Sweetgreen launched their mobile payment app a couple of months ago, and it has been embraced by their customers. The app, created in partnership with LevelUp, has already eclipsed MasterCard and American Express as a form of payment.
Read more at FastCasual.com
From baked goods to menus , the term “gluten free” seems to be everywhere. The number of consumers going gluten free is growing, according to new data from market research firm The NPD Group.
Like “The Minimalist,” Mark Bittman’s original column in the New York Times which ended a few years ago, the word “Flexitarian” says much, at least to those who a hip to culinary buzzwords. His new column, “The Flexitarian“, launched this week, and will speak to changing perceptions of health and wellness.
He writes, “Things are changing, and fast. Only 5 percent of Americans define themselves as vegan or vegetarian, but almost everyone believes he needs to eat better. What does “better” mean? Much less junk, fewer animal products and more veggies. Could not be simpler. But it could be easier. I’ll attempt to make it so here… I hope these recipes demonstrate the general goal of The Flexitarian, which will be to marry the burning question “What should I be eating?” with another: “How do I cook it?”
We came across this edible spoon on Food Republic, made by Triangle Tree, and are excited about the possibilities. Made with corn, whole wheat flour, herbs, and spice, we’re planning to be early adopters and hope we might see them in to-go bags around town.
There are a few new grocery delivery models taking on Fresh Direct and trying to improve upon their model. As Grub Street reports, the increasingly food-concious populace is embracing these combination food boxes, which have elements of CSA, farmers’ markets, and gourmet local mixed in. Check out: Quinciple, The Vermont Sail Freight Project, and Good Eggs.
The NYT Dining Section today has a fresh take and scoops from the biggest names in the juice business and how it has boomed. From the early pioneers to the massive distributors of late, it’s an interesting take on different juicing methods, their defenders, and detractors.
New York Magazine’s Adam Platt talks with The Omnivore’s Dilemma author Michael Pollan. Since 2006, Pollan has paved the way for conscientious consumers. His new book, Cooked, will be released in a couple of weeks. Here he talks to Adam Platt about his food loves and loathes, and as always, gives us some to grow on.
We reported last month on Crain’s assessment of 3 Brooklyn Startups, one, Gowanus-based Kitchensurfing, continues to make headlines and attract investors — now to the tune of $3.5 Million.
Kitchensurfing brings chefs directly into subscribers’ kitchens. Customers can purchase catered meals starting at about $20 per person or place their own requests and receive proposals from Kitchensurfing chefs. After chef and customer agree on a plan, the chef shows up with the ingredients, then cooks and cleans up.
All Things Digital talks to the founders, and via video, they get down to the finer points.
Integrating and deciphering your Social Media outreach is no quick feat, but Empathica is working to change that, fast.
Empathica, a global provider of Customer Experience Management (CEM) solutions to multi-unit enterprises, announced it has extended its market leading CEM solutions to include 3rd Party Feedback and enhanced Text Analytics capabilities. The new universal feedback API allows businesses to import any unstructured text feedback – such as online reviews, social network comments, call center transcriptions, direct feedback, email and open-ended survey comments – and view it alongside structured survey feedback.
“Businesses are tasked with making sense of an intimidating amount of feedback from customers,” said Simon Palmer, chief technology officer, Empathica. “The challenge brands face in filtering inbound data from surveys, email feedback and social media is how to turn it into manageable actions for the company. These new capabilities allow brands to understand how they are executing through structured survey feedback, as well as tap into trends in what customers are saying about them through unstructured outlets, such as social media.”
The ability to analyze both structured and unstructured feedback through one platform gives brand and location managers access to a previously untapped source of actionable insights that can be used to deliver better customer experiences. Brand managers can use this aggregated view to surface strategic insights and identify trends, while location managers can use a focused localized view to train their staff to meet the needs of local clientele.
In addition to the feedback API, Empathica has extended its capabilities in Text Analytics technology with integration into its Empathica Local software program. Features include:
Using the Text Analytics tool, businesses can also gather valuable information that they can apply to future marketing and customer engagement efforts. Empathica is able to provide brand managers with the information needed to focus on topics surrounding their brand and which of those topics are discussed most often. The tools also provide sentiment analyses, enabling managers to see what topics are being mentioned in a positive or negative context, including support for multiple languages. Along with topic correlation and a deep linkage of the content back to the operational hierarchy, Empathica provides a complete view of online feedback for multi-unit brands.
For more information about Empathica’s CEM solution and its new features, visit http://www.empathica.com/products-services/.
Brooklyn startups are continuing to attract serious investor interest by directly connecting eaters to meals and chefs online.
“I think technology has been kind of late to come to food,” said Adam Sirois, of Dumbo-based Underground Eats, tells Crain’s New York Business. “It’s one of the last major categories that developers and coders are starting to explore.”
Crain’s details three which have been garnering much attention:
Williamsburg-based Blue Apron announced a $3 million Series A funding round in February, with investors including First Round Capital, Bessemer Venture Partners and Dave Tisch, who manages early-stage investment fund BoxGroup.
Blue Apron delivers prepackaged kits containing the ingredients needed to prepare a gourmet meal. The idea is partly to make ingredient shopping more efficient—no more ending up with too much leftover parsley—but also to introduce at-home cooks to unique recipes and hard-to-find ingredients, said CEO and co-founder Matt Salzberg.
“That’s an important part of our product,” Mr. Salzberg said. “It’s an experience, not just a convenience.”
Gowanus-based Kitchensurfing raised $1 million late in 2012 and this year expanded from New York City and Berlin into Boston.
Kitchensurfing brings chefs directly into subscribers’ kitchens. Customers can purchase catered meals starting at about $20 per person or place their own requests and receive proposals from Kitchensurfing chefs. After chef and customer agree on a plan, the chef shows up with the ingredients, then cooks and cleans up.
CEO and co-founder Chris Muscarella, a tech and food industry vet, says he sees two trends in food. Restaurants are trying to put diners closer to the chef via open kitchen designs and special events. “Kitchensurfing takes that to its utmost extreme,” Mr. Muscarella said.
The second trend is based on convenience. Customers are looking for one-click, online access to food delivery. But a bespoke dining experience can actually be facilitated surprisingly quickly, Mr. Muscarella said. In some cases, meals have been arranged in as little as a day.
Mr. Sirois’ Underground Eats, which has four employees, opted to forgo outside funding after meeting with early-stage investors last year, he said. However, the company exceeded 20,000 subscribers in January, roughly one year after launching. It plans to double its small staff over the next year.
Brooklyn seems to be the heart of the growing tech-food scene. The city’s Food+Tech Meetup group—which started in Brooklyn—has more than 800 members and hosts regular discussions running the gamut from e-commerce to sustainability.
“I think it’s the fact that in Brooklyn you’re surrounded by food thinking,” said Elizabeth McVay Greene, a founder of the Food+Tech Meetup as well as Plovgh, which allows consumers to buy produce directly from nearby farms. “And there are also the technologists and designers who can, in 48 hours, put an app together.”
That being said, the food space is complex, and industry experience outside the traditional tech space is invaluable, said Ms. Greene.
“I see a lot of people building restaurant apps and websites for agriculture, but you can’t just build an Etsy for food,” she said. “I’ve seen a lot of companies come and go.”
The fundamental problem with scaling up a high-end food-based business is the artisanal nature of food. If you build a food operation on the scale of Costco, it tastes like food from Costco.
On the other hand, meeting that challenge is easier in the tight confines of New York City.
“Food in New York City is kind of the ultimate pursuit,” Ms. Greene said. “It’s the coolest thing you can do, and now technology is right up there with it. So the combination is appealing.”
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