British culinary king Jamie Oliver is one of the few television chefs I really enjoy. With his down-to-earth demeanor, the Naked Chef has set himself apart from many of the pompous personalities in the food world today. In addition to his comforting kitchen presence, Oliver has focused much of his work on building the food community around him, establishing a charitable culinary training program as well as aiding in the development of healthier school lunch programs within the public school system, both in the UK and the US.

With his fourteenth cookbook, Jamie’s Food Revolution: Rediscover How to Cook Simple, Delicious, Affordable Meals, the chef offers hope and help for the masses on their own personal cooking endeavors, featuring tips and recipes for even the most novice cook.

Win your own copy of Jamie’s cookbook! Become a fan of Daily Blender on Facebook and/or Twitter - and you could win! One lucky reader will be chosen from our fab list of fans this Friday, November 13th.

Q: You’re a fantastic advocate for healthier foods in school programs, both here in the US and in the UK. What are you most proud of in your educational food endeavors?

A: It’s a tough question, really. I am proud that we’ve made some incredible documentaries [Jamie’s School Lunch Project and Jamie’s Ministry of Food] that have gotten people to try and start cooking at home, but it’s a work in progress. There is so much more to do. I guess I would say I am most proud that we’re still out there trying to teach people to cook for themselves.

Q: While many schools complain about budget issues, what are some of the smaller changes schools can make in order to promote healthier eating?

A: I think we need to remove the junk and take away the choice. In the UK, I started by offering a more nutritious alternative alongside the chips and candy and guess what? The kids all chose the chips and candy because it’s what they were used to. Once we removed the choice, they started trying my food and they loved it. Pretty soon, even the most hard-core of chip (French fry) lovers were saying they didn’t want the chips back. Sometimes it takes time to get to that point, but if you want to make a real difference, the junk needs to go. When I started school dinners in the UK we had a budget of about 66 cents [per person] to make delicious, nutritious food and we did it.

Q: What advice can you give novice restaurateurs?

Get some work experience first. Too many people think owning and running a restaurant is glamorous. It’s hard work. I’ve been working in professional kitchens since I was 7 years old. I was podding peas and sweeping up in my dad’s pub to make pocket money.

Q: Who most inspires your cooking?

There isn’t really one person who inspires my cooking. I am lucky that I get to go to places for inspiration—Italy, America, the English countryside. Except for my mentor, Gennaro Contaldo, I’ve always been more inspired by the women cooks—Elizabeth David, Ruth Rogers and Rose Gray, Alice Waters.

Q: You’re wrapping up your latest show, “Jamie’s American Roadtrip”. What have you learned during your U.S. food travels?

A: I loved filming it, meeting people and seeing what great American food is out there. Arizona was really surprising and beautiful, and I fell in love with the cooking in East L.A. I’m hoping the show will air in the States next year.

Q: What are you hoping to accomplish with your latest cookbook, Jamie’s Food Revolution?

A: I wanted to show once and for all that learning how to cook as few as ten simple recipes for yourself can really change your life. The easiest change you can make in your life is to learn to cook. If you’re starting totally from scratch and have never cooked before, try one-cup pancakes first because they’re very easy and they give you a sense of pride when you get it right the first time. And then move on to the mini-shell pasta with peas and bacon from the book.

**A big thanks to Chef Oliver and the folks at YC Media!

~Jennifer Heigl

According to a recent report from food service research firm Technomic, alcohol sales are taking a hit during this economic recovery period. The firm reports that sales of beer, wine and liquor have all declined over the last quarter, with an estimation that alcohol sales will end the year down 4.9%. The firm projects that total industry alcohol sales will fall another 2.5% in the coming year.

In an effort to combat and adjust as sales decline, some restaurants and bars are developing additional menu items, from the unique to off the wall. At the Red Kiva Lounge in Chicago’s West Loop, bar guests can order a VaporTini. Rather than chugging your alcohol, guests can enjoy a ‘cocktail you inhale’, with the drink served at 110 degrees, the temperature at which alcohol starts to evaporate. VaporTini creator and Red Kiva owner Julie Palmer says she was inspired to develop the drink after a recent trip to Finland. The one-of-a-kind cocktail can be ordered with a variety of liquors, including cherry and raspberry vodkas, gin, and bourbon.

