Last year, Yelp partnered with Rebecca Minkoff’s Female Founder Collective to create the Women-Owned Business Attribute, a way for female business owners to mark themselves as women-owned. But this year, they’re taking their support of female entrepreneurs up a notch.  To celebrate International Women’s Day, they are making this attribute searchable. Users are now able to search specifically for women-owned businesses, making it easier to discover and support local female entrepreneurs.  Yelp’s Senior Field Marketing Manager and Small Business Expert, Emily Washcovick, said, “We’re hopeful ..read more

Lately, it seems like climate change is on everyone’s mind. As we learn more about the severity of global warming and the need for immediate action, governments, businesses, and individuals are continuously seeking ways to reduce their environmental footprints. Similar movements have sprung up within the restaurant industry, which is no stranger to the effects of climate change, particularly in response to the industry’s large amount of energy usage. According to one report, restaurants in the United States spend three to five percent of their operating costs, on average, on electricity and ..read more

Diners value your opinion on menus. Using your voice to entice customers and provide them with recommendations, not only drives sales but also builds better relationships. While the goal of menu recommendations is to increase business and make customers feel welcome, there are a couple of guidelines that should be followed when helping guests choose a dish or beverage. Take a look at some do’s and don’ts of menu recommendations: Do: Suggest a Popular Dish When a guest asks for a menu recommendation, suggest a dish that’s popular either among your repeat customers or staff. Frequent diner ..read more

International Women’s Month is in full swing, and many businesses and industries are taking the time to celebrate women. While the restaurant world is doing a better job of incorporating women into all roles across the industry, it’s still not common to see female powerhouses working as head chefs or restaurateurs. There is plenty of work to be done to remove stereotypes around women in the restaurant business, but at the same time, there’s a good deal of women setting the tone for gender equality in the industry. Take a look at these ten trailblazing female chefs and restaurateurs: 1. Domi ..read more

Owning a restaurant is a big investment, in terms of both time and money — and protecting that investment is important. One of the many ways you can do this is through the implementation of proper cash-handling procedures.  Although having cash on hand is normal and necessary for most businesses, it creates a significant risk. An important aspect of successful restaurant management and loss prevention is understanding how to safely manage your cash, from cash drawers to bank drops to hold-ups.  Cash Drawers Standardizing cash drawer procedures allows managers to more readily monitor a ..read more

With so many popular cuisines and food trends bombarding the dining scene, has the sandwich industry hit a plateau? Shockingly, the answer is no. The bread-enclosed convenience food was created in the 1700s by John Montagu, the 4th Earl of Sandwich, and it has evolved over centuries to become a classic American staple. Since then, restaurants and delis have become accustomed to serving everything from Italian cold cut concoctions to more robust options like the baked chicken parmesan. In 2020, we’re seeing new cuisines make their mark on this traditional dish. Take a look at some of the creati ..read more

Many small businesses struggle with managing employee theft. According to research from the University of Massachusetts, small business revenue loss from employee theft totals somewhere between $3 and $6 billion per year. The National Restaurant Association reports that, for those in the restaurant industry, employee theft alone accounts for 75 percent of overall losses. Further, research from the United States Chamber of Commerce found that 75 percent of employees will steal from their workplace at least once, while 50 percent will steal repeatedly. While employee theft is no doubt an issu ..read more

The topic of price-free menus has been sparking controversy across the restaurant world. While it may sound like a lucky escape from paying, unfortunately, it is nothing of the sort. Price-free menus are a practice used commonly by highbrow restaurants that purposely withhold the cost of dishes and drinks on their menus in-house and online. In a world where researching dining establishments before choosing a destination is a normal routine, neglecting to include the prices of food and beverages feels extremely ineffective.  For the budget-savvy restaurant-goers who aim to spend a certain am ..read more

They may sound spooky, but ghost kitchens would be more akin to Casper the Friendly Ghost and less like the creepy dead lady haunting your great aunt’s attic. In fact, ghost kitchens are simply a new way to capitalize on the proliferation of delivery service in the modern era. A ghost restaurant, or virtual kitchen, is a professional cooking facility where restaurants can prepare food for delivery-only meals. These venues house the necessary kitchen equipment for the preparation of restaurant-grade meals but have no actual dining area for walk-in customers. The boom of online food ordering has ..read more

Millennials may be a buzz-worthy topic for restaurants attempting to appeal to the masses, but it’s their successors who are thought to make a massive impact in the future of dining. Generation Z includes anyone born between 1996 and 2010, and according to The National Restaurant Association, these customers now represent 24% of total foodservice traffic. Unlike millennials, this generation grew up with technology as part of their everyday lives and base a lot of their food opinions off of the Internet and social media. With access to information on just about any consumer product, Gen Z is kn ..read more