Take-out sales are not quite as high as during the peak of the pandemic, but clubs are still experiencing a lift in to-go orders.
On a typical evening before the pandemic struck, Kenwood Country Club in Cincinnati, Ohio would average between 75 to 100 a la carte dinner takeout orders, according to Sean Sennet, the club’s Executive Chef. To make it easy for members to pick up their orders, a camera was installed outside of the tavern so food runners could identify their cars and quickly deliver their orders curbside.
With that system in place, Kenwood was ready when, during the height of the COVID crisis, takeout orders nearly tripled. To expedite the orders, Sennet offered an abbreviated menu offering six items for lunch down from 14 and half the usual number of selections for dinner.
Members always enjoyed Sennet’s “specialty nights,” such as barbecues outside on a smoker or fajita or taco nights, so he retained them in the takeout menu rotation “to keep things interesting and different.”
Since the reopening of the dining room, Kenwood has continued to do “a great carry-out business,” which is branded Kenwood Karry-out, even though sales have leveled off to between 135 and 145 orders per night, Sennet reports. He adds that specialty night fare continues to be very popular.
In the summer months, takeout is also available at the Pavilion, a seasonal restaurant between the pool and the driving range. There, members can order to-go fare ranging from the signature Kenwood Wagyu beef burger to pulled pork, chicken and pizza.
While burgers, filets and fried chicken are among the best-sellers for take-out from the Kenwood Karry-out menu, Sennet sold an average of 100 orders a night of beer battered North Atlantic cod during Lent. Any “catch of the day” whether halibut, sea bass or salmon, does well and, perhaps surprisingly, the club sells a lot of sushi and sashimi to go.
Sennet noted that during COVID the club sold a great deal of soup to go in pints and quarts. The soup offering is still strong, especially when it is promoted, he states.
Cooking for so much take-out has not presented any particular challenges in the club’s kitchen. One of the only changes is when a member requests a piece of meat cooked to medium rare, the kitchen cooks it to rare, allowing it to come up to medium rare in its packaging during the ride to the member’s home, Sennet says.
He promotes Kenwood Karry-out, including offers for special event meals for holidays such as St. Patrick’s Day and Easter, in his weekly member e-mails.
Small But Mighty
At Saratoga Golf and Polo Club in Saratoga Springs, N.Y., take-out usually peaked when members were trying to reach their minimums, says John Ireland, the club’s Executive Chef. During the COVID crisis, that number quadrupled, especially family meals for four.
“We would go in early and be prepping like crazy all day,” he recalls.
Although Ireland does not offer family meals now, takeout orders are at least double what they were pre-COVID. Most-ordered items include chicken saltimbocca, pizzas, salads and “a lot of beef tenderloins.”
Anything on the menu is available for take-out except for some items that are “meant to be super crispy” or should not have added moisture, he says. Other items must be strategically packaged, such as chicken Parmigiana for which the sauce is delivered in a container on the side to keep the dish from getting soggy.
Although it is a “small operation,” with five or six people cooking, the kitchen easily handles the to-go orders from production through delivery, Ireland points out. Pick-up is also a breeze for members.
“Members simply have to drive up to the portico and we’ll have someone run out and put the order in their trunk,” he states.
Like Sennet, Ireland uses e-mail blasts to promote takeout.
There’s an App for That
Summit Hills Country Club in Crestview Hills, Ky., does not actively promote carry-out meals, but will provide them for members who request them. Prior to the pandemic, takeout probably accounted for less than 5% of food sales, said Charles Myers, the club’s Executive Chef.
COVID and subsequent renovations of the main kitchen and dining room made takeout from the club’s summer kitchen the only option for members and, since then, there has been an uptick in to-go meals of between 10% and 15% of food sales, Myers reports. Members can get anything on the regular menu for take-out and tend to prefer easy-to-tote items such as chicken wings, tenders, wraps, buffalo chicken wraps and salads—particularly the club’s signature Irene Salad (above), a chopped chef’s salad, that has been on the menu for 40-plus years.
“We don’t sell a lot of steaks for take-out,” he points out.
During the height of the pandemic, family meals were “a really big thing,” but, with the return of meals being served in the dining room, labor constraints prompted Myers to discontinue them. However, he is exploring the possibility of bringing family meals back for the slower months of October and November.
“We would rotate staples in and out such as fried chicken, baked spaghetti and maybe an Asian-influenced stir fry with egg rolls,” he says.
To streamline the ordering process for take-out, Summit Hills recently introduced a mobile app. Orders from the app go directly to the kitchen, “taking the middleman out of the process,” he states.
