Episode Transcript
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Speaker 1 (00:00):
You are listening to Food for Thought with Billy and Jenny,
brought to you by the Box Center. For more than
fifteen years, this dining duo has been eating their way
through New England, mixing it up with top chefs, jumping
behind the line of the hottest restaurants, and giving you
the inside scoop on where.
Speaker 2 (00:15):
To wine, dine and spend your time.
Speaker 1 (00:17):
So get ready, it's Food for Thought giving you something
to chew on.
Speaker 2 (00:22):
Hi, everybody, Welcome in to Food for Thought, brought to
you by the Box Center. It is a special week
because we are celebrating a twentieth anniversary for a restaurant
group that Billy and I have been working with for
all twenty of its years. What's really cool is we're
both celebrating our twentieth year at the same time. Denise
(00:44):
Baron Herrera is the chief culinary officer for Burton's Grill
and Bar, and what an incredible restaurant group. Every time
I do a celebration like this, it feels slightly impossible,
because it feels in some ways like I met this
amazing woman, yeah yesterday, and yet we've clocked lots of
obs of good television of good Massachusetts Restaurant Association. Meet
(01:06):
it great, Rat really excited to and Herrera on phone
with us in a disis. It's great to connect.
Speaker 3 (01:11):
How are you great? Thank you Chile, my god.
Speaker 2 (01:15):
Congratulations twenty years and so we were talking. I mean,
I've known you for all these twenty you started obviously
with the restaurant group, even before the doors were open.
How does it feel? Do you feel like I feel
a little old having this conversation?
Speaker 3 (01:30):
Do you feel yeah, you know, twenty years is a long,
a long chunk of change. I feel a little old myself,
but I feel really proud. I cannot believe in my
wildest dreams that I'm sitting here, you know, talking to
you about a twenty year anniversary of a restaurant group
that we created from scratch, you know, didn't have anything
(01:51):
to start it with, and now we have, you know,
twenty one Burtons, five redeat taverns. We're looking at opening
you know, three more this year, and it's just it's
it's a really it's a really great feeling to be
part of something that you have brought along a lot
of people with you. And that's part that I love.
I love watching, you know, people that have been promoted
(02:12):
from within, that have continued to succeed and thrive on
their on their hospitality career path. And they started with curtains,
and so it's been a lot of fun.
Speaker 2 (02:23):
I think the culture, and that's sort of a place
that I want to start is what is so key
to the success of Burton's, the name and and and
being able to celebrate the twenty year anniversary. So I
mean that's something that I think has been trying and
true and was so important for you from the very beginning.
(02:44):
What like, what is it about your culture? What is
it about what you guys have created that makes it
so that it's a place that people have wanted to
stay at for as long as they have and makes
it such a joyous place to work, you know.
Speaker 3 (02:57):
I think that we really talked a lot about the
employee experience right out of the gate and delight as
employees equal delight at guests. And so we really focused
on our internal guests experience because if we didn't take
care of them, then they were never going to take
care of our external guest experience. And so that was
a main point. And then the other point was really
focusing on quality and consistency of the product coming out
(03:21):
of the kitchen and of the bar, and just staying
diligent upon that. And you know, it's really interesting when
people start to see you focus on the quality and
the consistency and that is part of your strategy, they
get right on board and they like that, and they're
they're proud to work alongside of a group that focuses
so intently on that. And I do believe that that
(03:42):
has been proven success for us.
Speaker 2 (03:46):
I love the idea of the fact that you know,
your many many employees are your internal guests. You know,
like that is just like the idea of speaking about
them just the same way you do about the person
that's coming in to buy the line, which is I mean,
we work with so many restaurants. Not to say that
culture isn't important in a lot of places, but it's
(04:08):
just it's really really beautiful to hear and and so
and you're, yeah, go ahead.
Speaker 3 (04:14):
Well, another part too, is like we really believe people
support what they helped create. And so I go back
to my managers, to my hourly employees, and I ask them,
you know, you do you have recipe ideas? Do you
have this, do you have that like, what are you
guys seeing? What's this? And so I think that that
engagement and having them bring ideas back up helps us
(04:35):
stay relevant in our communities. I really believe that's another
you know, success for us.
Speaker 2 (04:42):
I love it's I mean, it's it is so important
to be able to bring people into the fold of
all of the things that you guys are focused on,
to make it feel like it's theirs, because it is.
It's a part of theirs too. Let's talk about food.
So from the get go, when you guys came out,
obviously the trends were very different than you know, the
culinary focuses. The world was so different then, there was
(05:03):
so much different. But when you guys set out to
do this, your mission has remained in large very similar.
So tell me a little bit about the culinary, just
like the story of how it evolved and how it
became something that has stood the test of twenty years.
Speaker 3 (05:20):
Yeah, we wanted to be best in brand. We said
that we were never going to create the next you know,
potato skin or blue and onion or any of those things.
We said we were going to stay true to what
we believe in. And so we thought using fresh ingredients,
making sure that the ingredients spoke for themselves and you
weren't masking different things. We talked about allergy friendly, your
(05:43):
customization of the dining experience right out of the gate,
and so when somebody didn't want tomatoes in their salad,
no problem, we can customize that for you. And we
also said we weren't going to upcharge people for these things.
We didn't feel that if you had an allergy, or
if you wanted things to be done differently, like a
split plate charge, we weren't going to nickel and dine.
You really stayed true to all those tenants over the
course of the year, and I think we're going to
(06:06):
continue to maintain trueness to quality because that I think
has really helped our value proposition on the plate because,
as you know, you pay for your products as you
go out. Nothing's getting cheaper these days, and so the
value equation is really important to us. It has always
been important to us from the way that we design
(06:26):
the specifications for our stakes. You know, I want you
to eat everything on that plate. I don't want a
big piece of gristle or anything left there because I
didn't take off the tail meat. So we're very thoughtful
in how we have created our specifications of our standards
for our food quality coming out of the kitchen.
Speaker 2 (06:45):
I definitely want to spend a little bit more time
talking about the allergy piece because this was at a
time where this conversation was new. This was not what
it is now where there are restrictions and this is
much more part of your everyday come when you're dining
out at a restaurant. I mean, this was a I
wouldn't necessarily say a big leap, but it was a
(07:05):
big commitment that you made before there was the same
information and before there were the same desires that there
are now. So we're going to talk a little bit
about that and what it was about, sort of the
foresight that you had to be able to say, this
is something that we're going to commit to in this way,
which is very different than what you're seeing twenty years ago. Okay,
(07:27):
so we're going to take a break. We'll be back
with Denise and more Food for Thought in just a minute.
Speaker 1 (07:30):
You're listening to Food for Thought brought to you buy
the Box Center and Salem Waterfront Hotel and Sweet.
Speaker 2 (07:37):
Welcome to super Thought brought to you by the Box Center.
We are chatting with Denise Baron Herrera, chief culinary officer
of Burton's Grill and Bar. So you know, if you
haven't been to a Burton's, I don't know how it's possible,
but you definitely need to get there as soon as possible.
We were just talking about allergies, and you guys were unequipvocally,
(07:58):
without a shadow of a doubt, far ahead of truly
almost anyone in the industry recognizing food allergies and dietary restrictions,
and one of the first to be providing a dedicated
gluten free menu. Yes, of course, now we know these
things are mainstream, but at the time they so were not.
(08:20):
So talk about what that process looks like and why
you were able to have the foresight to move in
that direction before other people.
Speaker 3 (08:30):
Yeah, and absolutely, it's when we were talking about the
brand and what we wanted to create. Right out of
the beginning, we were talking about peanuts and did I
need to cook with peanuts because it was such a
highly you know, out anaphylaxic allergen, and I said, no,
I can cook without peanuts. So right there at the beginning,
we made a decision that we weren't allow penus in
(08:50):
the buildings. And then over time my business partner, Kevin
Harren miss Celiac, whosized Noss Celiac in his childhood, and
I would just watch him eat and I was like,
you eat a lot of our food. And he's like, well,
because you cook with whole ingredients and I know how
to navigate, and so you don't bring a lot of
gluten in because you cook naturally. And I was like, oh, well,
that's interesting. And so I remember saying to him, well,
(09:11):
would you like to do a gluten free menu? And
we talked a lot about it, because, as you know,
whenever you're dealing with allergens, it's light or dust for
some people, and that could be scary for some operators.
But I always committed and I said to know them
all in. And he said, if you're going to do it,
you're going to.
Speaker 2 (09:27):
Do it right.
Speaker 3 (09:27):
We need processes and procedures and education. And I said okay,
and so we started to develop a robust will not
robust at that time. We started to develop a gluten
free menu. We would have gluten free and regular gluten
items going out at the same time. We would have
separate areas for preparation for those items. Over time, I've
realized how to cook without gluten or utilize substitutions, and
(09:53):
so we have really modified our kitchen that all the
flour that we use in our kitchen is all gluten free.
We have worked with different manufacturers to create menu items
for us, like our gluten free spring roll wrappers, to
deliver a gluten free item that nobody else can have
at this point in time. So we're continuing to find
(10:14):
ways that we can increase our availability of gluten free items.
