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Instagram is such a fabulous platform to find new recipes to try, flavour combinations you’d never think of and unusual plating’s to bring your menu to the next level. If you’re not on Instagram in a professional capacity, you should seriously consider it as a way to gain additional fans of your food and a crowdsourced way of testing what works for your mass audience. Here are 6 chef Instagram accounts to follow for inspiration:

1. @chefjacqueslamerde

 

IF I SIT DOWN AT ONE MORE DIMLY EDISON BULB-LIT RESTAURANT AND AM SERVED SOUSVIDE PORK BELLY W/ FRIED THINGS AND KIMCHI, I AM ACTUALLY GOIN 2 BE FORCED TO HURL MY MASON JAR OF AGED HOUSE MADE BITTERS INFUSED COCKTAIL AGAINST THE WALL!!! YO BROS ITS TIME 2 LEAVE THAT PLAYED OUT STUFF BEHIND!!! JOSE AND I TOOK PORK BELLY OFF THE MENU MONTHS AGO, AND HAVE REPLACED IT W/ SOMETHING SO SO NEXT LEVEL, ITS ACTUALLY SUPERSONIC!!!! ARTISINAL LUNCHMEATS!!!! YAASSS BROS, WE PLUGGED IN THE OL’ @EATNOMIKU FIRST GEN AND MADE OUR OWN MACARONI LOAF!!!! MACARONI STUDDED BOLOGNA, HAND-TORN WONDERBREAD, YELLO MUSTARD CAVIAR, PICKLED BABY ONIONS, HUNTS KETCHUP COULIS, MIRACLE WHIP EXPRESSIONS, TINY PICKLE CROSS-SECTIONS, DORITOS DYNAMITE NACHO PICOSO, CHEEZE WHIZ RIMMER!!!!! #lunchmeatgoessupersonic #nextlevel #soigné #theartofplating #gastroart #chefsofig #miraclewhip #doritos #cheezewhizrimmer #plateswagger #tweezers #negativespace #nomiku #sousvide #moleculargastronomy #artisan #slowfood #masonjars

A photo posted by @chefjacqueslamerde on Jul 23, 2015 at 2:12pm PDT

Chef Jacques La Merde is a tweezer genius who simultaneously pokes fun of high end dining while creating gorgeous plated dishes featuring ingredients such as hostess cupcakes, hot pockets and hidden valley ranch dressing. He’s been featured on CNN, BuzzFeed, Eater, Vice and the London Times for his Instagram account.

2. @bambambaklava

 

Chana Masala (Chick Peas in a spicy sauce) from my hands. One of my favorite things. 🔥 #Fuckthatsdelicious

A photo posted by Action Bronson (@bambambaklava) on Aug 26, 2015 at 11:30am PDT

Action Bronson is a full time rapper and a classically trained culinary chef with a video webseries on Munchies called Fuck, That’s Delicious. Follow him to see his rap career and as he eats / cooks his way around his world tour.

3. @gastroart

 

Tuna, pink pepper, edible flowers, basil oil & wasabi. Superb dish uploaded by @tadashi_takayama #gastroart

A photo posted by Gastro Art (@gastroart) on Aug 7, 2015 at 4:42pm PDT

Gastro Art is an Instagram account dedicated to aesthetically pleasing and gorgeously photographed pictures of food.

4. @dan_churchill

 

How good is pasta?!? What about "Swaghetti" Chilli Prawn Pasta!!! It is a serious healthy #GameChanger Which means we can all enjoy it. Click the link in my profile to watch how you can have it everyday ;) ... Xo DC

A photo posted by Daniel Churchill (@dan_churchill) on Aug 24, 2015 at 12:01am PDT

Dan Churchill is an Aussie born, US based chef who is the author of two cookbooks, and is currently in preproduction for his own TV series. He offers some great alternatives for gluten free cooking and wants to promote healthy cooking that’s as delicious as it is healthy.

5. @jamieoliver

 

#recipeoftheday my twist on a classic paella, with chicken & chorizo for incredible flavour! Recipe up on jamieoliver.com guys JO xxx

A photo posted by Jamie Oliver (@jamieoliver) on Aug 14, 2015 at 5:13am PDT

Do I even need to explain who Jamie Oliver is? The Naked Chef, and Healthy eating advocate shares information about his life, his new projects, his restaurants and of course simple, healthy and gorgeous food recipes.

