New menu ideas, expertly prepared entrées and hungry customers combined to make a perfect foodie event on July 22, 2009 at Oakville Trafalgar Memorial Hospital. Maple Leaf Foodservice staff were on-hand at the Halton Healthcare site for “Maple Leaf Day,” a showcase of menu ideas featuring Maple Leaf products.
The Halton Healthcare retail food service team created buzz about the event through internal e-mails, posters and hospital signage. As a result, a crowd of over 550 patrons visited the cafeteria to sample new product offerings and lend their voice to the discussion of the upcoming fall-winter cafeteria menu. According to Marianne Katusin, Manager of Retail Food Services for Halton Healthcare, these types of events are a great way to develop a strong rapport with customers and get their feedback on menu options. Plus, she says that the large crowd was atypical for a July afternoon, so the event was a great way to increase customer volume and boost revenue.
Culinary delights were created in three sections of the cafeteria, with the help of Maple Leaf chef Tom Penna, and Oakville Trafalgar’s own chefs Phil Beatty and David Boulter.
Penna worked the Grab & Go area, where he assisted in serving the day’s most popular dish – Smokin’ BBQ Chicken Batons with a side of Frings and cole slaw. Chicken Batons (skinless chicken legs) are new offering from Maple Leaf Foodservice. Katusin postulates that this new product was the top-selling entrée since it was “different than usual hospital cafeteria food, but was still accompanied by familiar side dishes, which made for a winning combination.”
Also popular were the new Grilled Pork Chops, which were served with a BBQ pineapple salsa. They were prepared by chef Phil Beatty in the cafeteria’s well-liked Grill area. According to Katusin, both of these new menu items were a hit with customers and will be part of the fall-winter menu, which is currently being planned.
The trendy Deli area offered two specials: Grilled Chicken Fajita Wraps (featuring Maple Leaf chicken fajita strips) and Turkey Club Wraps (featuring Maple Leaf Sure Slice turkey and Maple Leaf bacon), both of which have been top-sellers in the past and will likely reappear in the new season’s menu.
Katusin said that the event went “extremely well” and attributes the success to a combination of excellent food, enthusiastic customers and the support of Maple Leaf Foodservice, who were on-site to answer questions, collect feedback, donate prizes and give away fun promotional items. With strong customer support and feedback, Katusin can confidently develop next season’s menu with the knowledge that she will be meeting her customer’s needs.
Maple Leaf Foodservice’s Denise Paul, National Healthcare Manager also attended the day and said “the event created a huge stir amongst the foodservice staff and customers, turning a regular Wednesday lunchtime into a really exciting one! We gave away cool pens to the first 100 customers who purchased a Maple Leaf feature menu item and had a draw for four $50 gift certificates to popular eating establishments.”
If you are looking to increase customer volume, boost sales and build rapport with customers and manufacturers, why not host a similar event at your foodservice establishment? Contact your Maple Leaf Foodservice Sales representative for details.