For more than a decade MenuMasters Awards have honored extraordinary research and development work in the restaurant industry. Each of this year’s winners played a crucial role in the introduction of creative, successful and delicious dishes.
The honorees raised the bar for R&D industrywide with the introductions of new menu items, limited-time offerings, line extensions and menu overhauls. They include four restaurant chains, a landmark New Orleans eatery, a university dining service and the culinary chief of a contract foodservice giant.
Roger Berkowitz, president and chief executive of the Boston-based Legal Sea Foods dinnerhouse chain, has been selected as the 2008 inductee into the MenuMasters Hall of Fame. The other winners are: Red Lobster for its fresh fish menu in the category of Best Menu/Line Extension; O’Charley’s, which took Best Menu Revamp honors for its Flavor Road items; Maggiano’s Little Italy, whose braised-beef cannelloni proved to be the Best Single Product Rollout; Burger King, whose Homestyle Melt sandwiches were deemed the Best Limited-Time Offer; Commander’s Palace in New Orleans, which was named Best Independent Operator Menu; and the University of Connecticut’s Department of Dining Services, which trumped the Healthful Innovations category with the school’s spa foods menu. Paul Carr, senior director of culinary for Philadelphia-based Aramark Corp., was named MenuMasters’ Chef/Innovator of the year.
The winners were selected by the editorial team of Nation’s Restaurant News. A celebratory party featuring tastings of the winning items will take place May 17 in Chicago at the Drake Hotel during the National Restaurant Association Restaurant, Hotel-Motel Show. The MenuMasters Awards are produced by Nation’s Restaurant News and sponsored by Ventura Foods LLC.
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Single Product Rollout: Maggiano’s Little Italy Menu Revamp: O’Charley’s Menu Line Extension: Red Lobster Limited-Time Offer: Burger King Healthful Innovation: University of Connecticut Dept. of Dining Services Independent Operator Menu: Commander’s Palace Hall of Fame: Roger Berkowitz