MRM News Bites: You Never Sausage an Election and Bicoastal Ice Cream on This Week’s Plate

Modern Restaurant Management magazine compiles restaurant industry headlines, new products, openings and personnel announcements in our weekly MRM News Bites. Send items of interest to Content Director Barbara Castiglia at bcastiglia@modernrestaurantmanagement.com.

Links or Patties?

To answer the age-old debate over sausage patties or links, Bob Evans Restaurants launched the 2016 Sausage Selection Election. Americans spend more than $500 million on breakfast sausage each year so Bob Evans wants to know which “side” they really prefer.  The online poll asks the public to side with either the “Patties for the People” or “Links for Liberty” party and make their opinion heard. Consumers who visit the website,www.bobevans.com/election, will be introduced to the candidates and can cast their vote to receive a special offer for participating, a free side of breakfast sausage at any Bob Evans Restaurant from the opposing party to encourage discourse and understanding between the parties. With restaurant locations in 18 states and grocery products available nationwide, Bob Evans Farms remains a neutral party in the race for the most savory side. 

At the end of the month-long campaign, one sausage will be declared America’s favorite, including a state-by-state breakdown mirroring the traditional Electoral College, but, with free sausage offered for all who participate in the side showdown, everyone wins. So far, more than 11,000 votes have been cast.

“Bob Evans loved sausage, both links and patties, and that is part of our company today,” said John Fisher, President of Bob Evans Restaurants. “We know that, no matter who wins the Sausage Selection Election, our guests are the real winners because Bob Evans sausage, be it links or patties, is the best quality, tastiest sausage out there.”

Adding Some Color

The American Heart Association (AHA) launched a new initiative called +color, focusing on the positive health impact of fruits and vegetables. The health impact of +color may be simple yet significant: It is estimated that if Americans ate the recommended amounts of fruits and vegetables every day, approximately 39,900 deaths would be prevented from cardiovascular diseases, stroke and diabetes and $7.6 billion in medical costs could be saved annually.

As the inaugural national sponsor of +color, SUBWAY® restaurants continues their long-term commitment to healthier eating by uniting in this effort with the AHA. SUBWAY® restaurants will ensure consumers understand how their vegetable offerings contribute to the +color initiative by highlighting how the vegetable options available at SUBWAY® restaurants can help them add more fruits and vegetables to their meal. In addition, SUBWAY® restaurants will support this new intiative through an in-store promotion in 2017.

“SUBWAY® restaurants is inspired to join the American Heart Association on this exciting journey to encourage Americans to eat more vegetables and promote healthier eating,” said Lanette Kovachi, RDN, SUBWAY® restaurants Global Dietitian. “At SUBWAY® restaurants, Americans can choose from millions of our handcrafted sandwich combinations to create their own custom sandwich, which can offer up at least two extra servings of vegetables to their diet. Each of the six fresh vegetable varieties offered at SUBWAY® are a perfect compliment to the +color initiative.”

The centerpiece of +color is an extensive series of entertaining videos, social media events and digital interactive information that make it easy to adopt these healthy changes. This can be accomplished by watching and sharing +color content, and adding more fruits or vegetables each day. As a national supporter of +color, HAB’s Fresh Avocados – Love One Today® will be a part of the launch as the official “recipe host.” HAB will help expand the initiative’s reach with avocado heart-check certified recipes and tips about the nutrition benefits of avocados. Expansion of the inititive will kick off at AHA Heart Walks nationwide this fall. Additional elements of +color will include content for fun kids, as well as opportunities for worksites to engage with its employees.

Essay Your Dreams

For $150 and a 300-word essay, hopeful restaurant owners could land a successful restaurant and a place to live in one fell swoop during “Maine’s Dream Restaurant Contest.” Essays are being accepted online at fuelcontest.com and by mail, to Fuel Essay Contest, PO BOX 591, Lewiston, ME, 04243, to win Fuel restaurant and a two-bedroom condo. Entries will be accepted online until October 17 at midnight and by mail through October 14.

Fuel, located at 49 Lisbon St. in the heart of downtown Lewiston, is a thriving modern French bistro with a lounge and event space called Sidecar. The restaurant, founded by owner and Maine native Eric Agren, has been open for 10 years. Agren is also the developer of the eight new condominium units next door to Fuel.

“Whoever wins Fuel will immediately own a successful restaurant, a great place to live, an extensive wine cellar, and everything in the restaurant – plus $20,000 in the bank,” said Agren. “I’m excited to hand over the keys to Fuel and the properties to someone with a dream who is ready to own this restaurant and the real estate, and be part of this great community,” added Agren.

