Category: The Project Team

Straws aren’t the only things that suck!

Yesterday Starbucks announced they will be testing alternatives to plastic drinking straws at 54 of their locations in Britain.  This is the latest response from food-service operations to increased social media and media attention on the negative effect plastic items like straws and grocery bags have on our environment.  UGSRP has been a strong proponent … Continue reading Straws aren’t the only things that suck!

541 Eatery & Exchange

Welcome back to our second episode of the Food for Thought series. As promised, this week we will take a dive into what a local Hamilton leader is doing with a global perspective. Known and loved dearly by neighbouring citizens, this local leader is none other than the 541 Eatery and Exchange! 541 Eatery and … Continue reading 541 Eatery & Exchange

Restaurant employees who work, eat and play together; stay together

  Most of us are aware of the positive correlation between job satisfaction and organizational commitment, but I believe many restaurant managers struggle with understanding what effects job satisfaction and how to actually achieve and improve it. Front-line restaurant employees often report high levels of stress, emotional exhaustion and physiological resource depletion (Han, Bonn, & … Continue reading Restaurant employees who work, eat and play together; stay together

A visit to Guelph from ‘Forward Food’

The photo above shows some of the attending Chefs describing how they cooked their delicious plant-based menu items Today I was fortunate enough to be invited to a training workshop put on by Forward Food for the University of Guelph Hospitality Services (HS).  Long known as being ranked first in Canada for it’s campus dining … Continue reading A visit to Guelph from ‘Forward Food’

Adding Plant-Based Protein (and Profit!) To Your Menu

    The headlines, trend reports and various experts seem to agree, plant-based protein is set to explode in 2018. Inevitably, vegan and vegetarian diners, formerly seen as the “complicated ones” in a dinner party, are thrilled to see their beloved plant-based foods taking center stage. It is not however, just vegans and vegetarians celebrating this … Continue reading Adding Plant-Based Protein (and Profit!) To Your Menu

A post podcast interview with Jan van der Hoop!

Jan G. van der Hoop is a Guelph alum who started his career in operations as a management trainee with Hilton International, eventually becoming the youngest Director of HR in their system at the age of 27. Since then his career has taken him in some pretty interesting directions – largely because, as he describes … Continue reading A post podcast interview with Jan van der Hoop!

Is our fixation with ‘food’ hurting our industry?

Food plays an integral part in the life of any restaurant, but the question is, have we gone too far? In Canada we can look back a couple of decades and see the relationship between the start of the Food Network and our gastronomic education.  We can see the rise of the celebrity Chef in … Continue reading Is our fixation with ‘food’ hurting our industry?

Are compressed work schedules the answer to restaurant manager retention?

Last week in my fourth-year class I asked students if they would rather work Monday to Friday 9-5 or have a schedule that saw them work four days from 10-10 followed by four days off.  A resounding majority of the students stated they would rather work long, tough hours for four days straight and then … Continue reading Are compressed work schedules the answer to restaurant manager retention?