T.G.I. Friday’s USA honored suppliers ITW Food Equipment Group, Smurfit-Stone, Schreiber, Mission Foods, Oneida, CH Robinson, Central Florida Press, Rastelli Foods and Lawler Foods. Also this week: Kraft Foodservice, The Beef Checkoff Program, McCormick For Chefs — Food Away From Home division, Legacy Foodservice Alliance, Folgers, Manitowoc Foodservice, Delfield
CARROLLTON, Texas — T.G.I. Friday’s USA, based here, honored its top suppliers at the casual-dining chain’s 2010 Supplier Summit held at the Westin Stonebriar in Frisco, Texas. The award winners and their categories are:
• ITW Food Equipment Group, Glenview, Ill.: Non Food Supplier of the Year
• Smurfit-Stone, Chicago: Dedication
• Schreiber, Green Bay, Wis.: Quality Excellence
• Mission Foods, Irving, Texas: Outstanding Service
• Oneida, Oneida, N.Y.: Jumping Through Hoops
• CH Robinson, Visalia, Calif.: Innovation
• Central Florida Press, Orlando, Fla.: Best New Supplier of the Year
• Rastelli Foods, Swedesboro, N.J.: VP R&D Recognition Award
• Lawler Foods, Humble, Texas: Supplier of the Year
GLENVIEW, Ill. — Kraft Foodservice awarded Sonali Ruder, a student at the Institute of Culinary Education, or ICE, a $20,000 culinary scholarship for winning the 2010 Chefs of Grey Poupon Student Culinary Competition. Ruder won the grand prize for her recipe, Pan-Roasted Lamb Loin with Celery Root, Apple and Dijon Puree, Mustard Greens, Grey Poupon Glazed Carrots, Pomegranate Jus and Truffle Mustard Mushroom Crisp.
The other winners are:
• Joshua Ogrodowski from Johnson & Wales University won a $5,000 scholarship for taking second place with his Honey Dijon Pistachio-Encrusted Lamb Rack with Dijon Succotash, Whole Grain Dijon Lamb Glace and Fire-Roasted Tomatoes.
• Sarah Roberts of Kendall College won third place and a $3,000 scholarship for her recipe, Crispy Braised Pork Belly with Chinese Black Rice Rolls.
• Brooke Maynard of The Culinary Institute of America won fourth place and a $2,000 scholarship for her Pear & Dijon Glazed Pork Loin.
DENVER — The Beef Checkoff Program said it plans to debut new cuts from the beef round as well as value-driven retail merchandising techniques at the inaugural Innovative Beef Symposium Aug. 25-26 here. The event has been designed to help restaurateurs and others capitalize on new beef products to improve profitability while offering more options to customers. The two-day symposium will offer sessions led by meat scientists and foodservice and retail professional who will share information on the potential for these new cuts.
HUNT VALLEY, Md., — McCormick For Chefs — Food Away from Home division has launched a new website to help support chefs and other culinary professionals. The site, McCormickForChefs.com, has been designed to offer a more user-friendly approach and provides expanded menu solutions, production information by brand, recipes and flavor trends. The site highlights such company products as the McCormick Culinary line of professional spices, Old Bay, Zatarain’s, Thai Kitchen and Lawry’s.
RICHMOND, Va. — Legacy Foodservice Alliance, a distributor procurement and marketing group based here, named Debra Winter executive vice president of sales. A 30-year veteran of the industry, Winter previously held senior management positions with Federated Foodservice Inc., Foresight Partners LLC, Progressive Group Alliance LLC, and UniPro Foodservice Inc.
ORRVILLE, Ohio — Folgers has launched a newly redesigned website, www.folgersofficecoffee.com, that provides information and ideas about coffee merchandising in the workplace. The site includes information on products, distributor locations, offers and promotions, and e-mail updates.
NEW PORT RICHEY, Fla. — Manitowoc Foodservice and Delfield have appointed two new executives. Manitowoc Foodservice named Sheri L. Noordhof to the post of business development manager. In her new capacity, Noordhof will assist the company’s field sales organization, distribution, and other channels in support of the new blended beverage category. In addition, Delfield, a Manitowoc Foodservice company, appointed Martin Palazeti business development manager. Palazeti will help the Delfield sales organization, distribution and other channels in support of sales and marketing initiatives.