Agren decided to offer the restaurant through an essay contest so anyone with passion can achieve their dream. He said, “I know how hard it is to launch and develop a healthy business, and I’m happy to offer an opportunity like this – to own a successful restaurant and condo and to be able to share your passion for good food and hospitality in a great Maine city.”

The contest includes the custom built, 7,000 square foot commercial space and the recently built 1,600 square foot two bedroom and two bathroom condo at 43 Lisbon St.

Agren, a lifelong entrepreneur, is frequently credited with assisting with the revitalization of downtown Lewiston. He is also the founder, and former owner, of Marche, a wine bar and restaurant also in Lewiston.

Lewiston is the second largest city in Maine and is well known for its rich history and culture dating all the way back to early French explorers. Today Lewiston boasts a dynamic restaurant, arts, and entertainment scene. It is home to Bates College, which ranked #25 for Best Liberal Arts College in the U.S. (according to U.S. News & World Report) and is the location of the nationally renowned Bates Dance Festival. In addition, the annual Great Falls Balloon Festival and the Dempsey Challenge, a fundraiser started by actor Patrick Dempsey (also a Maine native), are both held in Lewiston. Lewiston is a premium location for mountain biking, paddling, hiking and skiing, with the mountains, lakes, trails and waves just a short driving distance away.

For all details and to enter Maine’s Dream Restaurant Contest, visit fuelcontest.com. The winner will be selected by a panel of independent judges (excluding Agren), who will review the anonymously submitted essays. The winner will be notified after October 25.  

The New Calendar is Here

Lavazza and Slow Food celebrated their 20-year partnership with the unveiling 2017 Lavazza Calendar, in Milan, Italy.  The 2017 Calendar is the third and final instalment of Lavazza’s Earth Defenders project, and features a collection of hauntingly beautiful photographs by French photographer Denis Rouvre entitled “We Are What We Live.” Images from the calendar will be on display this week during Salone Del Gusto, dominating symbolic places and historic cafes across Lavazza’s hometown of Turin, Italy.

Copies of the calendar will be available for sale in limited edition online at store.slowfood.it. Proceeds will benefit Terra Madre projects.

Get the Scoop

US Foods hit the ground running after the summer as it unveiled its Fall Scoop lineup featuring 25 items that will inspire chefs everywhere to reimagine classics and create new dishes this season from all- natural items and grass fed beef to decadent desserts and two other initiatives.

“Product innovation is at the core of our business and over the last 5 years, we’ve introduced more than 400 unique and high quality products to help chefs and restaurateurs create crave-worthy dishes while saving time and labor in the kitchen,” said Stacie Sopinka, vice president of product development and innovation, US Foods. “With this Fall Scoop, we continue this tradition with must order items like beef marrow bones and pumpkin spice latte ice cream, as well as business solutions that address everything from inventory management and food cost control to server training.”

Of diners who eat beef and pork, 91 percent eat beef at least once a week. To satisfy this craving, US Foods is introducing three new items from its exclusive Stock Yards™ brand. The All Natural Canoe Cut Beef Marrow Bones are great for sharing as an appetizer over garlic crostini and are pre-brined and pre-cut to save chefs time and cut operator food costs. The additional Stock Yards newcomers will help meet the growing demand for grass fed beef, the All Natural Grass Fed Ribeye Steak and All Natural Grass Fed Sliders. Both are 100 percent domestic and grass fed and grass finished and carry the clean labels diners seek today.

Seafood lovers can choose from the Chef’s Line™ Seared Yellowfin Tuna Slices, which are rubbed with pepper and garlic and ready-to-eat, as well as two shrimp varieties from Harbor Banks™, the Breaded Stuffed Shrimp and Grits and the Breaded Stuffed Shrimp Southwest Style.

The new product line has plenty to offer alongside, or on top of, all the season’s best foods. The Chef’s Line™ Parmesan Peppercorn Compound Butter can be used at any stage of cooking to elevate entrees and sides. Just like all Rykoff Sexton™ products, the new Fire Grilled Artichokes and Caramelized Sliced Onions are of the finest quality and versatile. Also versatile are the Chef’s Line™ Natural Chip and Natural Fry, which are made without artificial ingredients, flavors or colors and are ready to be customized.