6. @aprilbloomfield

 

Check out this delicious #roasted #carrot dish from my up coming book #agirlandhergreens in this months @saveurmag! ... Perfect for a light lunch this weekend !

A photo posted by aprilbloomfield (@aprilbloomfield) on Jan 17, 2015 at 5:31am PST

Chef Bloomfield is the reigning James Beard Best Chef New York City whose Instagram account features farm-fresh ingredients, gorgeous photography and stunning recipes from her upcoming cookbook “a Girl and Her Greens”.

Just as wedding trends can become the hot item of the season or year they can also die out just as fast. It seemed for the latter half of 2014 and beginning of 2015 – a lot of these trends were going strong. Brides.com, Special Events Magazine and Gurley Events have predicted the 2015 wedding trends that are passé with the help of event planners on the front lines.

Check out the trends that are out of style that you may want to consider retiring from your inventory.

1. Patterned Cakes like Chevron, Stripes and Polka Dots (Source & Photo Source)

2. Blush Pink in favour of bolder metallic and jewel tones (Source & Photo Source)

3. Mirrors as centerpiece anchors (Source & Photo Source)

4. The Boho theme (Source & Photo Source)

5. Chalkboards for anything and everything (Source, Source & Photo Source)

6. The seated dinner is out – with strolling food stations becoming the trend for better networking (Source)

7. Fake back dropped photo booths with cheap decorations to play with (Source, Source & Photo Source)

8. Candy Buffets (Source & Source)

9. Mason Jars (Source, Source, Source & Photo Source)

10. Burlap (Source, Source & Photo Source)

11. The Roaring ‘20s / Great Gatsby theme (Source & Photo Source)

12. Glowing Furniture (Source & Photo Source)

13. Macarons (Source)

14. Large elaborate weddings (Source & Photo Source)

We know we’re not the only game in North America for event supplies but we’ve heard horror stories of our customer’s thinking they’re getting a good deal from the US only to find out it isn’t the fairy tale they initially thought. We’re all for trying to make our customer’s lives and businesses better so we thought it made sense to compile a list of questions based on hidden fees / costs that are often found when buying from United States event equipment suppliers.

Here are questions to make sure you ask / costs you are aware of so you have the all-in pricing to compare against Canadian event supply companies.

1. Do they have the items in stock?
2. Do they charge a credit card processing fee? What is it?
3. What is the exchange rate your credit card provider will charge to convert US Dollars to Canadian Dollars?
4. Is there any minimum order quantities required?
5. Do you have to pay for skids (if you are ordering skid volumes)?
6. Where is the product shipping from?
7. Do you have to pay shipping from their US warehouse to their Canadian warehouse and then from their Canadian warehouse to your location? Or do you only have to pay shipping from their US warehouse to your location?
8. What customs fees, brokerage fees and duties are associated with the products you’re buying? Most companies (ourselves included) know the duties and customs/brokerage fees associated with exporting products.
9. How long will it take for them to ship your order?
10. How long does it take once the order is shipped for the order to get to you?

Hopefully this list gives you the questions needed to ensure you get the products you need for your rental inventory. If we’re missing any questions – let us know so we can update the list!

Restaurants are notoriously tight on profit margins and every way of reducing operating expenses helps a restaurant’s bottom line and equals more revenue. Energy costs can eat up a huge portion of a restaurant’s operating expenses. There are a lot of energy sucking appliances that exist in a commercial kitchen.

If you’ve ever wondered how a restaurant can reduce energy costs, then look no further than the infographic below from Powerhouse Dynamics. They figured out which systems and appliances consume the most energy in a full-service restaurant.

For example, they found that food preparation equipment accounts for 40% of a total restaurant’s energy use, the most of any restaurant component. They also found that reducing energy use by 20% could increase profits by 10% - which is a huge percentage when the average restaurant’s profit margin is 10%.

Check it out to see savings tips on various appliances and systems in the kitchen and dining areas.

Presented By Powerhouse Dynamics

It’s no surprise that technology in any industry can be a huge blessing. I know there can be issues associated with technology but in general for society and businesses we are infinitely more productive (except when watching too many cat videos) and able to tackle things faster with less people more efficiently. The foodservice industry is no exception and there have emerged, over the past decades, POS systems, payment systems, back of the house systems, online ordering and delivery systems, front of the house systems and much much more. I found an infographic that provides a comprehensive view of all the different technology offerings available for the restaurant industry and thought it was worth sharing so that restaurant’s had a frame of reference for who to evaluate when reviewing a new technology to implement. Check it out: