LEBANON Tenn. Cracker Barrel Old Country Stores is testing two programs that promise to boost traffic by turning tables more quickly, particularly during weekday lunchtimes, executives of parent company CBRL Group Inc. told investors Wednesday.
One of the initiatives further helps the bottom line by promoting menu choices with the largest profit margins, officials indicated.
Chief executive Michael A. Woodhouse also disclosed during the conference call that the chain is “accelerating development” of “a new breakfast category,” but he did not divulge details Similarly, he mentioned that the concept is looking at “additional seafood items and some interesting new side dishes.” He did not provide specifics.
Woodhouse was more forthcoming about the initiatives that aim to speed service and bolster traffic during peak mealtimes. One, called The Best of the Barrel, is already being tested in 30 stores, he said. The heart of the program is a pared-down menu.
“The menu is designed to improve speed of service, and therefore traffic, and improve margins per guests by highlighting high margin products,” Woodhouse said.
The roster has the added advantage of “eliminating certain low-volume products to reduce waste and simplify operations,” he added.
Woodhouse called the program “an operational success,” but suggested that some patrons may have been put off by the elimination of some choices. He indicated that the chain hopes to allay those concerns by showcasing new choices, including the undisclosed new breakfast option.
The other initiative, Woodhouse said, is similarly intended to move more guests through the restaurants during peak periods. The Seat to Eat Project, he explained, uses “cook-and-hold platforms” and “window management applications.” He noted that the undertaking involves the use of “new hot hold units, bread cabinets, personal window management applications and food line set-up.”
Cook-and-hold equipment is commonly used in hospital feeding, hotel banquets and other situations where large numbers of people have to be fed hot food in a short stretch of time.
It was not clear if the windows to which Woodhouse referred are the pass-through windows where servers pick up orders from the kitchen.
He observed that the cook-and-hold and “window management” components of Seat to Eat can shorten the time that guests wait for their food after placing an order. In addition to increasing capacity during peak times, the set-up is expected to get weekday lunch customers in and out of the restaurants more quickly and thereby meet their “lunch hour time constraints,” Woodhouse said.
He indicated that the equipment needed for Seat to Eat would be rolled out to two of the 576-unit chain’s districts within the next three months. Both that program and The Best of the Barrel will be assessed during late summer and early fall, he said.
The telephone conference was convened after CBRL reported a 15-percent drop in profit for the third quarter ended May 2. Officials attributed the decline in part to weak customer traffic.