I think there's one item on our menus today that
is our key line PI, and we are about, you know,
minutes away from perfecting that to be a gluten free
that you know, we're testing in one of our restaurants
and people don't even know that it's gluten free. And
(10:35):
to me, that's the biggest compliment is when you're eating
food and you don't even know that it is gluten free.
And so that's what he strives to do is really
make sure people feel comfortable to have allergens that come
in and can dine with us. I love hearing how
normal people feel when they come to eat in our
restaurants and that hasn't been the case when they've done
(10:55):
in other restaurants. So having accessibility for everyone is really
really warming to my heart.
Speaker 2 (11:02):
Oh it is, and I think because you've been doing
it as long as you have, it's just of a
different caliber, you know, like you're you know, just even
the way you're talking about the kila and pie, you know,
you can tell how much you've perfected every single one
of these to ensure that you're getting the same you know,
you're getting obviously the same nourishment and obviously the same
(11:24):
you know, ingredients, but you're also getting the same flavor
without something that people may have been used to or
you know, just now no longer can live without. So
I applaud you. I know it's no small feat and
I think it's what has made the success be work
so long as it has. Okay, so you started in
New England, there were you know, like walk us through
(11:47):
the progression because you want, I mean, the numbers are
unbelievable and now you're up and down the whole East
coast And how did you make the decision to leave
New England and walk us through that a little bit?
Speaker 3 (11:58):
Yeah? You know, when we first started, we won at
ten restaurants in ten years, and we started in two
thousand and five, so quickly we realized that wasn't going
to happen when we hit in two thousand and eight
and two thousand and nine had the economic downturn, and
so we had plans at that point in time to
move outside of New England, but we pulled back, you know,
(12:19):
we didn't. We thought, let's start to look at what
this business looks like only being in New England. And
then as we came out of the economic downturn, we
realized that our brand was still really strong. Consumer consumers
are still coming to us and really choosing us over others.
So we felt very very foolish on that, and that's
when we started to say, okay, let's go into other markets.
(12:40):
And so we went into the Virginia market and some
of this was also where some of our ownership lied
at the time, and so we went into the Virginia
market and we started to build that market out, and
now we have six locations in the mid Atlantic. After
the mid Atlantic market, we went down into the Carolina
market and we built out the Mount Pleasant location. And
(13:04):
you know, our strategy was never to go into metropolitan areas.
We always said that we were really a suburban restaurant,
bringing urban feel and an urban experience to the suburbs,
and so we continued that plan and as you look
at our restaurants, we then grew into the Charlotte market,
we went down into southeast Florida, and now we're starting
(13:25):
to backfill those markets with more locations. So Florida, you know,
Southern Florida got a second location, Charlotte now is getting
a third location. This year. We're going to start to
branch up outside of the Maryland and Virginia market and
go into Pennsylvania. So we have our first location entering Wayne,
(13:46):
Pennsylvania in this year as well. So we're really excited
about that expansion. And really amazing news is we have
another location that's coming to Massachusetts at the end of
this year, which is Mansfield. So we're really excited to
have another nest this foothold coming this year.
Speaker 2 (14:03):
It's so exciting, and it also gives you a really
interesting perspective to look at the country, at least the
East coast. And I'm curious, you know, as trends sort
of comes down the pipeline and I think, what's nice
is you sort of hold true to who you are
and what you've been for those twenty years. But of
course you evolved your menus, of course, you you know,
you bring in new flavors and all that stuff. I'm
(14:24):
curious from a trend perspective, what you see, like, did
the things start in Boston? Did things start elsewhere? And then?
And and what do you notice about being able to
have your you know, sort of footprint in so many
different states in our country.
Speaker 3 (14:41):
Yeah, and you know, it's interesting because there are some
trends that do come out of Boston, but there are
some trends that come out of out of Charlotte too.
You know, the instagrammable drink trend is coming out of Charlotte.
So we're really you know, digging in there. And an
area of discussion for the culinary team is regionalized specials
and so we can't have a key cutter approach to
what our features are and our features menu is how
(15:04):
we leverage local trends, local relationships and then just keep
it fresh and relevant for those communities. So that's one
of the you know, the benefits of having a little
bit of flexibility and nimbleness at the store level unit
where they have the ability to create or to choose
(15:24):
seasonal and local features UH to offer to their guests.
Speaker 2 (15:29):
So important. I want to I want to just touch
upon those relationships. I mean, I you know, we mentioned
up the topic. You and I have had a relationship
for twenty years, but your relationships with everyone in the
industry are so deep and steep. Talk about the importance
of working with those local people and bringing them into
the fold. You know.
Speaker 3 (15:51):
I've always said I never want to burn a bridge.
Even as we've grown outside of New England, I've had
to make difficult decisions on different relationships because of logistics,
but I always come back and say, hey, listen, let's
keep this all open because I never know what's going
to happen. You never know, and so I think just
having that mindset of just you never pass on, you
(16:15):
always flow through, I guess. And I just vendors are
so important. I mean, I mean Cost of Britain Produce
I've been with for twenty years. They've been my produce
vendor in New England for twenty years, you know, And
to me, that's just amazing. We've had that relationship for
so long, and so and when you have that relationship.
(16:36):
You it's it's still a business relationship, so it's not
a friendship. But you can talk to them, you know,
factually and realistically and just and just say this is
where it's at. And I think having open, honest discussions
is really really important with these with these vendor relationships.
Speaker 2 (16:52):
Yeah, I think it's it's it's worth noting that, you know,
I want to talk a little bit about the cost conversation.
We have seen it evolved evolved in a really big way,
you know, in part since COVID and in part just
since life and just the evolving changes of the restaurant industry.
And I know you are you're sort of you're you've
(17:13):
always had your finger on the pulse. But you're obviously
also very involved with the Massachusetts Restaurant Association, as both
Billy and I are, and you know, are always looking
not only at the picture of what's happening locally, what's
happening regionally, what's happening nationally, what's happening internationally, And it's
it's a really important conversation on so many levels, regardless
of of of your politics. But it's a it's a
(17:34):
certain thing that people are talking a lot more about
so I want to get a little bit more of
a sense for you and more education for our listeners
as it relates to this.
Speaker 3 (17:42):
We're going to take a break.
Speaker 2 (17:43):
We're going to be back with Denise. We're going to
talk more about Burton's They're amazing twentieth anniversary and more
Food for Thought coming up in just a minute.
Speaker 1 (17:51):
You're listening to Food for Thought. Well to you buy
It's the Box Center and sale and Waterfront Hotel in
Sweet More.
Speaker 2 (17:57):
With Denise Burton's Grill. So you mentioned the value proposition.
I want to talk about the food cost conversation because
that's a big one and I, you know, Billy and
I haveen say there's a lot that is unknown about
operating a restaurant, let alone operating as many restaurants as
you are. Can you talk about where food prices are,
you know, in the concerns and where you see things headed? Yeah?
Speaker 3 (18:19):
Absolutely, I wish I could say if prices are coming down,
you know, but there are certain areas that we're starting
to see some some concern I think everybody knows about
the egg pricing, you know, red meat that has stayed
you know, pretty much on high higher than I would
like it to be. I had thought that the chuck
market would be coming down a little bit more. But
(18:42):
as an operator, you know, every week we're looking at
what our pricing is doing and how that how that
is affected, and then you know, every period end we
look at our food cost results, what does that look like?
And as a person that has to menu engineer and
make decisions based off of commodity pricing and then off
of availability, my job is to really make sure that
(19:04):
whatever we decide upon is the best quality that gets
put on that plate. And so I'm not looking for
what the cheapest item is. I'm not looking for to
take a price down, but if there's an opportunity to
take a price decrease, my next question is what's the
quality looks like? Where is the thatt what's going on?
Because it's not about chasing the dime at Burton's, it's
(19:25):
about putting the best value proposition on the plate. We
might not be the least expensive restaurant group out there,
but I will tell you that what you get on
your plate is a great value for the quality of
product that we are putting out there.
Speaker 2 (19:39):
And I think it's so it's one of those things
that's hard to understand and hard to navigate. There's the
dictation of those costs is outside of you, but your
commitments to what you're putting on that plate will will
always remain the same. And so how do you split
your time like you're going from here to there from everywhere?
(20:00):
Are you traveling every week or how do you manage it?
Speaker 3 (20:03):
You know, I travel here and there. I probably travel
one to two times a month. And I was just
talking to somebody today about that is you know, I
look at my Monday Tuesdays as more of my office
planning days, and then I really want to be Wednesday
through Friday out in the market talking to my my
you know, I call my constituents with my internal guests,
what are they seeing, what's happening, looking at you know, specifications,
(20:24):
and making sure that people you know, have any questions
that I'm readily available for them. And so that's how
I send my kids. I love being in the.
Speaker 2 (20:31):
Restaurants, and I mean that's the truth, and that has
always been you. I've known that from day one. It
has always been about you being inside the restaurants, not
being in the office where some may say you're you're
needed as much, but it's been so nice to see
that that's such a consistent thing for you over the
past twenty years. We're going to take a break more
with Burton's More Denise.
Speaker 1 (20:49):
In just a minute, you're listening to Food for Thoughts
brought to you by the Box Center, and Sale and
Waterfront Hotel.
