Sam Tell knows that so much more goes into crafting a positive dining experience than what customers eat and drink. Creating the right impression with your guests is critical to maintaining your business, and while the menu and its preparation get most of the attention for influencing this, some of the most important considerations have little to do with food, at all. 

A school cafeteria serves a critical function beyond that of any typical restaurant. While the latter's chief goal is to provide guests with a pleasant dining experience, cafeterias have the responsibility of providing the primary source of nutrition for students.

Foodservice operations are as diverse as the cuisines they serve. Full-service, sit-down restaurants, food trucks, and drive-thrus, among others, all cater to the various needs, tastes and appetites of their customers—facilitated by customized kitchen layouts. Fast-casual restaurants are no exception.

Sam Tell isn't just the one-stop shop for all the foodservice supplies and equipment a restaurant needs. It's also your source for insights into the restaurant industry. 

Every month, we shine the spotlight on a handful of Sam Tell clients to celebrate their success and share what makes them special in our seasonal roundup. Take a look at this season's selections below: 

Designing a hotel kitchen is a lot like designing a kitchen for any commercial foodservice operation. On top of those considerations, though, are the added responsibilities of catering to a much more complicated set of needs. With potentially hundreds of guests patronizing multiple dining concepts, managing a hotel's foodservice is akin to overseeing multiple restaurants in one. Its kitchen must function as well as its smaller counterparts, despite such expansive duties.

The following tips can help create the best layout for this unique branch of hospitality:

Celebrity Chef Wenford Patrick Simpson, or "Chef Patrick" for short, didn’t attain his culinary superstar status overnight. His superb dishes are the result of skills he's been fine tuning since a young age, when he began cooking in his hometown of St. Ann Parish, Jamaica. His talents were recognized even in his youth, and it wasn’t long before he was cooking professionally at resorts, on cruise ships, and eventually, in New York City, at some of the best restaurants in the world.

When contemplating a restaurant, the first things that come to mind are food and beverages, and for good reason. Yet while these might be the major draws for patrons, they’re far from the only contributing factors to the overall dining experience. Another, frequently overlooked, is the glassware.

For the past 29 years, the James Beard Foundation has been recognizing the most talented names in the culinary arts from across the country with a set of awards that are commonly considered one of the highest honors a chef or restaurant can receive. This year’s ceremony in Chicago earlier this month was a great celebration, bringing to a finale the excitement that had been building in the world of hospitality since the nominees were announced this past March.

Sam Tell Companies is no stranger to working with some of the best chefs in the business, including Chef Jody Williams of Via Carota, a renowned Italian restaurant in New York City and longtime Sam Tell client. This rustic eatery with eclectic decor creates a warm, welcoming atmosphere that perfectly complements its authentic, extraordinary cuisine.

Sam Tell Companies has had the privilege of working with some truly incredible clients throughout our 60-year history. One relationship we're particularly proud of is with Carlo's Bakery. With more than a dozen locations across 10 states, Carlo's is more than just a bakery, it's a confectionery institution!