Just over half of my gross sales came from home and business deliveries. Over the years, we stumbled on a few ideas that made us stand out from the competition. We were the fi rst company in our area to use car-top signs. It was so long ago I had to ...

The International Pizza Expo show floor is the size of 4 1/2 football fields! America’s 50 largest pizza companies control nearly 39,000 of the industry’s 75,000 units. According to a recent Pizza Today.com poll, 30 percent of respondents...

Stay Sharp Keeping knives sharp and handling/storing them properly are the best methods to reduce the potential for cuts in the kitchen. Providing employees with mesh or Kevlar cutting gloves is another good idea. Hare are some other tips: ? Purchase...

Kevin Plaut owns and operates Harry’s Bishop’s Corner in West Hartford, Connecticut. A longtime employee, Kevin and his wife, Anne, bought the restaurant in 2007 after founder Harry Rufleth retired. Q: Having taken over a long-established restaur...

I still get calls to this day from pizzeria owners telling me how well the “Million Dollar Letter” pulls in new prospects — and brings back lost customers. If you’re not hip to the letter, it is simply a full-page letter, explaining i...

Gotcha Focaccia? Fresh focaccia is a great accompaniment to soups and salads, and everyone loves breadbaskets at the table. While you’re going to bake it until golden, avoid over-browning it. There are many different kinds, but avoid heavy flavors ...

I was traveling the interstate close to midnight when I stopped by a restaurant still open in the small community of Canyonville, Oregon. My 18-year-old waiter, Kyle, graduated last year from his small high school in a senior class of 12 students. He...

October has always been my favorite month. I got married in October. I played high school football in October. I watch the World Series every October (waiting for those Cubs to get there!). I also watch a change of seasons culminate into something qu...

Why is it that some operators never seem to leave the kitchen, are afraid to take a vacation and consider overtime a way of life? Why is it that some operators seem to have that “Midas touch”? Why have some bought a business while others ...

Every weekday, 100,000 pharmaceutical reps take out or have delivered $4 million in food from restaurants just like yours. That’s over one billion dollars each and every year. The average catering budget for a pharmaceutical rep is between $800 and...

Less than a year ago, I was an independent pizzeria owner on top of the world, but today’s “recession conscious” media suggested imminent doom for my business. When I watch headline news and read the newspaper, I am inclined to beli...

Congratulations to Lou Siecinski and Mark Gold, owners of Pizza Shuttle, Inc. in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. We’ve named Pizza Shuttle our 2009 Independent Pizzeria of the Year based on their quarter-century of success. Last year, Pizza Shuttle was ranke...