Patricia Cobe
Senior Editor
Articles by
Patricia Cobe
Page 157Summer sips
Many restaurants and bars are helping thirsty customers beat the heat with inventive drinks this summer. There’s a cool way to cool off no matter what's your beverage of choice—beer, wine, cocktails or house-made lemonade.
Sourcing challenges: As demand rises, so do seafood prices
Aweakened dollar, high commodity costs and increased global demand for seafood are combining to push up prices this season. Fernando Navas, corporate chef for the six-location SushiSamba, names “price” as his number one sourcing challenge.
Recent research from the National Restaurant Association reveals that nearly 50 percent of restaurants are now owned by women. The impact of this stat was in full view on Wednesday, June 29, when several renowned female chef-owners gathered with a group of illustrious women in the culinary field for lunch at Millesime in New York City. I was privileged to take part in this delicious and lively experience, in which we dined on an expertly prepared multi-course lunch accompanied by spirited conversation on breaking the barriers to success in the restaurant industry.
The only way I got through the long, icy winter we recently endured was by dreaming about sunny summer beach days. The beaches in the Northeast are some of the most beautiful in the world. And for sunbathers looking for great eats, close to the sand and waves are shacks, stands and restaurants serving up the best lobster rolls in the world.
Dairy prices seem to be going up faster than cream rises to the top of a vat of milk. While relative bargains were available when cheese prices crashed in January 2009, there's been a surge upward since then. To ease the pain, some operators can cut down on the number of cheesy appetizers and entrees they serve, but concepts that focus on pizza, cheeseburgers, enchiladas and quesadillas simply can't do without it.