Tipping Point

Also making its debut in Fall Scoop is the national launch of Tipping Point™, a US Foods program designed to empower restaurant servers by helping them with pointed sales techniques that increase check averages, raise overall tips and engagement among servers and ultimately help operators increase their restaurant sales. The Tipping Point kits are paired with US Foods items that naturally increase check averages. With US Foods Tipping Point, independent restaurants across the country now have access to specialized server training that is typically only seen in chain restaurants. To learn more about tipping point, visit www.usftippingpoint.com.

Avero

US Foods and Avero introduced Avero Food Cost Management (FCM). Avero FCM easily integrates with a restaurant’s point of sale system to give a seamless, digital look into food cost data and real-time inventory information. It also provides predictive sales forecasts and purchase quantity suggestions that tell restaurant operators exactly what they need to order, and when they need to order it.

“No restaurateur gets into this business because they love managing inventory and food costs, but this is essential and important work and through our partnership with Avero we are making this work easier,” said Jim Osborne, Senior Vice President, E-Commerce and Business Solutions, US Foods. “We know how difficult running a restaurant can be and that’s why we’ve made bringing leading technology solutions to our customers a priority.”

The US Foods and Avero partnership means that US Foods customers’ product lists and purchase trends are automatically loaded into Avero FCM based on historical purchases and invoices. All new US Foods orders can be placed quickly through Avero FCM, and customers’ inventory is automatically updated with the new purchases once they are received, saving operators hours each week. Additionally, the new product streamlines inventory counting and waste tracking – two areas where operators say they need help.

ShakeShack Licenses ArrowStream’s On Demand

ArrowStream, Inc., a supply chain innovator that combines expertise in data science and analytics to improve the way supply chains perform, today announced that Shake Shack, a modern day “roadside” burger stand licensed ArrowStream’s market-leading OnDemand software to help it better manage food spend, inventory, limited-time-offer (LTO) tracking, auditing, and contract management with its suppliers and distributors. 

Since its founding in 2004 in New York City’s Madison Square Park, the chain has grown to over 100 units, with a stated intention to open at least 450 domestic owner-operated locations over time. Maintaining food quality and having the most accurate data possible on all products through this expansion is of utmost importance to Shake Shack, which is why partnering with a brand like ArrowStream, with several top 100 chains in its customer portfolio, is imperative. 

“OnDemand will provide Shake Shack with the analytics and transparency we need across our supply chain to make better supply chain decisions and ensure we are successfully positioned to accelerate into the next phase of our evolution,” said Jeffrey Amoscato, Vice President of Supply Chain and Menu Innovation for Shake Shack. “ArrowStream shares Shake Shack’s progressive and expansion-minded corporate mentality. Aligning with that kind of partner provides us with assurance that as the industry inevitably evolves, so will ArrowStream’s technology and the Shake Shack brand.” 

Revel Teams with PeachWorks

PeachWorks, a restaurant back-of-house platform for chain and independent fast casual, casual, and fine dining operations, is now integrated with Revel Systems, the world’s leading iPad Point of Sale management solution for brick-and-mortar retail, food businesses and more.

With this new integration, Revel clients can manage their inventory more accurately by combining their recipes with real-time POS data. PeachWorks Inventory and Recipe apps combine the simplicity of managing inventory on a spreadsheet with the power of a fully-integrated and mobile, cloud-based solution. This provides a more complete view of the entire inventory as well as the ability to easily add and track items and get nutritional information. Additionally, it enables users to perform counts, transfers, prep, and run powerful reports to track large variances and determine cost of sales. 

“We’re excited to partner with PeachWorks and provide our clients with a robust, cloud-based inventory platform that brings true innovation and simplicity to inventory management, which is essential to every restaurant’s day-to-day operations,” said Bobby Marhamat, Chief Revenue Officer at Revel Systems. “This integration is emblematic of the commitment Revel is making to our clients by ensuring that we are partnering with best-in-class companies like PeachWorks and seamlessly integrating Revel’s POS data into our clients preferred partner platforms.”

Several other PeachWorks apps will also use this new integration to offer additional value to Revel clients. Schedule App is a simple, yet powerful employee scheduling app and Analytics has a powerful set of reporting features to slice and dice any and all restaurant data, and POS Hub allows Revel clients the ability to combine their data from previous POS systems.

“Revel clients can now use all of our apps to give them a complete restaurant management platform. Detailed insight into food, labor costs and profit margins allows for better decision making and management,” says Jeff Schacher, Founder and Chief Product Officer at PeachWorks. “With this level of information, they can make decisions that boost the bottom line, grow their business, and help them succeed in their segment or market.”

