal business cycle.

Change is inevitable. It’s a cliche we were all familiar with prior to the pandemic and the arrival of COVID-19 has only accelerated change for the foodservice industry. That’s because the industry must always change to meet customers’ ever-evolving demands, including updating menus and service styles.

Life was easier for restaurants when guests had fewer choices. Going back several decades, the only decision we had to worry about was to determine whether the food was for here or to go. The first big change happened when drive-thrus came about for quick-service restaurants.

Given the tumultuous tone of 2020, everyone seems ready to turn the page and start fresh in 2021. If only it were that easy. Here are my 10 foodservice-related predictions for the coming year.

Pivoting. New normal. Off-premises. Contactless. Virtual. Digital. These key words continue to dominate our restaurant-related conversations, as they have since March. And they aren’t going away any time soon.

COVID-19 may have put an end to what we deem as normal. From the CDC guidelines about safely reopening businesses to municipalities regulations that impact the ability to enjoy a meal at your favorite restaurant, the only true constant today is change.

Let’s face it: we really do not know how this crisis will play out, and therefore the implications to restaurant design remain just as uncertain. As such, the impact on restaurant design will remain a moving target for the foreseeable future.

The Foodservice industry continues to evolve at a rapid pace, as it has been for the last 5 to 10 years. From companies trying robotics and other forms of automation, to well-established chains trying to branch out into new areas (e.g. delivery, adding alcohol, etc.), these forms of rapid restaurant evolution sometimes drive the need to develop ground-breaking solutions to

While wrapping the year in my home office, I came across an article that offered a few restaurant design predictions for 2020. While the piece showed some very interesting visual designs, most meant more for upscale applications and perhaps one-off locations, this article made me begin to wonder about how Industrial Engineering in Foodservice will impact restaurant design in 2020.

Today’s consumers are more time-starved than ever. And they also crave restaurant-quality food when and where they want it – even from the comfort of their living room couch at times! This phenomenon has restaurant operators developing apps, partnering with third-party delivery firms, and more, all to remain not only relevant, but convenient in the eyes of the customer.

FCSI member Juan Martinez of Profitality recaps FE&S’ Tour the Trends event, which featured stops in Wrigley Field, Hotel Zachary, Maddon’s Post, Big Star and Mordecai.

AI is coming! AI is coming!

Or is artificial intelligence already here and has been for a while?

A new term continues to dominate the restaurant industry: Artificial Intelligence (AI). It was all the buzz during the National Restaurant Association’s show in Chicago and it continues to come up in countless conversations.

One Industrial Engineering in Foodservice technique that we use to optimize design is process mapping.  Another name that you may have heard for this same analytical process is Spaghetti Diagrams. The latter comes from the fact that many processes that are not designed optimally, often look like spaghetti in a bowl, as in the before picture seen here.