I have been making linguine with clam sauce (both the red and white versions) in one fashion or another for many years, so you can well imagine that it is one of my favorites. If fresh manila clams or littleneck clams are not available, you can use c...

In June, Pizza Hut announced it would spend $5 million to renovate its locations in Jacksonville, Florida. The investment would pay for a “transformation to a more contemporary look and improved customer experience” in the seven dine-in and 23 de...

Menu size can be a critical element to your pizzeria or restaurant. Believe it or not, offering either too many or too few items can detract from your business. Offer just a few items and you’re at risk of discouraging a repeat visit. Offering too ...

It’s no secret that times are tough for restaurant operators. Money is tight, customer numbers are down, and more than ever profi t margins are at a premium. But even though you may not be able to add that second location (yet), there are ways to b...

In a race to outdo the competition, there aren’t a whole lot of ingredients left that have not turned up on a pizza. The fact is there’s nothing new about all of this; it now simply becomes a matter of marketing and advertising to get the custome...

If we do a time machine scenario and zip back to May of 1889, we find Queen Margherita and her husband, King Umberto I, being served pizza at the palazzo in Naples where they were staying. The king and queen had heard about the famous pizzas of Naple...

Your menu is the one piece of marketing your customers are guaranteed to read — at least to some degree. But its influence doesn’t stop with helping the diner make an ordering decision. The menu’s role is actually much greater — it directly i...

My father was a mushroom farmer. During my high school years, I put in more than a few hours getting acquainted with mushrooms in every way possible. Most of the mushrooms we grew (from scratch, including inserting the mushroom spawn into the compost...

Q: How has the current recession affected your marketing budget? Estella Ferrera, Oggi’s Pizza & Brewing Company: I have actually left our marketing budget pretty much the same, although I was a little more conservative with my buys to acco...

The Italians take their pizzas seriously, which is why, in June of 1984, Antonio Pace put into writing the precise rules for the preparation of the “veraci” (original) pizzas. He was against the commercial industrialization of the modern day pizz...

Pizza and pasta is a match made in heaven. If pasta isn’t already on your menu, start up the printing press — because that’s all about to change! Not only should you be offering both, but why not create a “family feast” by combining a pasta...

I have been asked to summarize many of my beliefs and words of wisdom as if this were my last shot to speak to you. I have had the great honor to intercommunicate with our wondrous industry for the past 15 years. It has been quite a ride, and I would...