Charleston Restaurant Report July 2014
ON THE MENU------------------------------------------------------------1. Green Scene – MENU CHOICES CAN AFFECT HEALTH + SUSTAINABILITY2. Local Restaurant News – FRENCH RESTAURANTS ATTEMPTING A COMEBACK3. Restaurant Openings, Closings and Coming Soon!4. National Restaurant Trends – BEEF SALES SOAR DESPITE RISING PRICES------------------------------------------------------------** GREEN SCENE------------------------------------------------------------MENU CHOICES CAN AFFECT HEALTH + SUSTAINABILITYI think it's fair to say that most people don't weigh environmental concerns when ordering food from a restaurant menu. Bret Thorn's recap of a recent Menus of Change food conference may cause you to reconsider your next protein order. Switching that ribeye steak order to a piece of fish might help sustain your body as well as our earthly resources.Read Bret Thorn's article:http://nrn.com/food-trends/how-restaurants-can-enhance-healthful-items-sustainability?page=1------------------------------------------------------------** LOCAL RESTAURANT NEWS------------------------------------------------------------FRENCH RESTAURANTS ATTEMPTING A COMEBACKThe Charleston City Paper recently wrote a piece on the resurgence of french-inspired restaurants around Charleston. At last count, five new french restaurants have opened in the area in recent months. If you've followed the restaurant market over the past several years, you've seen the food (and drink) themes come in waves. One year it was asian/fusion, then burger joints, then farm-to-table, then beer gardens….now french is making its mark -- again.Check out the Charleston City Paper article:http://www.charlestoncitypaper.com/charleston/is-the-french-restaurant-resurgence-a-new-trend-or-dandeacutejandagrave-vu/Content?oid=4944492------------------------------------------------------------RESTAURANT OPENINGS, CLOSINGS + COMING SOON!The following list reflects 2nd Quarter 2014 market activity (April - June, 2014):OPENINGS --Aya Cookhouse (Mt. Pleasant – former Eurasia)BeardCat’s Sweet Shop (Sullivans Island)Big Belly Kitchen + Tap House (James Island)Bistro Toulouse (Mt. Pleasant – former Guadeloupe Grill)Blend Juice Bar (Mt. Pleasant)Bougnat (Mt. Pleasant – former Bistro 536)Boxcar Betty’s (West Ashley – former Olympik)Brasserie Gigi (Downtown – former Mercato)Classic Coffee (West Ashley)Craft Conundrum (West Ashley)Fuji Steakhouse (N. Charleston)King Street Public House (Downtown – former O’Malley’s)Leon’s Oyster Shop (Downtown)Menkoi Ramen House (Downtown – former Manny’s)Momma Goldberg’s Deli (Mt. Pleasant)R. Kitchen (Downtown – former Mia Pomodori)Roadside Seafood (James Island -- former Jasmine Thai)Swig & Swine (West Ashley)Taste of Tokyo (N. Charleston – former Gringo’s)The Drawing Room (Downtown – former Library at Vendue)The Islander (Daniel Island --- former Queen Anne’s Revenge)The Mason Jar (West Ashley)The Press (Downtown)Toast! (Summerville – former Roma Tomatoes)The Palace Hotel (Downtown)White Duck Taco Shop (James Island)Wild Buffalo Steakhouse (N. Charleston – former BigHorns)CLOSINGS --Atlanta Bread Co. (N. Charleston)Egan & Sons (Downtown)Huger’s (Downtown)Locklear’s (Mt. Pleasant)Manny’s (Downtown)Mia Pomodori (Downtown)Moose’s BBQ (Summerville)O’Malley’s (Downtown)Seppy’s Hot Dogs (Mt. Pleasant)Tristan (Downtown)Wreckfish (N. Charleston)COMING SOON --167 Raw (Downtown – former Citrus)492 (Downtown)Amalfi’s (James Island – former Subway)Ardoa Wine Bar (Mt. Pleasant)Artisan Meat Share (Downtown)Bricco Bracco Cucina (Mt. Pleasant -- former Puree)Callie's Hot Little Biscuit (Downtown)Carmella's Cafe & Dessert Bar (Downtown)Carolina Ale House (Downtown & Summerville)Chipotle (Downtown)Five Guys Burgers (N. Charleston)Five Loaves (Summerville)Freshii (Downtown -- 32 Degrees)Graze (Summerville -- former Moose's BBQ)Harold's Cabin (Downtown)Highway 55 Burgers (N. Charleston)Iacofano's (West Ashley -- former Michaelangelo's)Ruth's Chris Steak House (Downtown -- former Tristan)St. Alban (Downtown)Taziki's (Mt. Pleasant -- former Locklear's)The Americano (Mt. Pleasant – former Next Door)The Daily (Downtown)Triangle Char & Bar (Summerville)Union Provisions (Downtown)Westside Deli (Downtown)------------------------------------------------------------** NATIONAL RESTAURANT TRENDS------------------------------------------------------------BEEF SALES SOAR DESPITE RISING PRICESA recent research report from Technomic shows a big increase in year-over-year ground beef and beef rib sales, despite record-high beef prices. The continued influx of burger joints and the presence of beef short ribs on menus nationwide seems to be fueling the increase in wholesale beef purchases. The bad news for restaurant owners and diners is that wholesale beef prices aren't expected to subside until late 2016 based on market projections.Check out the article in Nations Restaurant News:http://nrn.com/commodities/report-beef-sales-restaurants-rise