Since 1919, the National Restaurant Association has been the restaurant industry’s largest trade association in the world, helping its members build customer loyalty, find financial success and provide rewarding careers in foodservice. For nearly a century, the annual NRA Show has brought foodservice leaders together for a four-day event providing opportunities for operators to engage with foodservice’s largest brands, small companies to create larger brands, veteran executives to track down the next big thing, owners to network, and chefs to get inspired. As the leader in restaurant software technology, Avero attends the conference every year to network with friends and serve as a thought leader on industry trends and bring forward-thinking concepts to the table.
At this year’s event we had the opportunity to meet and discuss the latest and greatest in technology and trends with some of our most influential friends and clients. The “Dining Revolution: Restaurateurs to Watch” panel — led by top Avero customers Kevin Brown from Lettuce Entertain You, Kevin Boehm from BOKA Group, Nick Kokonas from Alinea and Rick Bayless from Frontera Restaurants — consisted of stories about how each restaurateur ended up where they are today and how they grew their business. They also discussed when to let a struggling restaurant go versus when to pump resources into saving it, Kevin Boehm explaining that he closed one of his restaurants when he realized he no longer believed in the concept and it no longer fit within their brand, but then reinvigorated one he really believed in, Brasserie Jo, which turned into Chicago hot spot Paris Club.
The panel also discussed industry trends and there was a heated discussion on the new ticketing trend in restaurants. Essentially, restaurant operators can isssue tickets in lieu of the typical reservation/waitlist standards. This has proven revolutionary for some restaurants as it allows operators to make more informed business decisions. Restaurants that issue tickets know exactly how many covers are on the books each night, so they know exactly what their margins are, and argue that they can significantly increase profit, reduce costs, and reduce the number of no-shows each night. Nick Kokonos started the system at Next and Alinea, but there was a very spirited discussion from all panelists about implementing this stystem in more casual restaurants and its effects on the bottom line and guest perception.