Speaker 2 (20:55):
And Sweet Welcome back to Food for Thoughts brought to
you by the Box Center. We've been talking with Sidney,
the chief culinary officer for Burton Skureil celebrating twenty years
of unbelievable excellence. Obviously, we've talked a lot about the
ethos of the restaurant group and of the fact that
there's still so much more coming down the pipeline. Manfield
(21:16):
is such an exciting location, just a very accessible place
for people to go, no matter where they're coming from.
And in honor of the occasion of your twentieth year,
you guys are doing something to sort of pay homage
to that timing. Can you share what that is?
Speaker 3 (21:31):
Absolutely, we are putting together a twenty year feature menu
that has some of our original dishes on there, and
so we're excited to share our crab stuff, mushrooms again,
our wedge balad Our, delicious rubin. I love the chicken
a la mush Ravioli. I think I ate one every
night when we open for a month. And then oh,
I had a favorite, our butterscotch pudding. So we'll have
(21:54):
that for the entire month of March, March first, of
the thirty first. I'm so really excited about that.
Speaker 2 (22:01):
Oh that's so special. I mean, it's just just to
pay homage to what is take what took place twenty
years ago, and to bring it back must have felt,
must have felt so great. Now. The other celebratory feature
is on the actual anniversary date on March twenty ninth.
And you're doing something special then, is that right? It is?
Speaker 3 (22:21):
You know it's a secret, but I know you guys
won't tell anybody.
Speaker 2 (22:24):
So what we're gonna do is.
Speaker 3 (22:27):
A lot of the twenty ninth of March. We are
going to feature three of our most popular and enduring
entrees at twenty dollars each for that big day. And
so we have our crab crestocatic a, Mediterranean chicken risoto
a Propperdell bolonnaise, and so I'm really excited to share
that with you all.
Speaker 2 (22:46):
Oh that's so special. One of the things that I
do want to touch upon too is you're still opening
news spaces. You're still obviously evolving the craft in so
many different ways. And there's a new edition that you
guys have recently launched as well.
Speaker 3 (23:01):
There is and yes, so we launched catering, and so
people have been asking us about catering, catering, catering, and
we had focused so much on our four walls, and
now we the last two weeks we just launched catering
in six of our new England locations. March tenth, we
will be launching all new England locations for catering. So
we're really excited about that to give people what they've
(23:23):
been asking for for many, many years. So very happy
about that, and that is exciting for us.
Speaker 2 (23:30):
It's very exciting. So give an example of what some
of the offerings are on the catering menu.
Speaker 3 (23:35):
Oh, some of the offerings on the catering menu. Well,
we have our too stakes spring rolls. We have our
buffalo chicken spring rolls that are going to be on there.
Speaker 2 (23:42):
It's a little bit new.
Speaker 3 (23:43):
We're going to have cocktail, we have our crab cakes,
all its appetizers. We have our seasonal vegetables, so you'll
have your harvest bowl, you'll have your roasted vegetable blewl,
our big salads. We have a risotto section where you
can get a few different risotto options, you know, chicken products, marsala,
we have a general stall bowl. We have our desserts
(24:04):
which are key Line bars, Londie bars, and Pecan squares.
So you know, we're trying to give a taste of
what our core menu is in large format. We're also
going to be introducing box lunch program and then in
the coming weeks for that, and so catering is going
to continue to evolve as we continue to gain traction
on it, and a lot of it is seeing what
(24:24):
what are what our guests want, you know, what are
they asking for? What we what can we continue to
develop for you?
Speaker 2 (24:31):
Yeah, and you know, as you've heard over the course
of this radio show, that is that's key. I mean,
that's exactly how you have not only maintained but grown
in such unbelievable ways over the past two decades. Is
it's you know, it's not what you think is going
to work, It's not what you think is going to
taste best. It's it's in you know, coordination with your
other employees, and then also the experience of the guests
(24:52):
and I and I, you know, I think that's why
one of the reasons why it's been such a success.
So how many employees do you have across the company?
Speaker 3 (25:01):
Over fifteen hundred?
Speaker 4 (25:02):
Now?
Speaker 2 (25:04):
Wow? I mean that's the other piece that I always
try to, you know, just push home to everyone. Is
there the just the economic driver that this industry represents.
And I know, you know, Masters's Restaurant Association has been
a big part of your life too, former president, and
just being you know, just being having your finger on
the pulse of all the things of this industry. And
(25:27):
it's just I hope that you are able to take
time and have taken time over this past you know,
over this next year, to be able to say, look
what we've done. Does it feel like you're able to
take a step back and feel proud or do you
feel like you just have to focus on the next thing.
Speaker 3 (25:44):
No, I have been able to take a step back
and feel proud and overwhelmed, and just it really is
amazing and I'm so thankful, thankful for the amazing team
that has helped us get here. I mean, that is
really what it's about. It's not one person. It is
an entire team that moves everybody together, and I just
(26:04):
I thank them all so much.
Speaker 2 (26:07):
Well, it's a team with a really wonderful, incredible leader.
And so okay, so remind me again, can you tell
me all of the New England locations? Do that quickly
for us because we're mainly in locations were mainly in
New England.
Speaker 3 (26:19):
Yes, so we have Hangham North Andover, Burlington westbirst Framingham, Lynnfield, Shrewsbury,
and then we're in Nashville, New Hampshire, and then South Windsor, Connecticut,
and coming soon to.
Speaker 2 (26:37):
Man coming soon to Mansfield. Oh my gosh, Well Denise,
you are You know, you've been a friend of mine
and one of my favorites for so long. I have
loved seeing how you've evolved and how you've remained so
true to the very beginning of all the things that
matter to you then matter to now. And I am
happy that you've been able to take some time to
(26:58):
feel proud, because I think that's the most important thing.
Billy and I keep reminding ourselves of that too, celebrating
this big two decades so it for another decade. Girl,
Thank you so much for being here. Adore you and
thank you so much. All right, thank you, all right,
that's Denise from Burton's Grill. We'll be back with more
(27:19):
Food for Thought in just a minute.
Speaker 1 (27:20):
You're listening to Food for Thought brought to you by
the Box Center and Salem Waterfront Hotel and sweet Hi.
Speaker 2 (27:26):
Everybody, we got more Food for Thought brought to you
by the Box Center. I'm excited for this next guest
because it's coming off of an incredible night that I
had at this particular place with a group of wonderful people.
We did an event for our hubsters, which are the
kind of content creators influencers within our television show Meet Boston,
(27:49):
and we had about forty of them at Boston Landing,
which is this unbelievable mixed use development that has been
evolving over the past handful of you and continues to evolve.
And last night we had a very special experience. So
I had to make sure that I invited Kim Good,
the marketing and events manager for Boston Landing, onto the
(28:10):
show to talk about it in all things Boston Landing.
So Kim Good, thank you so much for joining the show.
Thank you for having me. So I want to take
a step back because I don't want to assume that
everyone listening has been to Boston Landing, because it is
still fairly new. So describe this area, Describe what's taking
place over the past handful of years, and also what's
(28:31):
to come.
Speaker 4 (28:34):
Yeah, So Boston Landing is what we like to think of,
as you mentioned, a mixed use development that is in Brighton,
right On located right on the mass Pike kind of
the gateway into the city. And what we have here
is a true mixed use of venues. So I think
the claim to fame for our neighborhood is that we're
(28:56):
anchored by New Balance Global Headquarters. So New Balance Athletics
Incorporated is headquartered here. They have been here for a
number of years. The most recent headquarter location was built
first in twenty fifteen, and then from there everything else
(29:16):
kind of filled in. So the next big project to
happen was the Warrior Ice Arena, which is the practice
facility for the Boston Bruins, and then the Hourback Center,
which is the practice for facility for the Boston Celtics.
We have an apartment complex here called Lantra and then
the most recent project that we just completed was the
Track at New Balance and that was finished in twenty
(29:39):
twenty two, which is a four hundred and fifty plus
thousand square foot multi sport date of the art complex
where the primary use is indoor track and field. So
from the months of November through March it's exclusively used
for indoor track and field meets practices, any kind of competition.
But then outside of the those months it turns into
(30:01):
a multipurpose multi sport facility where we focus mostly on
court sports, turf sports, and we do a lot of
special and corporate events here. In addition to all these
beautiful venues, we have a long list of eclectic independent
retail groups that are here. So we have Cohey Coffee Company,
We have rail Stop restaurant and bar. We have Broken
(30:23):
Records Beer Hall and most recently that just opened. We
have The Pearl, which is their second location here at
Boston Landing behind their first location in South Bay Over
in Dorchester. And also we have an American Flatbreads and
Bowl Bright in here. So and then a bunch of
other little independent chains like the Bagel Table. We have
Crumble Cookie, which is a little bit bigger than Independent,
(30:46):
but I still kind of Newish to the area. And
then obviously New Balances global flagship retail stores here as well.
Speaker 2 (30:53):
Oh and I forgot about Roadrunner.
Speaker 4 (30:54):
I always forget about Roadrunner.
Speaker 2 (30:56):
I'm sorry.