Restaurants like Laurent Tourondel’s BLT and Michael Mina’s Bourbon Steak are taking a different approach, adding creamy alcoholic drinks to the menu. Both restaurants are now serving decadent liquor milkshakes to accompany their fantastic burger menus. At BLT locations across the country, you’ll find great picks like Grandma’s Treat and the All Nighter, a delish shake made with Kahlua, Baileys Irish Cream, espresso and coffee ice cream. At Mina’s Bourbon Steak, the drink menu includes the Bourbon Malted, made with Jim Beam bourbon, salty caramel sauce and malted milk powder.

~Jennifer Heigl

Congrats to Au Bon Pain for initiating a cage-free egg policy for some of their dining locations. According to QSR, Massachusetts-based Au Bon Pain locations will now feature eggs produced by free-range hens. Following in the footsteps of other food service organizations like Burger King, Wendy’s, Quiznos, and Red Robin, Au Bon Pain worked with the Humane Society of the United States to develop a more cruelty-free food chain for their restaurants.

“By switching to cage-free eggs in its Massachusetts locations, Au Bon Pain has taken an important step away from cruel battery cages,” says Josh Balk, outreach director of the HSUS’ factory farming campaign. “It’s hard to imagine a more miserable existence for a bird than being crammed in a cage so small, she can’t even spread her wings.”

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Danny Meyer’s Union Square Hospitality Group announced last week that they’re working on a Miami location for their popular Shake Shack restaurant. The Florida outpost of the burger shop, a favorite of fans and industry insiders alike, will be located in the heart of Miami Beach, with developers looking to a spring/summer opening.

“My colleagues and I are incredibly excited to introduce Shake Shack to Miami. We love the city’s dynamic culture and community – its strong sense of place – and we believe it is the ideal next home for Shake Shack.” said Danny Meyer, CEO of USHG.

The Miami location will be the first Shake Shake outside of Manhattan, where there are currently three Shack spots with a fourth anticipated for early 2010.

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Our favorite culinary curmudgeon Anthony Bourdain stopped by my hometown of Ann Arbor over the weekend and sat down for a Q&A with local writer Jessica Webster. Though he stuck with his standard anti-Sandra Lee/McDonald’s rants, it’s always entertaining to read what he has to say about food and the celeb chef industry this week.

Bourdain even made his way through a local restaurant kitchen to thank chef and cookbook writer Max Sussman for a great meal.

~Jennifer Heigl

In case you missed it, New York Times writer Bruce Buschel posted a fantastic list last week of the 100 things restaurant staffers should never do when assisting restaurant guests. The list is a must-read for everyone in the restaurant industry, from servers to managers to even BOH folks, with most of the bullet points common complaints of diners.

A few of my faves from the list:

23. If someone likes a wine, steam the label off the bottle and give it to the guest with the bill. It has the year, the vintner, the importer, etc.  [Great idea, but it might be a bit difficult mid-dinner service. Feel free to write down wine info if you don't have time to steam.]

31. Never remove a plate full of food without asking what went wrong. Obviously, something went wrong.

50. Do not turn on the charm when it’s tip time. Be consistent throughout.

77. Do not disappear.  [Or go for a smoke break, or sit down in the break room for a snack, or make a quick phone call. Don't desert your tables for any reason! Period. This is one of my biggest server pet peeves.]

A few of my personal tips for restaurant staff:

• Don’t argue with your room manager or fellow servers during meal service! Take it to the back, behind closed doors!
• It’s become commonplace for servers to try to memorize orders. If a guest’s requests become too much to remember, pull out a pen and paper and write things down. I’d rather see you taking notes than receive a wrong dish.
• Always, always, ALWAYS ask about any allergies the dining party may have. Buschel mentions asking during the amuse bouche, but anything from hors d’oeuvres to drinks may have allergens present. Food allergies can, and will, kill if not addressed properly.
• To the chefs and kitchen line – with the open kitchen craze, never ever call out a fellow cook in view of your dining room. There’s nothing that can ruin a meal faster than watching a sous or pantry chef get chewed out in plain sight of a guest’s pleasant dining experience.

You can check out Buschel’s lists here for 1-50, and here for 51-100.

~Jennifer Heigl

I was a bit surprised when Las Vegas sommelier William Sherer mentioned how difficult it is to get Australian and New Zealand wines on his wine list. In the dining room of a bonafide white tablecloth restaurant serving decadent foie gras and champagne, you’d think most wine and spirits distributors would be clamoring to have their beverages poured. Not so, says the wine director of Charlie Palmer’s Aurole.

“For some reason, they don’t want their wines in Vegas,” Sherer explained.

