Linda Green
Co-Publisher/Sales Director
RediHEAT
I loved this 16” 10-pie heated bag, which is RediHEAT’s largest bag. I learned that it was made for several Pizza Hut locations earlier this year, and they were able to add their own branding to these bags. This bag is ideal for large catering orders or school lunch programs. It’s designed to transport your hot pizzas from the oven straight to large offsite events. What I thought was especially nice is that each bag is sewn in Cleveland, Ohio—in other words, these bags are made in the USA! 888-556-2024 x103, rediheat.com
Chef Revival
I was excited to discover this comfortable chef wear that’s perfect for our friends on the U.S. Pizza Team, and I’m convinced it would be great for any pizzaiolo in our industry. You can keep cool in a hot kitchen with Chef Revival’s performance jackets, which feature a lightweight poly-cotton blend with a breathable full mesh back. They’re available in long or short sleeve styles and in white, black or gray colors, ranging in sizes from extra-small to 3X. 800-352-2433, chefrevival.co
PDQ Signature Systems
After visiting with my friends from PDQ at the NRA show, I found out that, statistically, customers spend about 30% more on the average when using a self-serve kiosk. When you combine increased sales with self-serve, this technology lowers labor costs and improves your customers’ experience at your restaurant. Pizzeria owners can start earning more and saving more every day! 877-968-6430, pdqpos.com
Micro Matic
What a great find! With this new technology from Micro Matic, your customers are not only able to take home freshly baked pizzas but fresh-from-the-tap beer as well. The Micro Matic Growler Filler lets technology do the work, with a choice of up to four kegs. Your customers can simply place the empty growler, close the cover and follow the touchscreen prompts. 866-327-4159, micromatic.com
Sysco
Steve and I met up with Massimo Balacchi at the Sysco booth and found so many great products for the pizza industry at this year’s NRA Show. One of them was very pizza-specific. Sysco’s Authentic Riserva Mozzarella is made with the finest all-natural ingredients to deliver great color, stretch and coverage. It comes in loaves, shreds or blends. Contact your local marketing associate to learn more about this great product! syscofoodie.com
Tom Boyles
Senior Account Executive
Grecian Delight
One trend we are seeing on pizza menus is the increasing popularity of gyro pizzas and gyro sandwiches. Grecian Delight is a great source for Mediterranean gyro meats as well as awesome shawarma. They’re perfect for traditional gyro sandwiches, platters, salads, or a classic old-world, open-face presentation. These meats are available in cones, loaves and slices. They even offer pitas and flatbreads, Mediterranean sauces and spreads like tzatziki, hummus and more. 800-621-4387, greciandelight.com
Impact Mailers
Feel like your advertising and direct marketing budget isn’t getting the results you want? I found a company, Impact Mailers, that has the answer! With a higher read rate and response level than conventional mail, their direct-mail postcards are proven to attract new customers and maximize your return on investment. Their plastic mailers are custom designed, precisely targeted and feature a long shelf life. Also ask about their plastic key cards and gift cards. 888-983-225, impactmailers.com
BakerStone
Do you want to bake pizzas on-site but can’t afford a mobile pizza oven trailer? BakerStone’s Commercial Pizza Oven Box is an affordable, portable pizza oven that converts charbroilers and grills into gourmet pizza ovens. The patent-pending design raises the temperature of outdoor grills to that of a real wood-burning pizza oven. Unmatched baking performance is achieved by combining convective, conductive and radiant heat to quickly and evenly bake various foods. 855-657-6836, bakerstonebox.com
Curdtown
The audience for deep-fried cheese curds is expanding, and I loved the two delicious flavors of cheese curds offered by CurdTown. The original was premium white cheddar goodness. and the seasoned style had a hint of Cajun spices with just the right amount of zest. These fried curds are packaged fresh, not frozen, and had more cheese and less breading. Offer them as appetizers, on burgers or even on top of a pizza—the possibilities are endless, and you can get free samples at their website. 763-273-8467, curdtown.com
Heather Wilson
Social Media Director
Tork
That chunky napkin dispenser on your tabletop is finally chipping in to make better use of its space. At the Tork booth, they gave me a sneak peek of their new high-tech dispenser, which replaces slots with tablets! You can create a slideshow of images to share new menu items, your restaurant’s history, upcoming events and promotions. And you can control it from your mobile phone or desktop and share the images to your social media pages. I highly recommend watching for this new product’s release date. 866-722-8675, torkusa.com
ZenReach
More and more customers expect you to offer WiFi at your pizzeria. With ZenReach, you can use WiFi to build your customer database and engage and target key demographics. “Marketing on autopilot” is the best way to describe this technology, which turns your hotspot into instant social media engagement. It’s a win-win for businesses and consumers, prompting customers to log in to social media or submit an e-mail address before receiving free Wi-Fi. You can collect that information to get to know your customers better! 415-299-8172, zenreach.com
TempControl
Initially the unique table designs caught my eye, but there was something more to Belgian company TempControl’s booth. Their soon-to-launch Pizza Plate (sitting in a bamboo peel) will keep pizza hot up to an hour. This product will be made to hold all sizes of pizza and will look appealing to your customers as well. With Tempcontrol’s innovative heating and cooling technology, there’s no need to rush while plating your pizza and getting it to your customer’s table. tempcontrol.com
Ad Joy
With AdJoy, it’s “game on!” in the world of advertising. Billboards, banners and commercials are what come to mind when I think of advertising, but now gaming applications are making headway. AdJoy is making ads interactive and more joyful. While playing a game on their phone or tablet, your customers can score points to actually win something from your restaurant. The rewards are embedded as characters, checkpoints, power-ups and more, and your restaurant’s logo appears throughout the game. 813-421-8334, adjoy.com
