Sponsored by Nestle Stouffer's
Everywhere you look in foodservice—from onsite dining facilities to restaurants and hotels—operators are buying high-quality, ready-to-heat food products that their smaller kitchen teams can execute with ease.
The trend is especially strong in the healthcare, college and university, and lodging segments, where costs are challenging and expectations for flavorful food are high.
The solution, for a growing number of operators, is to offer the varied, versatile, and highly regarded line of Stouffer’s® heat-and-serve tray food products. The flavorful options include Stouffer’s Meatloaf with Gravy, Salisbury Steak with Gravy, Traditional Macaroni and Cheese, Vegetable Lasagna, Lasagna with Meat and Sauce, and Classic Lasagna with Bolognese Sauce.
Fundamentally important to operators is the fact that these Stouffer’s products provide the operational advantages of ready-to-heat foods without sacrificing quality and taste. They feature real ingredients, superior visual appeal, and scratch-made taste, plus the unmatched ease, consistency, and dependability of a frozen product that can be simply heated and served.
Operators familiar with those benefits typically make comments like the following:
“Stouffer’s is fast, convenient and best of all, it tastes like scratch,” says Vicki Lee, dietary director of Prairie Ridge Healthcare. “The name says it all. There are no other commercially made meals that taste even close to Stouffer’s.”
“Stouffer’s has several award-winning food products that have helped with our labor shortage, added value with cost and time savings, and increased resident satisfaction with consistency and quality,” says Timothy Mulvaney, assistant director Dining Services, Mennonite Home Retirement HC Community.
In addition to pleasing patients, residents, and students in their respective segments, these versatile products are big hits with staff members, too. Many report that enjoying Stouffer’s specialties in the employee café is one of the high points of the day. “Our fan favorite is definitely Stouffer’s Lasagna,” says Melisa Ranta, front desk manager, Hawthorn Suites by Wyndham. “And I personally like Stouffer’s Stuffed Green Peppers.”
The brand advantage
For more than a century, Stouffer’s has upheld its high brand standards and refused to cut corners. That commitment has earned it a name synonymous with value and quality, one that generations of operators and consumers recognize.
Indeed, IFMA research shows that brand reputation is more important to operators buying frozen foods than it is when they choose center-of-plate proteins, cheese, sauces, and dips.
Speaking up for Stouffer’s Alfredo Sauce is Jenny Faircloth, purchasing, Battleground Restaurant Group. “BRG strives to bring a great quality product to our guests at a reasonable price,” she says. “Some of our biggest sellers are our pastas made with the Stouffer’s Alfredo Sauce, which we rely on day in and day out.”
Stouffer’s Pot Pies and Meatloaf strike a familiar, nostalgic chord with senior community residents, recalling the comfort food experiences they have enjoyed for a lifetime. “These products reach right to the soul of how the folks grew up and the security that they feel when we serve them,” says Jim Fuller, GM, Bainbridge Senior Living.
Getting a handle on labor
Although operators say business conditions in the industry are “close to normal” now, they still face economic headwinds and hurdles, according to the 2023 National Restaurant Association State of the Restaurant Industry report.
Hiring enough qualified employees remains a struggle. Some 62% of operators say they are understaffed, even though restaurant employment is predicted to surpass pre-pandemic levels this year, per the Association report.
Great-tasting foods that are quick and easy to serve are lifelines for kitchen teams tasked with doing more with fewer hands. The built-in convenience of Stouffer’s products enables operators to edit their menus with reduced labor requirements. They help hard-working kitchen teams get meals out more efficiently and cope with the frequent time crunches they face.
By using products that are as appealing, versatile, and easy to execute as the Stouffer’s line, even busy, time-pressed kitchens have a leg up on creating new menu items and seasonal specialties that enhance customer satisfaction and increase meal participation.
Operators can gain greater control over challenging conditions by leveraging the scratch-made taste, simple prep, and esteemed brand equity of Stouffer’s tray foods.
“Stouffer’s is comfort food at its best,” says Erica Frame, CDM CFPP foodservice director, Viviant Healthcare of Shelbyville. “When I use a Stouffer’s product, I know that my patients are receiving a balanced, palatable, and presentable meal.”
For more information about the advantages of the high-quality, easy-to-serve Stouffer’s tray food line, visit the Stouffer’s website.