Speaker 4 (30:59):
Yeah, road Runner. There is a beautiful thirty five hundred
person standing room music venue. It's two floors, there's no
obstructed site lines, so anywhere in the facility has a
great view of the performance of the stage. It's the
I think the largest standing room only music venue in
New England. It's similar to like what a House of
(31:20):
Blues sort of concept is, but it's owned and operated
by the Bowery Presents, which is part of the AEG Group,
and they have been phenomenal partners here with us as well,
bringing in all kinds of musical acts and different festivals
and events here. Paired with the events that we ourselves
host and plan throughout the year, we have so much
(31:40):
that happens on campus at any given time throughout the year.
Speaker 2 (31:44):
I mean, I don't even know how you keep your
head on straight with the number of things that you
guys have going on. But the thing that's so amazing
is this has gone up so quickly. It has evolved
so quickly and now as a place that people can
come and really get so many different things done sort
of in one stop shopping from all of the different
places you can you know, visit with New Balance, and
obviously all the other restaurants that are there, like you
(32:06):
just mentioned. But I want to talk about our event
last night because it's one example of the different kind
of offerings that you create for guests that come into
this area. So we, like I said, we had forty
content creators in the space and you guys created this
amazing artistic experience, if you will, for all of our guests.
(32:29):
So can you describe what happened last night?
Speaker 4 (32:32):
Thank you for the kind words about that.
Speaker 2 (32:34):
Yeah.
Speaker 4 (32:34):
So, this this whole concept which we are calling Boston
Landing Winter Events Series. It's a brand new concept for
us that kind of came about through an idea stealing
a little bit of creativity from our partners at rail Stop.
They do an event up at the Beauport Hotel called
Clicko in the Snow, and we thought, we have this
(32:56):
beautiful space here in Boston Landing, right in the center
of our campus, we should try to replicate something like
that here. So it originally started off as let's do
an igloo dining experience. We've never done it before, we
had no idea what it entailed, how we would do it,
and then it kind of morphed into this. We call
it a tent, but it's more like a structure, a
(33:16):
building that looks like it's permanent here with really beautiful
glass panels and high high ceilings and pretty lighting. We
have it decked out like a like a winter ski
chalet with some nice cozy elements and for coats people
can put on and where around and the goal here
is so we're partnering with rail Stop on this concept
(33:38):
for this coming weekend. We're calling it, well, this is
clik cool in the snow Boston landing style where both
clickoa comes in and it's you'll see a lot of
their branding and there's buckets and bottles of champagne that
are available to our guests and people can come in
and make a reservation, have a great dining experience with
food from rail Stops DJ there's some other cool winter
(34:02):
cozy elements. So we last night, the event that Jenny's
referring to is was kind of our kickoff event and
you know, again, we had never done it before, so
we took a leap of faith with hosting this group
of amazing people, and it was better than we could
have ever expected. And just the warm reception we had
from everybody, the amount of smiles and laughter and just
(34:25):
you know, we could see people having fun and really
enjoying the experience, left all of us like with feeling
like we won. We won something, just with taking a
huge risk and a huge leap of faith on this
concept and doing it for the first time and having
such such success with it. We're excited to go into
this weekend and next weekend with rail Stop and then
(34:47):
Broken Records is going to do an indoor beer garden
concept in the space sometime in the March, the last
being and in March as well, so we do have
a lot of different activities and events and activations planned
for the month of March, and we're also kind of
considering how we can bring it back and incorporate it
into some of our our summer and fall events as well.
Speaker 3 (35:09):
Well.
Speaker 2 (35:10):
There's no shortage of things that take place in your
area that are sort of outside the brick and mortar
of a lot of the businesses. You described and they
and they last throughout the year, but this one was
very especially I want to stand up before I move
on to some of the other ones. I mean, we
had you had a rack of fur coats, you had
these beautiful, you know, shaggy pillows and great comfortable couches.
(35:31):
It just it felt like you were in Aspens, but
you were in Brighton and a beautiful bar. Oh my god,
it's exactly what it felt like. And you know, listen,
there's only so much we can do in these cold
New England's winter days, and it's just such a unique
experience to be able to, you know, appreciate culinary excellence,
(35:52):
but just in a scene that makes you feel like
you've escaped from the city for a second. So I
certainly applaud you there. Let's move on to some of
the other seasons. You do a lot for families, You
do just a lot of obviously there's so many the
events that you described that our family friendly and opportunities
for families to to Next, but talk about some of
(36:12):
the stuff you do in the summer.
Speaker 4 (36:14):
Yeah, So our goal with our event program is to
really make it available and accessible to everybody and anybody.
So most of our events are catered to kind of
a general audience, with some components scared toward kids, but
some components geared towards young professionals or adults or an
older crowd. And the goal is just to give everybody
(36:37):
a wonderful, warm, happy experience here on our campus because
a lot of people don't necessarily know about us, know
what we're all about, know what we do, know what
we have to offer, know the history of you know
how we're here. So we like to open up our
campus to anyone who is interested in available for different
(36:58):
activities and events. So one of the I guess things
that we do is our movie Night program, which is
part of our summer event series, and we do them
twice a month, starting in this year. We're starting in May.
Actually we're going to go May through September. So we
show one movie in May, too in June, two July,
two August, and one in September, and we pick a
(37:21):
mix of kind of new new movies and then sort
of you know, kind of the old school classics. And
what we do I think that sets us apart from
probably other movie nights in and around the city is
that we do a themed party before the movies.
Speaker 2 (37:35):
This is a great opportunity for families. I want to
make sure people get a little bit more of the details.
We'll be right back right after the break.
Speaker 1 (37:41):
You're listening to Food for Thought brought to you by
the Box Center and Sale and Waterfront Hotel and Sweet
So Kim, tell more.
Speaker 2 (37:48):
About these onesome movie nights throughout the summer.
Speaker 4 (37:52):
Yeah, So, our movie nights are again we try to
create an experience for our guests, and I think one
of the things that we try to do that to
us a little bit apart from other movie nights in
and around the city is we add a themed pre
movie party component. So for example, last summer we did
the movie we showed The Greatest Showmen, and all of
our pre party elements were all circus themed, So we
(38:15):
had circus performers that came and did different elements throughout
our campus. We had themed food and beverage, we had
a different you know, elements that brought in the theme
of the circus from that movie into our campus. So
it's almost like you're immersed in this theme inexperience of
that particular movie to get you in the spirit and
(38:38):
excited to watch the movie. Another thing that we did
that was very again new, a new kind of concept
for us was the we showed the movie Footloose over
the summer and we hired some performers to do a
couple of things on our green space. Before. We did
a dance contest where we awarded some prizes and kind
(38:59):
of pulled people in from the audience to participate. People
loved that, And then throughout the movie, at two or
three different points throughout the movie, we had our performers
come on a stage that was built around the screen
and perform the dances that were happening in the movie,
so people were watching the movie but also got to
experience dancers kind of live doing the routine. So those
(39:22):
are just some things that we try to do to
take our movie night experience to the next level. Offer,
you know, memorable moments for families, for people who are
looking for some fun, free activities to do outside in
the summer. And that's the other great thing is that
most all of our events are free and open to
the public, so don't cost you much money. You can
(39:44):
come with your family, bring a blanket, a share, grab
your spot on the hill, and you know, immerse yourself
in our pre movie party to get in the spirit
for the movie that you're about to see.
Speaker 2 (39:55):
Okay, you guys have stuff going on all throughout the year,
but it just broke ground and something pretty exciting, So
tell us about that.
Speaker 4 (40:03):
So our final piece to the Boston Landing Guest Street
project is our hotel, which we broke ground for at
the end of twenty twenty four, and we'll do our
kind of official groundbreaking for that in April of this year.
We are expected to have the property complete early to
mid twenty twenty seven, which we're also excited about. It
(40:26):
feels like this has taken the longest time to get
this piece sorted out and write, but we're super excited
about the concepts, the styling, the decor, the branding, all
of these elements that have gone into making this last piece,
the last puzzle piece complete is going to be I
think the icing on the cake. It's going to be
one hundred and seventy room hotel. There'll be some meeting space,
(40:49):
two different dining outlets, one kind of mainful service restaurant
on the ground floor, and then on the second floor
they'll have a bar, kind of light bight area where
you'll have indoor and outdoor seating options.
Speaker 2 (41:04):
Oh gosh, it's going to be so exciting and great
addition to the city. And one of the things I
love about it is you're in the city, but you're
kind of outside, so you have a lot more flexibility,
a lot less traffic, a lot more parking opportunity, and
like him, has just shared so much opportunity to enjoy
throughout the entire year. So for some reason, you can't
get the clee clo in the snow, which we really
(41:25):
think you should try to check out. You can go
to Open Table to make a reservation. Then know that
there are activations throughout the year, obviously the concerts, so
many of the different sporting events. You know. The cool
part about being around there is you could walk into
one of your famous athletes while you know, walking into
a store to grab lunch or dinner or you know,
some new new balance here. Anyway, Kim, we adore you.
(41:46):
Thank you for a special night, and thank you for
joining the show.
Speaker 4 (41:49):
Yeah, my pleasure, and thank you for your great partnership
and your enthusiasm for us.
Speaker 2 (41:55):
No, you're the best, Kim. Okay, So that's it for
food for thought. Brat to By the Box Center this week.