Eataly to Cross the Border

Eataly announced plans to open its first Canadian location in early 2019 as an anchor tenant of the newly renovated Manulife Centre in the heart of Yorkville. The Italian food marketplace including a mix of food markets, restaurants, and eateries will span three stories for a total space of 50,000 square feet.

The Italian company, brought to the Americas in 2010 with the help of Mario Batali, Lidia and Joe Bastianich and Adam and Alex Saper, is partnering with the Selfridges Group and Terroni Restaurants for its entrance to Canada, leveraging local expertise to develop a truly distinct Toronto Eataly experience. Eataly is known for its unique offering – customers can shop for high quality products reflecting the biodiversity of Italy, eat at one of the many restaurants and counters, and learn about the stories behind those products – all within the same marketplace. Eataly is not a chain, it’s a family, and each location is distinct and highlights the city and people who reside there.

Commenting on the expansion into Canada, Eataly Founder Oscar Farinettisaid: “Eataly Toronto will be spectacular. Firstly, the city of Toronto values high quality food. And we do too. Secondly this will be our first Canadian location, and with every first in a new market comes something full of excitement and adrenaline. Lastly, and above all, we are entering the market with people we fully trust and we share the same passions with. We can’t wait to get to work and start this partnership!”

Where in The World to Eat Awards

Condé Nast Traveler unveils its first ever Where in The World to Eat Awards in the October issue.

When you’re faced with the make-or-break travel dilemma of where to eat in Hong Kong, Mendoza, Dakar—destinations where trustworthy recommendations are harder to come by but all the more vital—you have one shot to get it right. That’s why the magazine enlisted and cross-referenced the impassioned guidance from the real experts, our network of chefs, food writers, and most-in-the-know travelers.

The academy of experts that have contributed to the list is comprised of 72 chefs, restaurateurs, food writers, and hospitality veterans who crisscrossed the globe and nominated the top 42 countries where it’s worth traveling to for food. Condé Nast Traveler’s Where in the World to Eat celebrates the best restaurants that managed to combine culinary excellence with local know-how. As culinary travels have consistently increased in popularity, we strongly believe that travelers should never waste a meal. 

“There are a handful of transformative meals savored on foreign soil that you dream about forever after. Not because they are fancy or esoteric, quite the opposite. Because you finally get what, say, every upscale terra-cotta- tiled Italian restaurant in West L.A. has been going for since the ’80s, when Americans first caught wind of (and subsequently abused) balsamic vinegar and angel hair pasta”, says Pilar Guzmán, editor-in-chief of Condé Nast Traveler.

Visit cntraveler.com for the full list of restaurants that have made Where in the World to Eat.   The Food Issue of Condé Nast Traveler will be available on newsstands nationwide on September 27

Focus Group Opportunity

Focus Pointe Global, a national market research firm, is looking for Restaurant Owners/Operators/Managers in Los Angeles, Boston and Chicago for a Paid Interview about products used in restaurants. participants will earn $150 for  45 minutes.  This study will take place the week of October 3.  To see if you qualify in your city click here:

Los Angeles: http://bit.ly/92343CL

Boston: http://bit.ly/92341CB

Chicago: http://bit.ly/92342CG

Questions about this project? Please mail sdutt@focuspointeglobal.com

Openings

A La Mode is officially the first homemade ice cream in the United States that is completely nut-free, egg-free and sesame. A La Mode is the perfect curation of carefully selected children’s clothing, accessories and fun gifts for children and adults. Nestled at 360 East 55th Street, A La Mode came to fruition when Sandy Roth, owner, Marc Roth’s wife, had the dream of opening an ice cream shoppe that everyone could enjoy. As luck would have it, a space opened up in their neighborhood and A La Mode was born. Not only nut-free, it is also offering gluten and dairy-free options.

The five  flavors that can be found at A La Mode are:

Wired – Coffee ice cream with chocolate chips.

Partly Cloudy – Blue cotton candy ice cream with mini- marshmallows.

Pink Sprinkle – Pink vanilla ice cream with rainbow sprinkles.

Speed Bump – Deep chocolate ice cream with mini marshmallows, white and dark chocolate chips.

Strawberry Cheesecake – Vanilla ice cream, strawberries, cream cheese, ricotta cheese and graham crackers.