“This process is faster and more accurate, which should result in even higher levels of member satisfaction,” he adds.
Most of the time, the kitchen adeptly handles the to-go orders along with orders from the dining room.
“For some reason we get most of our to-go orders prior to our dinner rush,” Myers explains. “These orders usually come in between 5 to 6:15 p.m. while our dining room rush starts at 6:15 to 6:30 p.m.”
During exceptionally busy times, such as Friday evenings in the summer and bingo nights during which there can be between 400 and 450 orders flooding into the kitchen within an hour and a half, Myers suspends takeout to avoid overwhelming the kitchen.
Boosting the Brand
Take-out can do more for a club than just increase food sales. It can also support and strengthen the club’s brand.
For Sean Sennet, Executive Chef at Cincinnati, Ohio’s Kenwood Country Club, the dramatic rise in to-go orders during the peak days of the pandemic presented an opportunity to elevate the club’s Kenwood Karry-out and bring it to the forefront. After much research and trial, Sennet sourced packaging that presented the food in a more upscale manner while keeping its integrity intact during the drive from the club to the members’ homes.
“We replaced the old plain plastic and brown paper bags with reusable bags in nice colors with our logo,” he explains. “For sushi, we elevated the packaging to heavier-duty boxes.”
He is happy with the rebrand and said that members appreciate the stronger, more attractive and reusable packaging.
Charles Myers, Executive Chef at Summit Hills Country Club in Crestview Hills, Ky., also revamped all of his to-go packaging “from boxes and bags to cutlery.”
“The only item that has remained the same are the ketchup packets,” he notes.
Among the major changes were a switch from plastic bags to heavy paper shopping bags with handles and from recycled plastic containers to clear-top clamshells. Cutlery was swapped out for a more durable kind that holds up better for all applications.
“The recycled containers would sag when you stacked them with hot foods in them and the new ones hold their shape much better when stacked,” he explains.
Recipes
Vegan Pad Thai
Yield: 2 servings
INGREDIENTS:
2 oz. CinSoy or Local Extra Firm Tofu, medium dice
1 oz. cornstarch
1 qt. peanut oil
2 tsps. toasted sesame seeds
3 oz. rice noodles, cooked
1 oz. carrots, shredded
1 oz. bell peppers, julienne
1 tbsp. green onion, cut bias
2 oz. broccoli florets
.25 bunch cilantro, chiffonade
1-1/4 lime, quartered
1 oz. roasted peanuts
2 fl. oz. Vegan Pad Thai sauce
(Recipe follows)
Submitted by Sean Sennet, Executive Chef, Kenwood Country Club, Cincinnati, Ohio
Ingredients for Vegan Pad Thai sauce:
3 cups sweet Thai chili sauce
1 cup low-sodium soy sauce
5 cups light brown sugar
2 cups rice wine vinegar
1 cup Sriracha hot sauce, or more, to taste
2 cups creamy peanut butter
PROCEDURE:
1. Combine all ingredients for the sauce and set aside.
2. Heat a wok on medium and add oil for frying. Heat until 350 degrees.
3. Toss tofu in cornstarch to coat. Add to wok and fry until crispy.
Remove from oil and toss with salt and toasted sesame seeds.
4. Remove, strain and reserve oil for deep frying, reheat wok on medium-high and add 2 tbsp. of the reserved peanut oil.
5. Add carrots, bell peppers and broccoli. Stir fry until the vegetables have a nice aroma and are starting to color.
6. Add sauce to vegetables and bring to a simmer. Add noodles, green onion and tofu and stir to coat. Adjust seasoning as necessary.
7. Remove and place in carryout container and garnish with cilantro, peanuts and lime.
Irene Salad with Ponte Dressing
Yield: 1 serving
INGREDIENTS:
4 cups fine shredded iceberg lettuce
1 cup julienned ham
1 cup julienned turkey
1/2 cup julienned tomatoes
1 diced egg
2 tomato wedges
2 egg wedges
1/2 cup Ponte (House) Dressing (recipe follows)
PROCEDURE:
• Mix all ingredients except for tomato and egg wedges and dressing thoroughly in a bowl. Garnish with tomato and egg wedges.
INGREDIENTS for Ponte (House) Dressing:
4 gallons mayonnaise
3 cups yellow mustard
1 1/2 cups apple cider vinegar
2 tsps. white pepper
6 cups sugar
PROCEDURE:
1. Add all ingredients except mayonnaise to a 20-quart mixer and mix for 1 hour.
2. Add mayonnaise and mix for 30 minutes.
Submitted by Charles Myers, Executive Chef, Summit Hills Country Club, Crestview Hills, Kentucky
C+RB
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