Raising a glass to Happy Hours

If you doubt the Happy Hour is making a comeback, consider the sales elixirs two heavy-pouring restaurant chains are currently sucking down.

The pair acknowledged this month that they’d uncorked what’s again becoming the most common sales lubricant in casual dining. Brinker International was the more recent to join the likes of P.F. Chang’s and Cheesecake Factory, announcing Wednesday that its Chili’s chain was rolling a “full-blown Happy Hour program,” in the words of CEO Doug Brooks.

Speaking to investors, Brooks was sketchy on details. But he divulged that the lures for the post-work crowd would include sangria, an upgraded version of Chili’s signature margaritas, and new food offerings at the bar.

He described the push for evening guests as one of Chili’s “very big initiatives” for rebounding from the Great Recession, which walloped all of casual dining. The rollout is right up there in strategic importance with the redesign of the concept and the changeover to more efficient kitchens, he stressed.

The financial analysts listening to Brooks refused to let his tease pass without amplification. Pressed a bit, Brooks described the new program as a natural outgrowth of Chili’s re-imaging, which extends to such bar enhancements as the installation of better flat screen TVs. He also spoke cryptically about changes that put the bartender in a position to field more drink orders.

But Brooks rebuffed requests for any sales info from the program’s market tests, which he characterized as having just concluded.

Three weeks earlier, Ruby Tuesday provided a few details about its Happy Hour program, which is already in place at the diversified company’s namesake chain (Ruby Tuesday now has more brands in its portfolio than some of the bigger private-equity firms.) CEO Sandy Beall noted that the draws include half-price appetizers and $2 tacos and sliders.

“The investments we've made in our beverage lineup and bar program should help us reach our long-term goal of increasing alcohol sales to 12% of revenue,” Beall said in Ruby’s conference call with investors.

Looks as if Ruby Tuesday is going to have a lot more competition in getting there.

Flapjacks for flyers?

IHOPs may soon be firing up the griddle at airports, travel plazas and other alternatives to the usual street-side location. The pancake chain said it plans to pursue nontraditional sites as a result of hiring Bill Alexander, a longtime Brinker International veteran, as its new vice president of franchising and business development.

Brinker’s workhorse brand, Chili’s, has been a standout success among full-service concepts in developing airport locations. Romano’s Macaroni Grill, Alexander’s previous charge, recently started opening units in those venues.

IHOP didn’t say if the push for alternative locations will bring more IHOP Cafes, the mini-units that a franchisee has opened in San Antonio. The two stores currently open feature a limited menu of items like “mini-melts,” wraps, smoothies and coffee based drinks.

Family specialists like IHOP have lately been pursuing alternative sites and more engaging formats as means of reinvigorating the wheezing segment. Denny’s, for instance, has been experimenting with grab-and-go variations of the familiar coffee shop, and recently agreed to take over more than 130 truck-stop restaurants that had been operated by the bankrupt Flying J chain. It also opened one a scaled-down unit on a college campus in San Bernardino, Calif.

Lend a shoulder for headhunters to cry on

I’m holding a tissue drive for the industry’s executive placement specialists, commonly known as headhunters. They’ll likely be burning through Kleenex this week after what must’ve been excruciating months of watching the grass grow, the bills pile up, the accountants nixing luxuries like a communal box of nose dabbers. Now that the tears are being shed in joy instead of despair, why not let them sob and honk a bit?   

The week is less than 48 hours old, yet we’ve already seen two screaming indications that companies are making big hires again. Lane Cardwell, a longtime veteran of casual dining, was appointed CEO over the weekend of Boston Market. On Monday evening, Carin Stutz, a standout who seemed on the CEO track at Applebee’s, was named COO of Global Business Development for Chili’s parent, Brinker International. They’re the sort of placements that give headhunters the vapors, a giddiness they likely haven't felt in awhile.  

Both of the week’s marquee recruits are huge talents, and, interestingly, both were previously under-employed. Their return to full-time duty suggests the smart companies are starting to raid the considerable bench of talent that’s been formed by the cut, cut, cut imperative of the last nine months. The mindset might be shifting back to assembling a standout team, instead of hacking one to bits for the sake of a budget.  

That possibility seems more likely when you consider a few big-name hirings in April, like Bennigan's recruitment of David Goronkin as its new leader, or Real Mex Restaurants' appointment of Dick Rivera as CEO. They, too, were previously under-employed What seemed at the time to be exceptions to the rule may in hindsight be the early indications of an emerging trend.

If the recent developments are indeed the first signs of a shift, it’ll be high-five-worthy news for headhunters. So, please, do your part as they cry for joy. Steal all the tissues you can from your accounting department, and donate them to a worthy placement agency. 

Why YOU need a Romeo Decoder Ring

Orders for my patented Restaurant Industry Decoder Ring have fallen sharply since the economy tanked. Perhaps a live demonstration would reverse the trend. And what better opportunity than this evening’s announcement from Brinker International?

The statement hails the “organizational changes” that were undertaken by the parent of Chili’s and Maggiano’s to “maximize leadership talent and create additional synergies.”

Wow!! I'm not sure of what that means, but it sounds big. A groundbreaking new business model, perhaps? With an org chart that looks like the playbook diagram for a triple quarterback sneak?

Nope. Indeed, all the statement could’ve been de-hyped into what is now the fifth paragraph, with two follow-up sentences. Dave Orenstein, president of Brinker’s On The Border brand, is parting with the company. His duties are being assumed by Todd Diener, who’ll continue to lead Chili’s, as he has for 10 years. I know that because Brinker felt obliged to tout his 27 years of leadership with more spin than a rinse cycle.

Less clear is why Wyman Robert, president of the Maggiano’s chain, is also assuming the duties of chief marketing officer. Two for the price of one, maybe?

Sorry. Let me put that in corporate-ese: To optimize payroll expenditures with synergistic governance and minimized potential for miscommunication within the leadership ranks, two positions were synergized into a lone assignment.

I don’t understand why Corporate America still believes anyone would be fooled by language straight out of a script for “The Office.”

Okay, back to perfecting my next invention, the Summer Snuggie. With the right catalog photography, no one's going to think, "hospital gown."