COLUMBUS Ohio White Castle, an 86-year-old chain with a cult following for its little square burgers, is hoping to cultivate new cravings with a pair of menu additions: spicy chicken nuggets and pulled pork on a bun.
Called Buffalo Chicken Bites, the nuggets are slated to be launched chainwide July 22. The pork is in market testing. The trick is to give guests variety without adding complexity or unnecessary costs to the chain’s famously simple operations, said John Vogt, regional director of restaurant operations for the 48-unit New York region.
“We are trying to keep things simple and not create a nightmare,” Vogt, a 37-year company veteran, told Nation’s Restaurant News last week at a White Castle in the New York City borough of Queens.
Both products will be limited time offers with an eye toward menu permanence if they catch on, as was the case with Fish Nibblers several years ago.
Buffalo Bites, a freezer-to-fryer product, have no breading and are infused with hot sauce. They require no new equipment, and will be prepared in the section of the fryer used for non-breaded items like French fries, said Vogt (the fryer setup has a section for breaded items too). They will be offered in two sizes, small or in a snack pack.
The chicken was tested in each White Castle region, including New York, plus in a market test in Indianapolis last spring. At one point the company considered including fresh celery, a la Buffalo chicken wings, but felt sourcing and handling celery would add unnecessary complexity, Vogt said.
Tinkering is continuing on the pulled pork sandwich. A chicken version was tested at one point, Vogt said. The product will arrive frozen. It will be defrosted, or “slacked out,” then heated and served on the same buns used for White Castle’s signature small burgers, known to aficionados as Slyders. It is unclear what, if any, special equipment the company will buy, such as a crock pot or more versatile holding tray. “You don’t want a major investment in new equipment,” Vogt said.
Both products reflect an industry trend to avoid the veto vote, where a member of a group nixes a restaurant because they aren’t in the mood for the signature burger, chicken or pizza.
White Castle, founded in 1921, has never rushed to add new products, but the pace seems to be picking up. With white-hot competition in the quick-service sector, Vogt said it is important to try new tactics. His region’s sales have been flat this year compared with last year, he said. White Castle, a family-owned company, had 2006 revenues of $539.4 million, up only slightly from 2005. It operates all of its 400 restaurants, which are concentrated in 12 states.
The New York market recently added Southern-style sweet iced tea, effectively completing a national rollout. The tea is made from scratch in a dedicated brewer from its supplier, which provided training. Crew members mix in the sugar. In the Queens White Castle, the tea is sold from an insulated server next to the self-service beverages.
Vogt said the brew is a surprise hit. Sweet tea is a staple in the South, but not widely known in New York. Priced the same as fountain drinks (a small, 21 ounces, costs $1.53), it already accounts for 10 percent of local beverage sales, and boasts higher margins than the fountain tea it replaced, Vogt said. Gallons are a popular size, and create a challenge for where to store the jugs to be prepared to meet demand. Some were piled in the restaurant’s break area.
Several other quick-service chains, including McDonald’s, are also looking at sweet tea. Dunkin’ Donuts just rolled out a freshly brewed iced tea.
Also new for White Castle’s New York units: an oil management system sparked by New York City’s mandate for all restaurants to use trans-fat-free oil beginning July 1. White Castle has switched to soy oil, and invested in a tank system managed by an outside vendor. Two storage tanks connected via hoses to fryers are placed in the back of each restaurant, one for used oil, one for new.
“It’s great. It is a clean operation,” Vogt said, sounding like a satisfied operations executive. “There is no fuss, no muss.”