My fellow guests and I wondered if perhaps the vision of the old school Las Vegas was the culprit. Maybe our friends in the Southern Hemisphere had an outdated idea about the city of sin. After all, the expansive destination has come a long way since the days of seedy mafia connections and bad reputations. In recent years, Las Vegas has developed into a culinary mecca for travelers, executives, and foodies alike. With nearly thirty-eight million visitors traveling to the city in the last year, over $20 billion in development projects in progress, and award-winning food and wine fare at every turn, this ain’t your Grandma’s Vegas.

Culinary Fast Facts about Las Vegas:

• There are 171 master sommeliers around the world, with a whopping eighteen of them located in Las Vegas, including B.R. Guest Director of Wine and Spirits Laura Maniec, who, in 2009, became the youngest active master sommelier.
• Awards abound for the fantastic restaurants located in Las Vegas with seventeen fine dining spots receiving Michelin awards in 2009, including three stars for MGM Grand’s fabulous Joël Robuchon. AAA has named Alex at Wynn Las Vegas, Le Cirque and Picasso at Bellagio, Restaurant Guy Savoy at Caesars Palace, and Joël Robuchon Five Diamond Award winners as well.
• Wine Director Danielle Price oversees wine lists at all fifteen of Wynn Las Vegas’s fine dining and casual restaurants, with a total inventory of more than 100,000 bottles, including a $50,000 bottle of 1990 Cristal Champagne.
• Bradley Ogden in Caesars Palace received the James Beard Foundation Award for Best New Restaurant in the nation in 2004 – the first Las Vegas restaurant to win the title.
• Las Vegas has been named a top culinary city by numerous food, wine, and travel outlets including Bon Appetit and Travelocity.com.

Planning a trip to Las Vegas? Check out the Visit Vegas site!

Stay tuned for our upcoming Travel Bites spotlights on food and beverage bests at Las Vegas’s MGM Grand, Mandalay Bay, and Wynn Las Vegas.

~Jennifer Heigl

I still haven’t figured out the whole Twilight obsession – I didn’t catch the ‘Interview With A Vampire’ fever either – but it’s clearly become a worldwide vampire phenomenon. Soon, fanatic fans will be able to dine with a Twilight theme. The Hollywood Reporter noted this weekend that sometime next year, a new Twilight-centric restaurant will open in Forks, Washington, where the movie series is set. Owners Annette and Tim Root are planning to make Volterra a family-friendly restaurant, with the space becoming the second Twilight-ish spot in town, following in the footsteps of the Twilight Lounge. No word yet on whether guests will have to bring their own garlic and wooden stakes.

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KFC’s latest publicity stunt has a few folks up in arms. Following last year’s request to rapper 50 Cent to change his name for a KFC promotion, and this year’s grilled chicken Oprah fiasco, the Yum! Brands company sent a letter to the United Nations requesting that their ‘Grilled Chicken Nation’ be permitted to join the international conference.

Unfortunately, a U.N. security guard (and clearly a fan of the fast food company) took the poorly-humored stunt a bit too far, inviting Bob Thompson, the KFC Colonel’s impersonator, to United Nations offices for a tour, allowing him access to the General Assembly president’s office for photo ops.

United Nations officials are none too happy, of course, and are now reviewing the incident.

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CantonRep.com has a great Q&A with Tim Zagat, head of the Zagat restaurant review guides. Mr. Zagat talks about the ailing restaurant industry and what he sees for future dining trends.

~Jennifer Heigl

I’m encouraged by a recent bit in Saturday’s New York Times about a restaurateur who was dreaming of Detroit. According to the op-ed piece, Charles Sorel, owner of Le Petit Zinc, felt as though the landscape of Detroit 2009 was equivalent to the streets of New York City in the 80s, and was undaunted in his goal of opening a new restaurant. Within a community beaten down by the failing auto industry in recent years, riddled with unemployment and homelessness, Sorel was surprised to find a welcome group of fellow restaurateurs and chefs who were willing to help along the road to the restaurant’s opening day. Even more surprisingly, once the space had opened, he found customers who were willing to traverse the city’s disheartened streets to dine at his eatery. Sorel attributes it to growth in an area where there has only been devastation and hardship.

“Open a business anywhere else, and no one will notice,” Charles said. “Open it in Detroit and everyone talks about it.”

But recent reports are mixed on the growth of the restaurant industry itself. According to the NPD Group, a market research firm, restaurant sales have slid too dramatically over the last year, and have a dismal recovery outlook. Over the summer, restaurant visits declined an overall 3.6%, with shortcomings across every segment of the industry.

