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Where Have All The Quiznos Gone?

August 30th, 2010

QuiznosThere used to be one in downtown St Cloud, one in Waite Park, one in Alexandria, one in Brainerd, one in Buffalo, one in Little Falls, one in … well, you get the idea.

I was a big fan of Quiznos sandwiches, but it’s becoming harder and harder to find a location. As of right now we are down to only three in the Minnesota Restaurant Search coverage area - Monticello, Sartell and Wadena.

What’s happening?

There have apparently been issues between Quiznos and its franchisees for a while now. Back in 2007 (when the downtown St Cloud location closed) a class action lawsuit was being filed against Quiznos. Allegations included complaints that still seem to be heard to this day - that franchisees are forced to buy their supplies directly from Quiznos at inflated prices, and then forced to set their retail prices too low to be profitable. There was also a charge that key company information is omitted when new franchisees are recruited.

Sartell QuiznosNew management was hired and changes were made to the menu, including adding lower-priced items.

In 2008, in just one suit against the sandwich company, Federal District Judge Wiley Y Daniel in Colorado refused to dismiss any of the claims alleged against Quiznos. The judge found that Quiznos franchisees have valid claims of breaches of good faith and fraud against the sandwich company.

So, it would appear that we’re down to just three Quiznos locations on Minnesota Restaurant Search because owners just couldn’t make a go of it under the restrictions of their franchise agreements. One or two closings could be attributed to bad individual store management, but not this many. And if the economy were to blame, we’d see other chains closing multiple stores as well.

Earlier this year Quiznos received an economic stimulus of their own when primary shareholders injected a bunch of capital into the company. Quiznos responded by announcing a plan to open 600 new stores this year - many of which will be company-owned. Rick Schaden, the current CEO, said the company-owned stores should allow them to more closely align with the franchise owners and better identify best practices.

In March they announced plans to open quick-service outlets in convenience stores.

In January they launched a program that allows potential store owners to buy a location for as little as $5,000 down.

Obviously only time will tell if Quiznos will turn things around from a business perspective. I never had a problem with the food. Now those singing cats, I don’t know…

 

The Egg Recall Continues

August 23rd, 2010

EggsUnless you’ve been in the wilderness for the last couple weeks, you’ve heard about the salmonella oubreak and the subsequent recall of a half-billion eggs.

While no deaths have yet been reported, there have been 1300 salmonella cases nationwide - so far. And today (Monday) FDA commissioner Margaret Hamburg said even more eggs may be recalled. She also advised consumers to check the FDA website, www.foodsafety.gov, to make sure any eggs they have purchased are not among the contaminated batches.

Hamburg said that the outbreak is being aggressively investigated to determine the exact source.

So far two Iowa farms have been linked to the outbreak. They are Wright County Egg and Hillandale Farms. Both share suppliers of chickens and feed, and both have ties to an Iowa business with a history of violating state and federal law. Wright County Egg is owned by Austin “Jack” DeCoster, who in 2000 was designated a habitual violator of environmental regulations.

Egg RecallIf you chose to order eggs when you dine out during this outbreak, make sure to avoid over-easy. You people who like to mop up the yolk with your toast are our of luck for a while. Customers can also potentially get sick from salad dressing with a raw egg, from soup that includes under-cooked eggs, or from the meringue in pie.

While thoroughly cooking the eggs will likely kill the bacteria, it is recommended that you throw away or return to the store any eggs that are included in the recall.

Investigation has occurred in three restaurants in Minnesota - Muffelletta in St Paul, Mi Rancho in Bemidji and Kingdom Buffet in Rochester.

The most common symptoms for those who get sick include diarrhea, abdominal cramps and fever for 8-72 hours after eating the bad eggs. Those with weakened immune systems are especially susceptible.

 

Have You Seen The Restaurant Battles?

August 14th, 2010

24 Hour Restaurant BattleI’m a pretty regular viewer of the Food Network, including Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives and Iron Chef America. But somehow I missed the debut of their new competition show “24 Hour Restaurant Battle.”

The show evidently debuted on July 21 and is hosted by Scott Conant.

Two teams of two or three people are pitted against each other. Each team has twenty-four hours to turn an empty space into a restaurant. They must create the concept, the decor and menu. Teams get a $4000 budget for food and decor, a painter, a sous chef and waiters.