Farmers market ice cream brand Gresescent, will open its first retail shop in Downtown Los Angeles on September 29. Located on 850 South Olive Street, the shop will offer different yet familiar flavors, including Blackberry Mint Mojito and Grilled Pineapple with Bourbon Caramel. Many flavors feature homemade, freshly-baked ingredients – lemon bars, snickerdoodle cookies, citrus sugar cookies, and pecan pie, to name a few.

 “Ice cream is special,” said Gresescent co-founder Justin Chung. “It can be enjoyed by a 3-year-old or a 90-year old. You eat it when you’re sad to make you feel better and when you are happy in celebration. Ice cream conjures nostalgic reflections of being a kid again. Most importantly, delicious ice cream brings an immediate smile to your face.”

The mission of Gresescent is to preserve that magic. “To us, ice cream is like a diamond, most beautiful in its purest state,” said Chung. “It can only be fully enjoyed when there are no blemishes hiding its natural beauty. No bad ingredients, no poor customer service, no unnecessary gimmicks. We are committed to delivering a truly rewarding experience to each of our customers.”

Since its launch in late 2014, this LA-born ice cream brand quickly became a local favorite at weekly farmers markets with its simple and delicious, different yet familiar approach to ice cream and its friendly customer service. 

Gresescent’s new shop was designed to make ice cream the star. Its clean white interior surrounds two sampling stations created to allow customers to have one-on-one interactions with one of Gresescent’s warm and engaging coworkers and to sample as many flavors as they would like. Once a customer has made their selection of flavors, each scoop is prepared atop a complimentary fresh maple waffle bowl.

“There is a reason for everything at Gresescent,” said co-founder and head chef Jane Kim. “We strive to pay attention to every detail that affects the customer experience. Everything, from the store layout, to our spoons and napkins, to the way we scoop our ice cream, has been designed with one goal in mind: to create magical experiences for our customers. For example, our customers are greeted with the irresistible aroma of our fresh maple waffle bowls that are made with whisked egg whites to create a light melt-in-your mouth texture and glazed with Grade B maple syrup from Canada.”

The newest member of the Dayton area’s local food movement is The Wright Place, a full service restaurant and lounge located near Wright-Patterson Air Force Base. With culinary operations led by executive chef Justin White, the  140 seat farm-to-table is now open to the public for lunch and dinner. The restaurant’s innovative design scheme coupled with its American farm-fresh menu direction pay homage to the inspiration and history of flight. 

Most notably, The Wright Place features a locally-sourced approach, including home grown vegetables and herbs straight from an on-site Chef’s Garden, providing patrons with a unique culinary experience unlike anything else in the area. A commitment to integrating local farms, distilleries and breweries, such as Carillon beer brewed at Carillon Historical Park, provides the restaurant with sustainable products that not only taste “super fresh,” but also have better flavor and texture than those that have traveled a long distance. 

“We’re looking to bring this region’s past to life,” said Chef White in reference to Dayton, where the Wright Brothers famously perfected the art of aviation. “At the same time, our food connects with the modern world through local farms and the people behind them.” 

Whatever is not sourced on-site at The Wright Place is done so via farms within a 100-mile radius. A wide selection of seasonal flavors is meticulously hand-crafted to create simple food with depth. With entrées ranging from $8 to $22, menu highlights include: 

• Cheese and Charcuterie Board: bacon jam, flatbread crisp
• Huffman Prairie Salad: mesclun mixed greens, heirloom tomato, grilled zucchini, wheat berries, roasted red pepper, feta, toasted almonds, sweet herb vinaigrette
• Local Pulled Pork Sandwich: tangy bbq sauce, pretzel bun, pickles, red onion
• Wilbur Burger: angus patty, Ohio cheddar, fried egg, candied bacon, lettuce, tomato, red onion, brioche bun
• Portobello Picatta: Ohio mozzarella cheese, capers, garlic, angel hair, white wine, lemon sauce
• Brined Ohio Pork Chop: red cabbage, whipped potatoes, haricot vert, applewood bacon and maple glaze

With 22 years of culinary experience, Chef White is determined on constructing sustainable dishes that are seductive to the eye and inviting to the palate. At The Wright Place, he oversees menu development and a kitchen staff of 15. At his last job as executive chef at Murphy’s restaurant, Chef White was responsible for culinary operations for two restaurants.

Taking a design cue from Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, the hospitality architectural team of O’Kelly+Kasprak was inspired by the iconic images of flight and the Wright Brothers. They set out to create a space that perfectly translated the modern take on the turn of the century aviation influence. Carefully pairing the more industrial elements with warmer elements, The Wright Place design has a richness in detail that intrigues the mind. The more industrial materials utilized in the project include custom stainless steel aircraft cables, large scale hangar doors made from reclaimed wood and riveted panels reminiscent of an aircraft hull (all millwork was created by a craftsman out of Cleveland). The warm toned wool custom carpet design, raw wood finishes, and the richness of textures in the upholstery balance the space to create a sense of comfort.