We will see for next week. Thank you.
You are listening to Food for Thought with Billy and Jenny,
brought to you by the Box Center. For more than
fifteen years, this dining duo has been eating their way
through New England, mixing it up with top chefs, jumping
behind the line of the hottest restaurants, and giving you
the inside scoop on where.
Speaker 2 (00:15):
To wine, dine and spend your time.
Speaker 1 (00:17):
So get ready, it's Food for Thought giving you something
to chew on.
Speaker 2 (00:22):
Hi, everybody, Welcome in to Food for Thought, brought to
you by the Box Center. It is a special week
because we are celebrating a twentieth anniversary for a restaurant
group that Billy and I have been working with for
all twenty of its years. What's really cool is we're
both celebrating our twentieth year at the same time. Denise
(00:44):
Baron Herrera is the chief culinary officer for Burton's Grill
and Bar, and what an incredible restaurant group. Every time
I do a celebration like this, it feels slightly impossible,
because it feels in some ways like I met this
amazing woman, yeah yesterday, and yet we've clocked lots of
obs of good television of good Massachusetts Restaurant Association. Meet
(01:06):
it great, Rat really excited to and Herrera on phone
with us in a disis. It's great to connect.
Speaker 3 (01:11):
How are you great? Thank you Chile, my god.
Speaker 2 (01:15):
Congratulations twenty years and so we were talking. I mean,
I've known you for all these twenty you started obviously
with the restaurant group, even before the doors were open.
How does it feel? Do you feel like I feel
a little old having this conversation?
Speaker 3 (01:30):
Do you feel yeah, you know, twenty years is a long,
a long chunk of change. I feel a little old myself,
but I feel really proud. I cannot believe in my
wildest dreams that I'm sitting here, you know, talking to
you about a twenty year anniversary of a restaurant group
that we created from scratch, you know, didn't have anything
(01:51):
to start it with, and now we have, you know,
twenty one Burtons, five redeat taverns. We're looking at opening
you know, three more this year, and it's just it's
it's a really it's a really great feeling to be
part of something that you have brought along a lot
of people with you. And that's part that I love.
I love watching, you know, people that have been promoted
(02:12):
from within, that have continued to succeed and thrive on
their on their hospitality career path. And they started with curtains,
and so it's been a lot of fun.
Speaker 2 (02:23):
I think the culture, and that's sort of a place
that I want to start is what is so key
to the success of Burton's, the name and and and
being able to celebrate the twenty year anniversary. So I
mean that's something that I think has been trying and
true and was so important for you from the very beginning.
(02:44):
What like, what is it about your culture? What is
it about what you guys have created that makes it
so that it's a place that people have wanted to
stay at for as long as they have and makes
it such a joyous place to work, you know.
Speaker 3 (02:57):
I think that we really talked a lot about the
employee experience right out of the gate and delight as
employees equal delight at guests. And so we really focused
on our internal guests experience because if we didn't take
care of them, then they were never going to take
care of our external guest experience. And so that was
a main point. And then the other point was really
focusing on quality and consistency of the product coming out
(03:21):
of the kitchen and of the bar, and just staying
diligent upon that. And you know, it's really interesting when
people start to see you focus on the quality and
the consistency and that is part of your strategy, they
get right on board and they like that, and they're
they're proud to work alongside of a group that focuses
so intently on that. And I do believe that that
(03:42):
has been proven success for us.
Speaker 2 (03:46):
I love the idea of the fact that you know,
your many many employees are your internal guests. You know,
like that is just like the idea of speaking about
them just the same way you do about the person
that's coming in to buy the line, which is I mean,
we work with so many restaurants. Not to say that
culture isn't important in a lot of places, but it's
(04:08):
just it's really really beautiful to hear and and so
and you're, yeah, go ahead.
Speaker 3 (04:14):
Well, another part too, is like we really believe people
support what they helped create. And so I go back
to my managers, to my hourly employees, and I ask them,
you know, you do you have recipe ideas? Do you
have this, do you have that like, what are you
guys seeing? What's this? And so I think that that
engagement and having them bring ideas back up helps us
(04:35):
stay relevant in our communities. I really believe that's another
you know, success for us.
Speaker 2 (04:42):
I love it's I mean, it's it is so important
to be able to bring people into the fold of
all of the things that you guys are focused on,
to make it feel like it's theirs, because it is.
It's a part of theirs too. Let's talk about food.
So from the get go, when you guys came out,
obviously the trends were very different than you know, the
culinary focuses. The world was so different then, there was
(05:03):
so much different. But when you guys set out to
do this, your mission has remained in large very similar.
So tell me a little bit about the culinary, just
like the story of how it evolved and how it
became something that has stood the test of twenty years.
Speaker 3 (05:20):
Yeah, we wanted to be best in brand. We said
that we were never going to create the next you know,
potato skin or blue and onion or any of those things.
We said we were going to stay true to what
we believe in. And so we thought using fresh ingredients,
making sure that the ingredients spoke for themselves and you
weren't masking different things. We talked about allergy friendly, your
(05:43):
customization of the dining experience right out of the gate,
and so when somebody didn't want tomatoes in their salad,
no problem, we can customize that for you. And we
also said we weren't going to upcharge people for these things.
We didn't feel that if you had an allergy, or
if you wanted things to be done differently, like a
split plate charge, we weren't going to nickel and dine.
You really stayed true to all those tenants over the
course of the year, and I think we're going to
(06:06):
continue to maintain trueness to quality because that I think
has really helped our value proposition on the plate because,
as you know, you pay for your products as you
go out. Nothing's getting cheaper these days, and so the
value equation is really important to us. It has always
been important to us from the way that we design
(06:26):
the specifications for our stakes. You know, I want you
to eat everything on that plate. I don't want a
big piece of gristle or anything left there because I
didn't take off the tail meat. So we're very thoughtful
in how we have created our specifications of our standards
for our food quality coming out of the kitchen.
Speaker 2 (06:45):
I definitely want to spend a little bit more time
talking about the allergy piece because this was at a
time where this conversation was new. This was not what
it is now where there are restrictions and this is
much more part of your everyday come when you're dining
out at a restaurant. I mean, this was a I
wouldn't necessarily say a big leap, but it was a
(07:05):
big commitment that you made before there was the same
information and before there were the same desires that there
are now. So we're going to talk a little bit
about that and what it was about, sort of the
foresight that you had to be able to say, this
is something that we're going to commit to in this way,
which is very different than what you're seeing twenty years ago. Okay,
(07:27):
so we're going to take a break. We'll be back
with Denise and more Food for Thought in just a minute.
Speaker 1 (07:30):
You're listening to Food for Thought brought to you buy
the Box Center and Salem Waterfront Hotel and Sweet.
Speaker 2 (07:37):
Welcome to super Thought brought to you by the Box Center.
We are chatting with Denise Baron Herrera, chief culinary officer
of Burton's Grill and Bar. So you know, if you
haven't been to a Burton's, I don't know how it's possible,
but you definitely need to get there as soon as possible.
We were just talking about allergies, and you guys were unequipvocally,
(07:58):
without a shadow of a doubt, far ahead of truly
almost anyone in the industry recognizing food allergies and dietary restrictions,
and one of the first to be providing a dedicated
gluten free menu. Yes, of course, now we know these
things are mainstream, but at the time they so were not.
(08:20):
So talk about what that process looks like and why
you were able to have the foresight to move in
that direction before other people.
Speaker 3 (08:30):
Yeah, and absolutely, it's when we were talking about the
brand and what we wanted to create. Right out of
the beginning, we were talking about peanuts and did I
need to cook with peanuts because it was such a
highly you know, out anaphylaxic allergen, and I said, no,
I can cook without peanuts. So right there at the beginning,
we made a decision that we weren't allow penus in
(08:50):
the buildings. And then over time my business partner, Kevin
Harren miss Celiac, whosized Noss Celiac in his childhood, and
I would just watch him eat and I was like,
you eat a lot of our food. And he's like, well,
because you cook with whole ingredients and I know how
to navigate, and so you don't bring a lot of
gluten in because you cook naturally. And I was like, oh, well,
that's interesting. And so I remember saying to him, well,
(09:11):
would you like to do a gluten free menu? And
we talked a lot about it, because, as you know,
whenever you're dealing with allergens, it's light or dust for
some people, and that could be scary for some operators.
But I always committed and I said to know them
all in. And he said, if you're going to do it,
you're going to.
Speaker 2 (09:27):
Do it right.
Speaker 3 (09:27):
We need processes and procedures and education. And I said okay,
and so we started to develop a robust will not
robust at that time. We started to develop a gluten
free menu. We would have gluten free and regular gluten
items going out at the same time. We would have
separate areas for preparation for those items. Over time, I've
realized how to cook without gluten or utilize substitutions, and
(09:53):
so we have really modified our kitchen that all the
flour that we use in our kitchen is all gluten free.
We have worked with different manufacturers to create menu items
for us, like our gluten free spring roll wrappers, to
deliver a gluten free item that nobody else can have
at this point in time. So we're continuing to find
(10:14):
ways that we can increase our availability of gluten free items.
