Food to stay

With the right menu mix and an appealing atmosphere, some retailers are encouraging shoppers to take a break, have a snack and stay a minute.

Supermarkets know they're in a battle for every consumer food dollar. Changing eating habits have prompted the growth in prepared food items along with the expansion of in-store kitchens and gourmet deli offerings. Companies such as Wegmans have put what are basically restaurants in their stores, seating up to 250 people and serving a variety of cuisines to capture sales that might otherwise go down the street to the local bistro.

Now, some stores are targeting another link in the food chain--fast-food meals and snacks. Calling their operations everything from snack bars to cafes to sandwich bars, these operators are attracting customers who might go to McDoanld's or the local diner for a quick breakfast, lunch or even dinner. They're also combining pastries and beverage offerings to capture snackers looking for something a bit different from what the local c-store has on its shelves.

In-store snack bars can range anywhere from 300 to 1,000 square feet and cost from a few thousand to as much as $250,000 to build and equip. The size and expense depends on the audience a store is trying to capture, the competition it faces and the tastes of the local market.

The first step, experts agree, is to determine which offerings make sense for your store. Equip the snack area accordingly, keeping in mind local ordinances that might require restrooms or separate exits depending on the size of the eating area.

Next, put together an equipment list that makes sense for the menu you want to offer and commit to staffing that will make the facility truly convenient for customers. The goal is not just to provide snacking alternatives for existing shoppers, but to bring in new customers looking for a change of pace in their daily search for sustenance.

"We've got to realize there's a new customer out there," says Mark Leenhouts, a principal at RL&A, Rochester, N.Y. "It's a whole new customer, it's not just a food customer." That's what Rudy Dory found when he put a 1,000-square-foot pizza parlor in his new 19,212-square-foot store in Bend, Ore. Dory wanted something different for his Awbrey Butte Market. He'd had customers request seating at an existing store since he remodeled that facility nine years ago, so he knew his market was looking for fast-food alternatives. He hit upon pizza, a popular quick lunch and dinner item, and decided to make his new pizza parlor distinctive by putting in a wood-fired oven, one of only two in Bend. The oven cost $15,000, but can turn out pizzas in three minutes. He also put in 13 seats and gave the pizza parlor its own entrance to facilitate consumer convenience. The area also can he closed off from the rest of the store, something Dory may do evenings if he gets a license to sell beer there.

His menu includes pizza as well as hot dogs and ice cream. Carbonated beverages are self-service, courtesy of equipment supplied by the local Pepsi bottler. A doored cooler features bottled water and new age drinks.

Pizza is "one of the highest-turn foods in any fast-food environment," notes Terry Roberts, president of Merchandizing By Design/The Design Associates in Rochester, N.Y. Pizza ovens can range from the wood-fired variety Dory bought to traditional pizza ovens to countertop models that cook pizzas on conveyor belts.

But pizza is far from the only menu option for a supermarket snack bar. "It depends on the market," Roberts says, noting that corn dogs might work in one place while another might want Italian gourmet ham on baguettes.

Leenhouts says one option is equipping a snack bar with a $2,000 induction cooker, a flat-top cooking surface that uses magnetic current to cook food. Such equipment can be used to make a variety of dishes such as Asian offerings or pasta and even sauteed items, Leenhouts says. He's also worked with stores that have created salad stations, using a 4-foot counter area to offer two types of salads. All that's needed is bowls and a refrigerator. "I could literally set one of these up in any store in the country with a cabinet and a bowl," he says. Building such a setup might cost $4,000 to $5,000.

A typical snack bar can include 12 feet of front display with a 4-foot sandwich area, a 4-foot soup area and a 4-foot hot food area, Roberts says.

Soup can be a low-labor offering since most stores can buy premade soup from suppliers and just heat and serve it. A 4-foot soup display can use a stepped format to display four to six varieties in a self-service arrangement, she says. Gary bind, principal with Lind Design in College Point, N.Y., says he's created 300-square-foot cafes for Price Chopper, Schenectady, N.Y., that offer pizza, bagels and rotisserie chicken.

Equipment includes a self-service beverage dispenser, tables and chairs for customers, and suspended televisions. He's also done work for a store in Puerto Rico that just wanted a stand-up counter for customers. The ultimate configuration a store picks for its fast-food area "depends upon the location and whether the retailer wants to provide people the chance to sit down and relax," Lind says.

Whatever the configuration, snack bars are usually placed at the front of stores to make it easy for customers to quickly run in for what they want. "They're being placed in the front of the store or within the first five minutes of shopping," Lind says. Agrees Mickey McKee, senior consultant with Solganik & Associates, Dayton, Ohio. "They're not being stuck in the back of the store with no windows."

Many snack bars have their own checkout register, although depending on store layout and security, an express lane checkout also can work, Leenhouts says.

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