The concept brought on the unique challenge of taking history and finding a way to tell it through a contemporary story. The design team achieved this by using many subtle details, such as, when the large hangar doors are opened in the dining area, the larger than life images of the nose of a propeller is seen mounted to the back wall. The upholstery on the curved booths is executed in the way a cockpit bucket seat would have been in the early 1900s. The lighting is an eclectic mix of the old and the new with a touch of industrial. The clean lines of the furniture, from the communal tables and chairs in the bar area to side by side lounge sofas, bring a sense of the 21st century to the expanse – along with a social atmosphere. 

New Products

The multistate E. coli outbreak at Chipotle, which hospitalized 21 and prompted JP Morgan analysts to forecast the company will have lost three years of earnings between fiscal years 2014 and 2017, has underscored the extent to which all F&B businesses are vulnerable to bacterium-borne illness.

How well that facility handles the sterilization and disinfection of indoor spaces can make or break the bottom line—both immediately amid the swift consequences should illness present, and longer term due to permanent damage to the brand reputation that will assuredly persist to some degree. Emerging technology is making the sanitation process much easier, quicker, more effective and less expensive such as Germicidal Lights and Disinfection Ultraviolet Lamps. Such UV light-based sterilizers for indoor spaces, like the full spectrum of GermAwayUV solutions offered by CureUV.com, can readily disinfect both air and surfaces in a single room or throughout a complete business—and are eco-friendly.

Taking it Personnely

Sheraton Atlanta welcomes Melvin M. Marcano as Executive Chef to the Food and Beverage Team of the Sheraton Atlanta and in-house restaurant, Fandangles.  

With over 14 years of culinary experience, Marcano’s expertise ranges from national to international influences. His culinary journey started in Puerto Ricowhere his career began working for an award winning French restaurant. He moved to the United States in 2006 to parallel his hands-on experience with culinary arts education.

Marcano was selected to attend Le Cordon Bleu North America Program in Culinary Arts in Pittsburgh, PA, where he received his Associate Degree. He received his Bachelor Degree as well at the, Le Cordon Bleu North America Culinary Arts Management Program in Scottsdale AZ, and completed his Pro Chef Ι and Pro Chef ΙΙ at Hyde Park, NY, at the Culinary Institute of America. He has played a role in developing forward-thinking restaurant concepts and opening upscale dining establishments across the United States in conjunction with luxury resorts and independent hotels. His breadth of experience and reputation has landed him in executive roles with such namely establishments like Morton’s Steakhouse and Ritz-Carlton.

Grand Velas Los Cabos, the fifth property of the family owned and operated Velas Resorts opening in late 2016, named two star Michelin chef Sidney Schutte to head up its signature Cocina de Autor restaurant. Netherlands’ rising star Vincent Colauto will be chef de cuisine. 

Chef Schutte’s Dutch heritage, passion for traveling and four years in Asia shaped his palate and inspires him to present different taste sensations in a single meal. Ingredients themselves are a source of creative inspiration. “My cuisine is distinctive for its outspoken flavours that pop. I create a culinary experience with multiple dishes with the finest ingredients from the best local and international purveyors, and that’s what we’ll do at Cocina de Autor,” said Schutte.

Schutte gained extensive experience in prestigious kitchens throughout Europe and Asia, including those run by Dutch top chef Richard Ekkebus at Amber, a two Michelin star restaurant in Hong Kong; Roger Souvereyns, of the two Michelin-starred De Scholteshof in Belgium; and Jonnie Boer, acclaimed chef and owner of restaurant De Librije in Zwolle. With his support, De Librije earned its third coveted Michelin star. Only seven months after opening, Boer’s second outpost, Librije’s Zusje Amsterdam, was awarded with two Michelin stars under his reign. Schutte has been acknowledged as “SVH Meesterkok,” the highest recognition that a chef can achieve in The Netherlands.

Colauto, who worked with Schutte at De Liberije, will oversee Cocina de Autor’s kitchen staff. He has completed training at the ROC and Spermalie in Bruges in addition to Katseveer, awarded one Michelin star. Most recently, he acted as Head Chef at Fletcher Hotel-Restaurant Duinzicht in the Netherlands.