I think there's one item on our menus today that
is our key line PI, and we are about, you know,
minutes away from perfecting that to be a gluten free
that you know, we're testing in one of our restaurants
and people don't even know that it's gluten free. And
(10:35):
to me, that's the biggest compliment is when you're eating
food and you don't even know that it is gluten free.
And so that's what he strives to do is really
make sure people feel comfortable to have allergens that come
in and can dine with us. I love hearing how
normal people feel when they come to eat in our
restaurants and that hasn't been the case when they've done
(10:55):
in other restaurants. So having accessibility for everyone is really
really warming to my heart.
Speaker 2 (11:02):
Oh it is, and I think because you've been doing
it as long as you have, it's just of a
different caliber, you know, like you're you know, just even
the way you're talking about the kila and pie, you know,
you can tell how much you've perfected every single one
of these to ensure that you're getting the same you know,
you're getting obviously the same nourishment and obviously the same
(11:24):
you know, ingredients, but you're also getting the same flavor
without something that people may have been used to or
you know, just now no longer can live without. So
I applaud you. I know it's no small feat and
I think it's what has made the success be work
so long as it has. Okay, so you started in
New England, there were you know, like walk us through
(11:47):
the progression because you want, I mean, the numbers are
unbelievable and now you're up and down the whole East
coast And how did you make the decision to leave
New England and walk us through that a little bit?
Speaker 3 (11:58):
Yeah? You know, when we first started, we won at
ten restaurants in ten years, and we started in two
thousand and five, so quickly we realized that wasn't going
to happen when we hit in two thousand and eight
and two thousand and nine had the economic downturn, and
so we had plans at that point in time to
move outside of New England, but we pulled back, you know,
(12:19):
we didn't. We thought, let's start to look at what
this business looks like only being in New England. And
then as we came out of the economic downturn, we
realized that our brand was still really strong. Consumer consumers
are still coming to us and really choosing us over others.
So we felt very very foolish on that, and that's
when we started to say, okay, let's go into other markets.
(12:40):
And so we went into the Virginia market and some
of this was also where some of our ownership lied
at the time, and so we went into the Virginia
market and we started to build that market out, and
now we have six locations in the mid Atlantic. After
the mid Atlantic market, we went down into the Carolina
market and we built out the Mount Pleasant location. And
(13:04):
you know, our strategy was never to go into metropolitan areas.
We always said that we were really a suburban restaurant,
bringing urban feel and an urban experience to the suburbs,
and so we continued that plan and as you look
at our restaurants, we then grew into the Charlotte market,
we went down into southeast Florida, and now we're starting
(13:25):
to backfill those markets with more locations. So Florida, you know,
Southern Florida got a second location, Charlotte now is getting
a third location. This year. We're going to start to
branch up outside of the Maryland and Virginia market and
go into Pennsylvania. So we have our first location entering Wayne,
(13:46):
Pennsylvania in this year as well. So we're really excited
about that expansion. And really amazing news is we have
another location that's coming to Massachusetts at the end of
this year, which is Mansfield. So we're really excited to
have another nest this foothold coming this year.
Speaker 2 (14:03):
It's so exciting, and it also gives you a really
interesting perspective to look at the country, at least the
East coast. And I'm curious, you know, as trends sort
of comes down the pipeline and I think, what's nice
is you sort of hold true to who you are
and what you've been for those twenty years. But of
course you evolved your menus, of course, you you know,
you bring in new flavors and all that stuff. I'm
(14:24):
curious from a trend perspective, what you see, like, did
the things start in Boston? Did things start elsewhere? And then?
And and what do you notice about being able to
have your you know, sort of footprint in so many
different states in our country.
Speaker 3 (14:41):
Yeah, and you know, it's interesting because there are some
trends that do come out of Boston, but there are
some trends that come out of out of Charlotte too.
You know, the instagrammable drink trend is coming out of Charlotte.
So we're really you know, digging in there. And an
area of discussion for the culinary team is regionalized specials
and so we can't have a key cutter approach to
what our features are and our features menu is how
(15:04):
we leverage local trends, local relationships and then just keep
it fresh and relevant for those communities. So that's one
of the you know, the benefits of having a little
bit of flexibility and nimbleness at the store level unit
where they have the ability to create or to choose
(15:24):
seasonal and local features UH to offer to their guests.
Speaker 2 (15:29):
So important. I want to I want to just touch
upon those relationships. I mean, I you know, we mentioned
up the topic. You and I have had a relationship
for twenty years, but your relationships with everyone in the
industry are so deep and steep. Talk about the importance
of working with those local people and bringing them into
the fold. You know.
Speaker 3 (15:51):
I've always said I never want to burn a bridge.
Even as we've grown outside of New England, I've had
to make difficult decisions on different relationships because of logistics,
but I always come back and say, hey, listen, let's
keep this all open because I never know what's going
to happen. You never know, and so I think just
having that mindset of just you never pass on, you
(16:15):
always flow through, I guess. And I just vendors are
so important. I mean, I mean Cost of Britain Produce
I've been with for twenty years. They've been my produce
vendor in New England for twenty years, you know, And
to me, that's just amazing. We've had that relationship for
so long, and so and when you have that relationship.
(16:36):
You it's it's still a business relationship, so it's not
a friendship. But you can talk to them, you know,
factually and realistically and just and just say this is
where it's at. And I think having open, honest discussions
is really really important with these with these vendor relationships.
Speaker 2 (16:52):
Yeah, I think it's it's it's worth noting that, you know,
I want to talk a little bit about the cost conversation.
We have seen it evolved evolved in a really big way,
you know, in part since COVID and in part just
since life and just the evolving changes of the restaurant industry.
And I know you are you're sort of you're you've
(17:13):
always had your finger on the pulse. But you're obviously
also very involved with the Massachusetts Restaurant Association, as both
Billy and I are, and you know, are always looking
not only at the picture of what's happening locally, what's
happening regionally, what's happening nationally, what's happening internationally, And it's
it's a really important conversation on so many levels, regardless
of of of your politics. But it's a it's a
(17:34):
certain thing that people are talking a lot more about
so I want to get a little bit more of
a sense for you and more education for our listeners
as it relates to this.
Speaker 3 (17:42):
We're going to take a break.
Speaker 2 (17:43):
We're going to be back with Denise. We're going to
talk more about Burton's They're amazing twentieth anniversary and more
Food for Thought coming up in just a minute.
Speaker 1 (17:51):
You're listening to Food for Thought. Well to you buy
It's the Box Center and sale and Waterfront Hotel in
Sweet More.
Speaker 2 (17:57):
With Denise Burton's Grill. So you mentioned the value proposition.
I want to talk about the food cost conversation because
that's a big one and I, you know, Billy and
I haveen say there's a lot that is unknown about
operating a restaurant, let alone operating as many restaurants as
you are. Can you talk about where food prices are,
you know, in the concerns and where you see things headed? Yeah?
Speaker 3 (18:19):
Absolutely, I wish I could say if prices are coming down,
you know, but there are certain areas that we're starting
to see some some concern I think everybody knows about
the egg pricing, you know, red meat that has stayed
you know, pretty much on high higher than I would
like it to be. I had thought that the chuck
market would be coming down a little bit more. But
(18:42):
as an operator, you know, every week we're looking at
what our pricing is doing and how that how that
is affected, and then you know, every period end we
look at our food cost results, what does that look like?
And as a person that has to menu engineer and
make decisions based off of commodity pricing and then off
of availability, my job is to really make sure that
(19:04):
whatever we decide upon is the best quality that gets
put on that plate. And so I'm not looking for
what the cheapest item is. I'm not looking for to
take a price down, but if there's an opportunity to
take a price decrease, my next question is what's the
quality looks like? Where is the thatt what's going on?
Because it's not about chasing the dime at Burton's, it's
(19:25):
about putting the best value proposition on the plate. We
might not be the least expensive restaurant group out there,
but I will tell you that what you get on
your plate is a great value for the quality of
product that we are putting out there.
Speaker 2 (19:39):
And I think it's so it's one of those things
that's hard to understand and hard to navigate. There's the
dictation of those costs is outside of you, but your
commitments to what you're putting on that plate will will
always remain the same. And so how do you split
your time like you're going from here to there from everywhere?
(20:00):
Are you traveling every week or how do you manage it?
Speaker 3 (20:03):
You know, I travel here and there. I probably travel
one to two times a month. And I was just
talking to somebody today about that is you know, I
look at my Monday Tuesdays as more of my office
planning days, and then I really want to be Wednesday
through Friday out in the market talking to my my
you know, I call my constituents with my internal guests,
what are they seeing, what's happening, looking at you know, specifications,
(20:24):
and making sure that people you know, have any questions
that I'm readily available for them. And so that's how
I send my kids. I love being in the.
Speaker 2 (20:31):
Restaurants, and I mean that's the truth, and that has
always been you. I've known that from day one. It
has always been about you being inside the restaurants, not
being in the office where some may say you're you're
needed as much, but it's been so nice to see
that that's such a consistent thing for you over the
past twenty years. We're going to take a break more
with Burton's More Denise.
Speaker 1 (20:49):
In just a minute, you're listening to Food for Thoughts
brought to you by the Box Center, and Sale and
Waterfront Hotel.
