Friday, December 14, 2007

Newest Krystal menu items tested in area restaurants

By Anne P. Braly
Food Editor

Ever wonder how Chattanooga-based Krystal Co. comes up with all the menu items it's been promoting of late?

There's a method to it that starts in the test kitchen -- a secret location -- then moves into designated stores in Chattanooga and Atlanta.

Currently being tested are the Just 4 U items. The concept was a theory that Krystal President and CEO Fred Exum said existed only in his mind before being implemented in the Brainerd Road and Fort Oglethorpe locations, the former being the only one that offers dine-in, drive-in and drive-through.

With the three distinct dining options, "We have more time to work with this location," Mr. Exum said of the Brainerd Road location. The Fort Oglethorpe store is one of the largest of all Krystal locations in the area, he added.

A new dining experience

Just 4 U is a concept new to fast-food eateries. It's one that offers two menus -- one for drive-through and an enhanced one for dining in and eating at the drive-in.

While 70 percent of the business is done at Krystal's drive-through windows with an average wait time of no more than 2 1/2 minutes, Mr. Exum said, the items being offered on the Just 4 U menu -- which include four new toaster sandwiches, smoothies made from real fruit and ice cream, and chicken wings -- may take as many as five minutes to prepare.

The reason? They're all made to order using the highest quality ingredients the restaurant can get from its suppliers, following the same line of thinking as all other items offered, from the burgers to the fries, Mr. Exum said.

"We're not going to sell anything we're going to have to apologize for," he said. "It's fun being able to do something really creative and make a stand that we're going to sell quality food."

He said he hopes to "change the dynamics of the (fast-food) business."

Gail Cunningham, special projects manager for Krystal, said it's usually not a problem when someone comes to the drive-through requesting a Just 4 U product.

Staff Photo by Angela Lewis
Cassandra Reed, master cashier, keys in drive-through orders at the Krystal on Brainerd Road.

"We just ask them to drive over to the drive-in and tell them we'll bring it to them," she said. "We've just got to get people familiar with the products, but it's exciting for me. I'm a people person and I like to introduce new items and train our employees about them. I love that."

From test kitchen to restaurant

There's something always evolving in the test kitchen. Mr. Exum said a cheese French fry combination is under development.

"Or sometimes you just get lucky," he said, noting the time he visited a store in Macon, Ga., and noticed an employee making breakfast for customers, putting the eggs, bacon and grits in one container, at their request.

"She told me she made 20 to 30 of those every day," he said.

The Krystal Scrambler was born and has become a popular menu item, Mr. Exum said.

Getting the new MilkQuake milk shakes created some difficulties. He knew he wanted to use real ice cream, but time was a factor in getting them from kitchen to car if the ice cream was to be hand-dipped.

The ice cream supplier was contacted and asked to put the product in cups so that milk could be added before blending, topping with a lid and given to the customer.

In theory, this was a winning concept. In test runs, the paper cup leaked. Back to the drawing board. A plastic cup was then used with a tight-fitting lid.

However, when the cup was frozen, the lid no longer fit. A new lid was devised, and shakes are now being sold at Krystal again.

"Crash testing" is the first leg in the process of presenting a menu item to the public. A food product is introduced in one store. Currently, fries with ranch dressing and cheese are being tested in South Pittsburg; chocolate coffee is being tested at stores in Hixson and Red Bank.

"It's not about sales," Mr. Exum said. "We do just enough volume to test it, not market it."

If the item works, it's introduced in Chattanooga and Atlanta stores to test market with ad support via television, newspaper and radio.

If the product achieves success in market testing, it's sent for system roll-out, which is where the new Chik'N Stik'Ns are now, as are the MilkQuakes.

E-mail Anne Braly at abraly@timesfreepress.com

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