“There are a variety of factors contributing to the declines in restaurant visits and spending, including high unemployment, and another is the difference between food prices at home and food prices away-from-home,” says Harry Balzer, chief industry analyst and vice president at NPD. “Food prices at supermarkets are less than a year ago, while restaurant prices are higher than a year ago.”

Is there hope? Entrepreneur says yes, finding that this may actually be a good time to open a new restaurant, with prices on  rental space, kitchen equipment, and business services much cheaper across the country than previous years.

So perhaps Sorel is really on to something. Why continue to put so much emphasis on our government to help rebuild and revitalize when ultimately, we are the people who would most benefit from a community effort? As industry leaders, we have the ability to step back and build from the ground up in areas that need to be rebuilt, providing food of recognition and comfort, a place of reprieve, a space of hope and growth for our fellow neighbors. Maybe it’s time to buck the ideals of the reality food channel and five star reviews – the glitz and glamour of great personalities, shiny pans, food with pomp and circumstance  – and get back to basics by rebuilding our communities one restaurant at a time.

~Jennifer Heigl

The program overseeing the placement of the nifty little green icon marked ‘Smart Choices’, found on everything from cereal to soups, is being postponed by federal regulators after questions have arisen on the validity of such ‘healthy food’ indications.

Developed by nine major food manufacturers including Kraft Foods, Kellogg, and General Mills, the Smart Choices program was created to note food items that were healthier choices for consumers. However, with so many processed foods on the Smart Choices list, the criteria used to determine the label will undergo further review after the Food and Drug Administration announced last week that “such programs may mislead consumers about the health benefits of certain foods”.

Despite the postponement, the Smart Choices group supports the FDA’s move to regulate stricter guidelines for such ‘health food’ labels.

“The impetus for the Smart Choices program was that there were and are too many systems,” [Smart Choices board member Richard Kahn] said. “We applaud the concept of having one system nationwide.”

You can read the group’s official press release here.

~Jennifer Heigl

More great food moves in to the airport! Nation’s Restaurant News is reporting that Japanese master chef Masaharu Morimoto is developing  a new fast-casual concept that will bring Morimoto dishes to airport travelers. The new locations will be named Skewers, with a menu featuring rice bowls along with skewered grilled meats and vegetables (known as ‘yakitori’) that are portable and flyer-friendly. Prices will range from $4.95 for soups to $16.95 for main dishes.

Vito Buscemi, director of concept portfolio for Delaware North’s Travel Hospitality Services division, a partner in the Morimoto developments, is confident in the Skewers concept.

“This is not something we’ve taken and dumbed down for the airport,” Buscemi said. “It is quick, quality food that everyone can relate to as soon as they see and smell it. We think everyone will like this concept; it has broad appeal.”

Though Morimoto’s restaurants are well known for their delicious sushi offerings, the chef notes that diners shouldn’t expect sushi on the airport menus.

“Yakitori is the next big wave, I think,” Morimoto said. “It will be very popular.”

No official rollout dates for the new locations have been set.

~Jennifer Heigl

Popular fast food chain Fatburger is continuing to struggle in keeping the company afloat amid the difficult economical times. According to a recent article in the Portland Business Journal, CEO Andrew Wiederhorn is hoping that a few strategic expansion options will help steer the company back in the right direction after its California and Nevada subsidiaries filed for bankruptcy earlier this year. By focusing on franchise openings worldwide, with one opening nearly every month, Wiederhorn is banking on investments with little upfront capital.

It looks to be an uphill battle, however.

Fog Cutter had $27.7 million in bills due between Sept. 30, 2008, and this September, according to its last financial statement. All debts associated with Fog Cutter’s California and Nevada Fatburger subsidiaries total $15.4 million, according to bankruptcy documents, leaving Fog Cutter with at least $12.3 million in other debts that came due over the past year.

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Master chef Daniel Boulud has expanded his New York empire, recently opening his first bar location. According to Food & Wine’s Jen Murphy, Bar Pleiades is located in the renovated Surrey Hotel, which will reopen later this fall, and features a drink menu inspired by “la tradition (classic French cuisine), la saison (seasonality), le potager (the vegetable garden) and le voyage (global flavors).” The new hot spot is adjacent to another Boulud space, Cafe Boulud.

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As most of the collective blogging world recovers from this past weekend’s Blog World Expo in fabulous Las Vegas, Fast Casual has a great clip with Kogi BBQ’s social media marketing pro, Mike Prasad. Prasad helped Kogi owners Mark and Caroline Manguera create the whirlwind food truck phenom that Kogi has become.

Check out the video here.

~Jennifer Heigl