Blog Archives

2017 Stars of the Restaurant Industry Award Winners Announced!

4/30/2017

Over 600 Members of the Restaurant and Hospitality Industry Attend the Restaurant Association of Maryland’s Annual Awards Gala in Baltimore.

The Restaurant Association of Maryland is excited to announce the winners of the 63rd Annual Stars of the Restaurant Industry Awards. The Gala celebration and awards presentation took place Sunday, April 30th at the Baltimore Renaissance Harborplace Hotel in Baltimore, Maryland. Over thirty-five thousand votes were cast to decide the favorite Maryland restaurants and industry professionals.

“The Gala is our opportunity to honor and give recognition to elite restaurants across the state. We are fortunate to have such a diverse group of restaurants to choose from who are dedicated to their customers, their community and their employees,” said Marshall Weston, President and CEO of the Restaurant Association of Maryland.

FDA Menu Labeling Rule for Chain Restaurants

4/24/2017

UPDATE May 4, 2017: FDA Delays Menu Labeling Compliance until May 2018

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) recently announced that they are delaying the compliance date for federal menu labeling requirements from May 5, 2017 to May 7, 2018. According to FDA, this extension allows for further consideration of what opportunities there may be to reduce costs and enhance the flexibility of these requirements beyond those reflected in the final rule.

School of Fish - Scallops

4/17/2017

Can you tell the difference between domestic and Hokkaidos scallops?

With a plethora of ingredients being purchased daily by restaurant owners, operators and chefs, knowing the most information possible about your products is an advantage that is sometimes left untapped. Local seafood distributor, J.J. McDonnell has developed a series of informative, no-cost classes for area chefs that give an in depth look into the seafood that they are using and the story behind each product.

RAM attended the School of Fish in March, which was co-hosted by Maine's Bristol Seafood. This particular session educated attending chefs on the differences between domestic scallops and Japanese Hokkaidos scallops.

2017 Maryland ProStart Student Invitational Winners

4/3/2017

Hosted by the Restaurant Association of Maryland Education Foundation (RAMEF), the Maryland ProStart Student Invitational (MPSI) gave Maryland’s top culinary and restaurant management students the opportunity to compete for college scholarships and the right to represent the state of Maryland at the National ProStart Invitational.

At MPSI, high school teams displayed their culinary skills, management ability and knowledge of the foodservice industry. Each culinary team planned and cooked a three-course meal that was scrutinized by a panel of judges. They had one hour to prepare an appetizer, entrée and dessert from scratch. Judges scored on proper food safety and sanitation procedures, cooking methods, food taste, teamwork and menu difficulty.

In the management competition, students created a business proposal for a brand new restaurant. The proposal consisted of a defined restaurant concept, accompanying menu, restaurant layout, employee organization chart and a marketing plan to promote their new restaurant. Teams presented their concept to a panel of judges who scored them on their understanding of the restaurant industry, creativity, restaurant management knowledge and overall business acumen.

Culinary Competition Winners
1st Place: Bowie High School
2nd Place: Annapolis High School
3rd Place: Arundel High School

Management Competition Winners
1st Place: George Washington Carver Center for the Arts & Technology
2nd Place: Bowie High School
3rd Place: DuVal High School

Bowie High School and the Carver Center for the Arts will now travel to Charleston, SC on April 28th to compete against the other state winners in the National ProStart Invitational.

For more information contact Jessica Waller at jwaller@marylandrestaurants.com