24 Hour Restaurant BattleAfter the 24 hours the doors are opened (the restaurants are right next to each other) and people get to decide where they want to eat based on the menu and decor. Then a team of four judges dine at each location and pick a winner based on the “concept, execution and viability” of the restaurant. The winning team gets $10,000 to invest into creating their own real, actual restaurant.

There have been five episodes to date. The one I saw pitted two couples against each other. Justin and J.J. cooked up a unique idea where they serve brunch items like pancakes and waffles with unique flavors, while Zach and Lisa create a place that serves retro comfort food inspired by the 1950’s. Who won? You’ll have to find the re-run somewhere.


Great Food Truck Race24 Hour Restaurant Battle airs on Wednesday nights at 9pm central time and of course is repeated at various times throughout the week.

Meanwhile the Food Network crowns their Next Food Network Star (Herb, Aarti or Tom?) Sunday night August 15.

They also debut another new show right after that called The Great Food Truck Race where seven teams travel cross country in tiny restaurants on four wheels.

 

American Burger Bar Coming to St Joseph

August 7th, 2010

American Burger Bar - St PaulThe St Cloud Times reported that Sauk Rapids native Brad Ireland will be opening a new restaurant with his partner Eric Sandrock in the building formerly occupied by Stonehouse Tavern in St Joseph.

American Burger Bar is described by Ireland as fresh, creative burgers - “that desire to just get away from that machine patty burger that exists in almost every restaurant in Minnesota.” The burgers will be made with bison, beef, lamb and turkey - all fresh - and often infused with other ingredients for unique tastes and flavors.

Also on the menu will be specialty pastas, steak, and cupcake shakes - shakes mixed with cupcakes.

The pair currently own American Burger Emporium in Woodbury, American Burger Bar in St Paul and will be opening American Joe in Blaine soon.

American Burger Bar - St PaulThe web site for the St Paul American Burger Bar lists appetizers from $3.99 to $8.00. Their burgers come with skinny fries and mayo, and range in price at lunch from $6.99 for Angus beef to $11.99 for Kobe beef. Prices go up a couple bucks at dinner. From their you can choose your bun and add toppings from $.60 for cheese to $3.50 for shrimp or black truffles. There is also a wine list.

The American Burger Emporium in Woodbury has basically the same menu concept as the St Paul restaurant, but with a more casual atmosphere.

Remember, these price examples are for the St Paul location and may or may not mirror the eventual prices in St Joseph.

Ireland, who had previously owned the Embers in St Cloud, called the Stonehouse location a beautiful building. “It’s one of the nicest restaurants in the area. It seemed like it could potentially be a good fit for what we have.”

 

Would It Kill Ya To Buy Another Waffle Iron?

August 1st, 2010

Rock and Roll Hall of FameI spent the last week on a road trip through Ohio with my family - including stops at Cedar Point Amusement Park, the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and the Pro Football Hall of Fame. A great trip.

We stayed at a few hotels including a Comfort Inn, a Sleep Inn and a Hampton Inn & Suites. Although the breakfast service supplied by these and other similar hotels hardly would qualify as a restaurant they do provide food for hungry patrons.

I don’t know how busy these rooms are at 6am when the serving officially begins. I’m one of those who usually walk in during the last half-hour, and sometimes in the last five minutes. This last half hour seems to be popular with the majority of other hotel guests as well, as it’s often difficult to find a table and the pastries have been pretty well picked over by then.

But the holy grail of all hotel breakfast options is the waffle iron.

Waffle IronEveryone is drawn to the waffle iron - young and old, male and female, rich and poor, strong and weak.

And what about waffle iron etiquette? How close do you wait in line to ensure some little rugrat doesn’t barge in front of you? Are you allowed to make more than one if the other person isn’t waiting in line with you? There’s nothing worse than thinking your turn to make a scrumptious waffle has arrived, only to see the person in front of you grab another cup of batter.

With all this in mind I think my biggest question is the title of this article: would it kill the hotel to buy another waffle iron?

All three hotels had one waffle iron, none of the three were booked to capacity, yet all three had lines for the waffle iron every morning. They don’t take up much counter space. I can’t believe an increase in the electric bill would be that big of an issue.

C’mon hotels - shell out another $75 to make the morning a little easier for your guests. And while you’re at it - how about some soft butter.