Speaker 2 (20:55):
And Sweet Welcome back to Food for Thoughts brought to
you by the Box Center. We've been talking with Sidney,
the chief culinary officer for Burton Skureil celebrating twenty years
of unbelievable excellence. Obviously, we've talked a lot about the
ethos of the restaurant group and of the fact that
there's still so much more coming down the pipeline. Manfield
(21:16):
is such an exciting location, just a very accessible place
for people to go, no matter where they're coming from.
And in honor of the occasion of your twentieth year,
you guys are doing something to sort of pay homage
to that timing. Can you share what that is?
Speaker 3 (21:31):
Absolutely, we are putting together a twenty year feature menu
that has some of our original dishes on there, and
so we're excited to share our crab stuff, mushrooms again,
our wedge balad Our, delicious rubin. I love the chicken
a la mush Ravioli. I think I ate one every
night when we open for a month. And then oh,
I had a favorite, our butterscotch pudding. So we'll have
(21:54):
that for the entire month of March, March first, of
the thirty first. I'm so really excited about that.
Speaker 2 (22:01):
Oh that's so special. I mean, it's just just to
pay homage to what is take what took place twenty
years ago, and to bring it back must have felt,
must have felt so great. Now. The other celebratory feature
is on the actual anniversary date on March twenty ninth.
And you're doing something special then, is that right? It is?
Speaker 3 (22:21):
You know it's a secret, but I know you guys
won't tell anybody.
Speaker 2 (22:24):
So what we're gonna do is.
Speaker 3 (22:27):
A lot of the twenty ninth of March. We are
going to feature three of our most popular and enduring
entrees at twenty dollars each for that big day. And
so we have our crab crestocatic a, Mediterranean chicken risoto
a Propperdell bolonnaise, and so I'm really excited to share
that with you all.
Speaker 2 (22:46):
Oh that's so special. One of the things that I
do want to touch upon too is you're still opening
news spaces. You're still obviously evolving the craft in so
many different ways. And there's a new edition that you
guys have recently launched as well.
Speaker 3 (23:01):
There is and yes, so we launched catering, and so
people have been asking us about catering, catering, catering, and
we had focused so much on our four walls, and
now we the last two weeks we just launched catering
in six of our new England locations. March tenth, we
will be launching all new England locations for catering. So
we're really excited about that to give people what they've
(23:23):
been asking for for many, many years. So very happy
about that, and that is exciting for us.
Speaker 2 (23:30):
It's very exciting. So give an example of what some
of the offerings are on the catering menu.
Speaker 3 (23:35):
Oh, some of the offerings on the catering menu. Well,
we have our too stakes spring rolls. We have our
buffalo chicken spring rolls that are going to be on there.
Speaker 2 (23:42):
It's a little bit new.
Speaker 3 (23:43):
We're going to have cocktail, we have our crab cakes,
all its appetizers. We have our seasonal vegetables, so you'll
have your harvest bowl, you'll have your roasted vegetable blewl,
our big salads. We have a risotto section where you
can get a few different risotto options, you know, chicken products, marsala,
we have a general stall bowl. We have our desserts
(24:04):
which are key Line bars, Londie bars, and Pecan squares.
So you know, we're trying to give a taste of
what our core menu is in large format. We're also
going to be introducing box lunch program and then in
the coming weeks for that, and so catering is going
to continue to evolve as we continue to gain traction
on it, and a lot of it is seeing what
(24:24):
what are what our guests want, you know, what are
they asking for? What we what can we continue to
develop for you?
Speaker 2 (24:31):
Yeah, and you know, as you've heard over the course
of this radio show, that is that's key. I mean,
that's exactly how you have not only maintained but grown
in such unbelievable ways over the past two decades. Is
it's you know, it's not what you think is going
to work, It's not what you think is going to
taste best. It's it's in you know, coordination with your
other employees, and then also the experience of the guests
(24:52):
and I and I, you know, I think that's why
one of the reasons why it's been such a success.
So how many employees do you have across the company?
Speaker 3 (25:01):
Over fifteen hundred?
Speaker 4 (25:02):
Now?
Speaker 2 (25:04):
Wow? I mean that's the other piece that I always
try to, you know, just push home to everyone. Is
there the just the economic driver that this industry represents.
And I know, you know, Masters's Restaurant Association has been
a big part of your life too, former president, and
just being you know, just being having your finger on
the pulse of all the things of this industry. And
(25:27):
it's just I hope that you are able to take
time and have taken time over this past you know,
over this next year, to be able to say, look
what we've done. Does it feel like you're able to
take a step back and feel proud or do you
feel like you just have to focus on the next thing.
Speaker 3 (25:44):
No, I have been able to take a step back
and feel proud and overwhelmed, and just it really is
amazing and I'm so thankful, thankful for the amazing team
that has helped us get here. I mean, that is
really what it's about. It's not one person. It is
an entire team that moves everybody together, and I just
(26:04):
I thank them all so much.
Speaker 2 (26:07):
Well, it's a team with a really wonderful, incredible leader.
And so okay, so remind me again, can you tell
me all of the New England locations? Do that quickly
for us because we're mainly in locations were mainly in
New England.
Speaker 3 (26:19):
Yes, so we have Hangham North Andover, Burlington westbirst Framingham, Lynnfield, Shrewsbury,
and then we're in Nashville, New Hampshire, and then South Windsor, Connecticut,
and coming soon to.
Speaker 2 (26:37):
Man coming soon to Mansfield. Oh my gosh, Well Denise,
you are You know, you've been a friend of mine
and one of my favorites for so long. I have
loved seeing how you've evolved and how you've remained so
true to the very beginning of all the things that
matter to you then matter to now. And I am
happy that you've been able to take some time to
(26:58):
feel proud, because I think that's the most important thing.
Billy and I keep reminding ourselves of that too, celebrating
this big two decades so it for another decade. Girl,
Thank you so much for being here. Adore you and
thank you so much. All right, thank you, all right,
that's Denise from Burton's Grill. We'll be back with more
(27:19):
Food for Thought in just a minute.
Speaker 1 (27:20):
You're listening to Food for Thought brought to you by
the Box Center and Salem Waterfront Hotel and sweet Hi.
Speaker 2 (27:26):
Everybody, we got more Food for Thought brought to you
by the Box Center. I'm excited for this next guest
because it's coming off of an incredible night that I
had at this particular place with a group of wonderful people.
We did an event for our hubsters, which are the
kind of content creators influencers within our television show Meet Boston,
(27:49):
and we had about forty of them at Boston Landing,
which is this unbelievable mixed use development that has been
evolving over the past handful of you and continues to evolve.
And last night we had a very special experience. So
I had to make sure that I invited Kim Good,
the marketing and events manager for Boston Landing, onto the
(28:10):
show to talk about it in all things Boston Landing.
So Kim Good, thank you so much for joining the show.
Thank you for having me. So I want to take
a step back because I don't want to assume that
everyone listening has been to Boston Landing, because it is
still fairly new. So describe this area, Describe what's taking
place over the past handful of years, and also what's
(28:31):
to come.
Speaker 4 (28:34):
Yeah, So Boston Landing is what we like to think of,
as you mentioned, a mixed use development that is in Brighton,
right On located right on the mass Pike kind of
the gateway into the city. And what we have here
is a true mixed use of venues. So I think
the claim to fame for our neighborhood is that we're
(28:56):
anchored by New Balance Global Headquarters. So New Balance Athletics
Incorporated is headquartered here. They have been here for a
number of years. The most recent headquarter location was built
first in twenty fifteen, and then from there everything else
(29:16):
kind of filled in. So the next big project to
happen was the Warrior Ice Arena, which is the practice
facility for the Boston Bruins, and then the Hourback Center,
which is the practice for facility for the Boston Celtics.
We have an apartment complex here called Lantra and then
the most recent project that we just completed was the
Track at New Balance and that was finished in twenty
(29:39):
twenty two, which is a four hundred and fifty plus
thousand square foot multi sport date of the art complex
where the primary use is indoor track and field. So
from the months of November through March it's exclusively used
for indoor track and field meets practices, any kind of competition.
But then outside of the those months it turns into
(30:01):
a multipurpose multi sport facility where we focus mostly on
court sports, turf sports, and we do a lot of
special and corporate events here. In addition to all these
beautiful venues, we have a long list of eclectic independent
retail groups that are here. So we have Cohey Coffee Company,
We have rail Stop restaurant and bar. We have Broken
(30:23):
Records Beer Hall and most recently that just opened. We
have The Pearl, which is their second location here at
Boston Landing behind their first location in South Bay Over
in Dorchester. And also we have an American Flatbreads and
Bowl Bright in here. So and then a bunch of
other little independent chains like the Bagel Table. We have
Crumble Cookie, which is a little bit bigger than Independent,
(30:46):
but I still kind of Newish to the area. And
then obviously New Balances global flagship retail stores here as well.
Speaker 2 (30:53):
Oh and I forgot about Roadrunner.
Speaker 4 (30:54):
I always forget about Roadrunner.
Speaker 2 (30:56):
I'm sorry.
