restaurant development + design is a user-driven resource for restaurant professionals charged with building new locations and remodeling existing units.
Issue link: http://rddmag.epubxp.com/i/472177
2 • R E S T A U R A N T D E V E L O P M E N T + D E S I G N • M A R C H / A P R I L 2 0 1 5 Columns 4 Publisher's Letter What's the Point? Coming up this month, it's RestaurantPoint, an important partner in helping us to fulfll our mission. We hope to see you there! 6 Editor's Letter Sails Up! Falling gas prices, an improved job market and rising wages point to this being a year in which restaurants may fnally have some wind at their backs. Are your sails up? 18 Peer to Peer Q&A; with Tim Taft, President & CEO, Fiesta Restaurant Group Since Carrols Corporation spun off Fiesta Restaurant Group in 2012, Tim Taft has been a busy guy. He moved FRGI head- quarters to Texas, built a management team, introduced a new Pollo Tropical prototype and a new Taco Cabana brand expression, and expanded into new markets. To hear Taft tell it, the party at Fiesta's just getting started. 22 Consultant's Take Have Fun (Really!) with Visionaries Design and concept consultant Andy Simpson offers some strategies for enjoy- ing the ride when working with visionary restaurant founders, who, while passion- ate and creative, can be a handful. 72 Talk Shop Mural Master Joe Puskas heads up Firehouse Subs' in-house art department and has hand-drawn and fnished every one of the more than 800 iconic murals that headline each restaurant's décor pack- age. He put his brush down for a few minutes to share how he does it. CONTENTS VOLUME 3, NO 2 March/April 2015 Departments 8 Buzz New Häagen-Dazs Design Hits Premium Branding Notes; ThinkFoodGroup Debuts China Chilcano; LA's Mexicano Celebrates Authenticity; Farm Stores Hybrid Concept Launches Franchising Drive; Verve Coffee Roasters Expands to SoCal; and more. 14 TREND Interpreting Izakaya Japanese gastropubs called izakayas are fnding fans and footing in the U.S., where operators are putting their own spin on the concept. Here are three that are leading the way. 26 Design Market: Chicago Headed to the Windy City? Check out these new hot spots for design (and cuisine) inspiration. 48 Project Profle Taco Guild An abandoned 1940s Methodist church in Phoenix has been creatively repurposed into Taco Guild, a dazzling casual-dining shrine to tacos and tequila, by the folks behind the Z'Tejas Southwestern Grill chain. 54 How To: Hire a Designer Hiring a designer for a new restaurant or renovation is like a job interview and date rolled into one. Experience and expertise are paramount, but so are vision and chemistry. 58 Reader's Choices Rob Milich, director of design and construc- tion at Hurricane Grill & Wings, shares a few mission-critical products on his radar right now. 62 Form + Function: Fast-Casual Service Lines Design strategies and product insights. 65 Solutions Center 70 Ad Index Maureen Slocum Publisher (800) 630-4168; fax (800) 630-4169; maureen@zoombagroup.com Joseph M. Carbonara Editorial Director (800) 630-4168; joe@zoombagroup.com EDITORIAL Editor-in-Chief Dana Tanyeri dana@zoombagroup.com Contributing Editors Amanda Baltazar, Donna Boss, Anne Downes, Ewurama Ewusi-Mensah, Peter Fabris, Valerie Killifer, Caroline Perkins, Carol Skerritt and Thomas Henry Strenk INTERACTIVE MEDIA Web Editor Rebecca Kilbreath (800) 630-4168; rebecca@zoombagroup.com ART & PRODUCTION Art Director & Production Manager Anne LoCascio (800) 630-4168; anne@zoombagroup.com Art and Production Assistant Eric Uhl (800) 630-4168; eric@zoombagroup.com SALES MANAGEMENT Vice President, Sales and Marketing Carol McAdam (312) 961-5572; carol@zoombagroup.com East Coast Sales Director BG Burg (312) 282-6952; BG@zoombagroup.com South/West Sales Director Kris Duvall (312) 805-9304; kris@zoombagroup.com Accounting Manager Tracy Mugan (800) 630-4168 ; tracy@zoombagroup.com Sales Representative Nicholas Slocum (630) 908-9607; nicholas@zoombagroup.com RESEARCH Research Director Terri Solomon (800) 630-4168 ; terri@zoombagroup.com CIRCULATION Audience Development Manager Richard Jarrett (800) 630-4168; rich@zoombagroup.com For subscription inquiries and address changes, please contact: 847-763-4936 or 877-479-6505, Fax: 800-630-4169. Send e-mails to fesmag@halldata.com REPRINTS For custom reprints and electronic usage, contact Maureen Slocum at: (800) 630-4168 fax (800) 630-4169 maureen@zoombagroup.com OFFICE 110 E. Schiller St., Suite 312 Elmhurst, IL 60126 Phone (800) 630-4168 fax (800) 630-4169 WWW.RDDMAG.COM restaurant development + design (USPS 14780)is published bi-monthly by Zoomba Group. 110 E Schiller Street, Suite 312, Elmhurst, IL 60126. Periodicals postage paid at Elmhurst, IL and additional mailing offices. POSTMASTER: Please send address changes to restaurant development + design, PO Box 156 Elmhurst IL 60126. Subscriptions are free to qualified professionals within the United States. Non-qualified subscriptions are available at the subscription prices of $90 for a year. All other countries and Canada must be prepaid in U.S. funds with an additional $35. Single copy price is $15. Zoomba Group LLC does not assume and hereby disclaims any liability to any person for any loss or damage caused by errors or omissions in the material contained herein, regardless of whether such errors result from negligence, accident or any other cause whatsoever.