Speaker 4 (30:59):
Yeah, road Runner. There is a beautiful thirty five hundred
person standing room music venue. It's two floors, there's no
obstructed site lines, so anywhere in the facility has a
great view of the performance of the stage. It's the
I think the largest standing room only music venue in
New England. It's similar to like what a House of
(31:20):
Blues sort of concept is, but it's owned and operated
by the Bowery Presents, which is part of the AEG Group,
and they have been phenomenal partners here with us as well,
bringing in all kinds of musical acts and different festivals
and events here. Paired with the events that we ourselves
host and plan throughout the year, we have so much
(31:40):
that happens on campus at any given time throughout the year.
Speaker 2 (31:44):
I mean, I don't even know how you keep your
head on straight with the number of things that you
guys have going on. But the thing that's so amazing
is this has gone up so quickly. It has evolved
so quickly and now as a place that people can
come and really get so many different things done sort
of in one stop shopping from all of the different
places you can you know, visit with New Balance, and
obviously all the other restaurants that are there, like you
(32:06):
just mentioned. But I want to talk about our event
last night because it's one example of the different kind
of offerings that you create for guests that come into
this area. So we, like I said, we had forty
content creators in the space and you guys created this
amazing artistic experience, if you will, for all of our guests.
(32:29):
So can you describe what happened last night?
Speaker 4 (32:32):
Thank you for the kind words about that.
Speaker 2 (32:34):
Yeah.
Speaker 4 (32:34):
So, this this whole concept which we are calling Boston
Landing Winter Events Series. It's a brand new concept for
us that kind of came about through an idea stealing
a little bit of creativity from our partners at rail Stop.
They do an event up at the Beauport Hotel called
Clicko in the Snow, and we thought, we have this
(32:56):
beautiful space here in Boston Landing, right in the center
of our campus, we should try to replicate something like
that here. So it originally started off as let's do
an igloo dining experience. We've never done it before, we
had no idea what it entailed, how we would do it,
and then it kind of morphed into this. We call
it a tent, but it's more like a structure, a
(33:16):
building that looks like it's permanent here with really beautiful
glass panels and high high ceilings and pretty lighting. We
have it decked out like a like a winter ski
chalet with some nice cozy elements and for coats people
can put on and where around and the goal here
is so we're partnering with rail Stop on this concept
(33:38):
for this coming weekend. We're calling it, well, this is
clik cool in the snow Boston landing style where both
clickoa comes in and it's you'll see a lot of
their branding and there's buckets and bottles of champagne that
are available to our guests and people can come in
and make a reservation, have a great dining experience with
food from rail Stops DJ there's some other cool winter
(34:02):
cozy elements. So we last night, the event that Jenny's
referring to is was kind of our kickoff event and
you know, again, we had never done it before, so
we took a leap of faith with hosting this group
of amazing people, and it was better than we could
have ever expected. And just the warm reception we had
from everybody, the amount of smiles and laughter and just
(34:25):
you know, we could see people having fun and really
enjoying the experience, left all of us like with feeling
like we won. We won something, just with taking a
huge risk and a huge leap of faith on this
concept and doing it for the first time and having
such such success with it. We're excited to go into
this weekend and next weekend with rail Stop and then
(34:47):
Broken Records is going to do an indoor beer garden
concept in the space sometime in the March, the last
being and in March as well, so we do have
a lot of different activities and events and activations planned
for the month of March, and we're also kind of
considering how we can bring it back and incorporate it
into some of our our summer and fall events as well.
Speaker 3 (35:09):
Well.
Speaker 2 (35:10):
There's no shortage of things that take place in your
area that are sort of outside the brick and mortar
of a lot of the businesses. You described and they
and they last throughout the year, but this one was
very especially I want to stand up before I move
on to some of the other ones. I mean, we
had you had a rack of fur coats, you had
these beautiful, you know, shaggy pillows and great comfortable couches.
(35:31):
It just it felt like you were in Aspens, but
you were in Brighton and a beautiful bar. Oh my god,
it's exactly what it felt like. And you know, listen,
there's only so much we can do in these cold
New England's winter days, and it's just such a unique
experience to be able to, you know, appreciate culinary excellence,
(35:52):
but just in a scene that makes you feel like
you've escaped from the city for a second. So I
certainly applaud you there. Let's move on to some of
the other seasons. You do a lot for families, You
do just a lot of obviously there's so many the
events that you described that our family friendly and opportunities
for families to to Next, but talk about some of
(36:12):
the stuff you do in the summer.
Speaker 4 (36:14):
Yeah, So our goal with our event program is to
really make it available and accessible to everybody and anybody.
So most of our events are catered to kind of
a general audience, with some components scared toward kids, but
some components geared towards young professionals or adults or an
older crowd. And the goal is just to give everybody
(36:37):
a wonderful, warm, happy experience here on our campus because
a lot of people don't necessarily know about us, know
what we're all about, know what we do, know what
we have to offer, know the history of you know
how we're here. So we like to open up our
campus to anyone who is interested in available for different
(36:58):
activities and events. So one of the I guess things
that we do is our movie Night program, which is
part of our summer event series, and we do them
twice a month, starting in this year. We're starting in May.
Actually we're going to go May through September. So we
show one movie in May, too in June, two July,
two August, and one in September, and we pick a
(37:21):
mix of kind of new new movies and then sort
of you know, kind of the old school classics. And
what we do I think that sets us apart from
probably other movie nights in and around the city is
that we do a themed party before the movies.
Speaker 2 (37:35):
This is a great opportunity for families. I want to
make sure people get a little bit more of the details.
We'll be right back right after the break.
Speaker 1 (37:41):
You're listening to Food for Thought brought to you by
the Box Center and Sale and Waterfront Hotel and Sweet
So Kim, tell more.
Speaker 2 (37:48):
About these onesome movie nights throughout the summer.
Speaker 4 (37:52):
Yeah, So, our movie nights are again we try to
create an experience for our guests, and I think one
of the things that we try to do that to
us a little bit apart from other movie nights in
and around the city is we add a themed pre
movie party component. So for example, last summer we did
the movie we showed The Greatest Showmen, and all of
our pre party elements were all circus themed, So we
(38:15):
had circus performers that came and did different elements throughout
our campus. We had themed food and beverage, we had
a different you know, elements that brought in the theme
of the circus from that movie into our campus. So
it's almost like you're immersed in this theme inexperience of
that particular movie to get you in the spirit and
(38:38):
excited to watch the movie. Another thing that we did
that was very again new, a new kind of concept
for us was the we showed the movie Footloose over
the summer and we hired some performers to do a
couple of things on our green space. Before. We did
a dance contest where we awarded some prizes and kind
(38:59):
of pulled people in from the audience to participate. People
loved that, And then throughout the movie, at two or
three different points throughout the movie, we had our performers
come on a stage that was built around the screen
and perform the dances that were happening in the movie,
so people were watching the movie but also got to
experience dancers kind of live doing the routine. So those
(39:22):
are just some things that we try to do to
take our movie night experience to the next level. Offer,
you know, memorable moments for families, for people who are
looking for some fun, free activities to do outside in
the summer. And that's the other great thing is that
most all of our events are free and open to
the public, so don't cost you much money. You can
(39:44):
come with your family, bring a blanket, a share, grab
your spot on the hill, and you know, immerse yourself
in our pre movie party to get in the spirit
for the movie that you're about to see.
Speaker 2 (39:55):
Okay, you guys have stuff going on all throughout the year,
but it just broke ground and something pretty exciting, So
tell us about that.
Speaker 4 (40:03):
So our final piece to the Boston Landing Guest Street
project is our hotel, which we broke ground for at
the end of twenty twenty four, and we'll do our
kind of official groundbreaking for that in April of this year.
We are expected to have the property complete early to
mid twenty twenty seven, which we're also excited about. It
(40:26):
feels like this has taken the longest time to get
this piece sorted out and write, but we're super excited
about the concepts, the styling, the decor, the branding, all
of these elements that have gone into making this last piece,
the last puzzle piece complete is going to be I
think the icing on the cake. It's going to be
one hundred and seventy room hotel. There'll be some meeting space,
(40:49):
two different dining outlets, one kind of mainful service restaurant
on the ground floor, and then on the second floor
they'll have a bar, kind of light bight area where
you'll have indoor and outdoor seating options.
Speaker 2 (41:04):
Oh gosh, it's going to be so exciting and great
addition to the city. And one of the things I
love about it is you're in the city, but you're
kind of outside, so you have a lot more flexibility,
a lot less traffic, a lot more parking opportunity, and
like him, has just shared so much opportunity to enjoy
throughout the entire year. So for some reason, you can't
get the clee clo in the snow, which we really
(41:25):
think you should try to check out. You can go
to Open Table to make a reservation. Then know that
there are activations throughout the year, obviously the concerts, so
many of the different sporting events. You know. The cool
part about being around there is you could walk into
one of your famous athletes while you know, walking into
a store to grab lunch or dinner or you know,
some new new balance here. Anyway, Kim, we adore you.
(41:46):
Thank you for a special night, and thank you for
joining the show.
Speaker 4 (41:49):
Yeah, my pleasure, and thank you for your great partnership
and your enthusiasm for us.
Speaker 2 (41:55):
No, you're the best, Kim. Okay, So that's it for
food for thought. Brat to By the Box Center this week.
We will see for next week. Thank you.
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