The Evolution of Finger Food! - SALOMON FoodWorld

CONTENTS ■
W
The Evolution
of Finger Food!
hoever would have thought that finger
food would one day be the word on
everyone’s lips? These little appetizers for
in between meals have stormed up the charts
to an astounding international victory. In the
last few years, finger food has begun exerting a
strong influence on eating habits throughout
the entire western world.
Once found only among trendsetters in scene
gastronomy, finger food today stands for a
new modern way of eating, right across the
globe. Changes in our eating habits ”took a
hand” in the success story, in every sense of the
word. The time factor was the decisive element,
bringing with it altered requirements: Fast
meals, that are light and tasty, fun to eat and
rich in variety. That can be taken along and
enjoyed as one’s schedule permits. A further
Back to nature
■ The new trends
■ The fantastic four
■ Green for go
■ Time is money
■ All dressed up
■ Wraps
■ Call a book
■ Heartbreaker
■ Sunny Burger - the ultimate
taste offensive
■ Know How with Links
■ Festival Food Star
factor in the enormous
popularity of
finger food snacks is
their unlimited versatility.
Red Hot Chili Poppers®
Mozzarella
Sticks
Buffalo Chik’n Wings
Chik’n Pineapple Sticks
It’s all in there – from
fast-food to the gourmet snack
It was the simple finger food creations of the
fast food chains such as onion rings in a crispy
breadcrumb coating which laid the foundations
for what was to become an enormous
world-wide hit.
In the meantime numerous aspects of the taste
profile have altered, becoming more creative,
adventurous and demanding. Shaped by the
”in” ethnic cuisines – Tex Mex, Asia, California
– the range of flavors has continued to expand,
giving us a new ”food dimension”, rich in choice,
versatility and taste experience – simply a
real ”Finger Food World”.
Today finger food has matured to full social
acceptance having made the leap from fast
food via ”scene” gastronomy to the kitchens of
the top restaurants. An inexplicable phenomenon?
Not really, for where immense versatility,
imaginative food designers and new consumer
eating habits meet, success is almost inevitable!
Continued page 8
Magic of Asia:
fried DIM SUM
Welcome to
the new FINGER
FOOD WORLD
your ”US Food Hits” now gives you even more
extensive coverage of the latest developments. The
new ”FINGER FOOD WORLD” provides faster
and more comprehensive information on global
food trends. Increasingly, the classic fast food sector
with its hand-held food is turning into a finger
food market. This no longer has a strictly American
flavor. The new ”FINGER FOOD WORLD”
unites pitas and wraps with nachos, tapas and
dim sum as well as innovative impulses from the
international hot spots. Finger food is the absolute
shooting star in the street food sector, with the
trend towards naturalness and freshness also
making itself felt. Even more vegetables, salads
and cheese will ensure that finger food continues
to be geared nutritionally towards the needs of the
health conscious. The conventional pasta or rice
dishes too, and even potato products with sausage,
will be transformed into street food to cater
for the requirements of the mobile generation.
Your ”FINGER FOOD WORLD” will keep you
posted on all these developments. With greattasting
news and trends hot off the press.
Have fun reading about them.
Kind regards,
Philip Dean Kruk E
Two highlights
for insiders and
T
trendsetters
he NACS Show from 20 –23
October, 2001 in Las Vegas.
With over 1,000 exhibitors it
is not only the world’s biggest
convenience show. Here the USA
impressively displays its leading
position for demand-oriented,
tailored convenience products.
For example the customized
ranges and systems in various
sizes which can be individually adapted for
every distribution channel. A ”must-see” for all those
interested in convenience products in the food area, particularly
out-of-home eating.
Continued page 8
D I T O R I A L

Picture; Zefa
T
he fitness and wellness movement of the 80’s and
90’s triggered a new body awareness which went
hand in hand with a change in dietary perceptions.
We have become selective about what we eat, insisting it
be healthy, fresh and, above all, natural. Freshness equates
with quality. It has become a priority with consumers
who believe that what arrives on their plates should
have experienced as little processing as possible. Recent
food scandals have greatly heightened consumer awareness.
While this occasionally takes the
form of a dogmatic ”eco-ness”, the
majority prefers
what is
known as
organic
...Organic food – the natural freshness.
food – food which has remained natural in its
consistency, subjected to as little industrial processing
as possible.
This development is at its most advanced in the USA.
Supermarkets specializing in organic food such as
Wholefood Market or Wild Oaks have long had an
enthusiastic following with their immense range of fresh
and natural products. In Europe, the British in particular
are at the forefront of this new trend to freshness.
And that is not just a recent development.
Trend food conquers the UK
One of the leaders in the British grocery trade is the
supermarket chain Sainsbury’s, which started selling
high-quality organic food products 15 years ago. Today,
its range comprises 950 different articles including an
own-brand label. Sainsbury’s received the Soil
Association’s Organic Food Award 2000 in recognition
of its achievements. It would seem that the whole of
England has gone back to nature.
Just a few years ago, consumers who were actually
willing to pay more for better flavor and greater
environmental awareness were a scoffed-at
minority – perhaps even written off as eccentric
”ecos”. Those days have gone forever.
Today, an awareness of natural
diet has reached the majority
of British households who
base their choice of food on
health and environmental
aspects with the emphasis
on top quality and fair pricing.
Manufacturers such
as Helen Browning Totally
Organic provide consumer
information on their packaging.
In addition to a detailed
declaration of the ingredients, this
information may include, for exam-
Green for go:
SALOMON ® cooperates with NATURLAND ®
B
The numerous food scandals of recent
months have led to a steep rise in
demand for organically-produced meat
and meat products. Consumers insist on safety,
looking for quality and enjoyment with no misgivings.
As a conscientious and competent
manufacturer of minced meat products, SALO-
MON ® was quick to recognize the new trend
and has found a highly-qualified cooperation partner in
NATURLAND ® , one of the best-known producers of
organic foods in the country. With the new organic minced
meat specialties from 100% NATURLAND ® organic
beef or organic pork, SALOMON ® meets not only the
trend of the times but also the taste of consumers.
Strictest guidelines for organic minced meat specialties
guarantee the highest quality of pleasure.
The stamp ”Gemeinschaft der
NATURLAND ® BAUERN”
stands for local, ecologically-managed
farms, dedicated
to humane
animal farming
under
the strictest
guidelines.
Thus, cattle
SALOMON ®
Gourmet beefsteak
Wheat grass press
from Haase GmbH
Back to nature...
and pigs are
fed exclusively
ecologicallysoundfodder,
mainly
from the farm's
own cultivation,
which is
free from every kind of growth
promoting agents and antibiotics.
All SALOMON ® products made from
NATURLAND ® organic meat are produced exclusively in
compliance with the strict SALOMON ® quality requirements
and bear the organic seal.
And you can taste the difference, enjoying meat products
made from 100% fresh prime organic beef and
pork. Futurologists predict that consumers’ eating
habits will continue to change over the next ten years
in favor of organic products.
Thus, organically- produced food, which
today account for a market share of
2% of all food, will soon achieve a
20% share of the overall market
(source: GFK). There is no
doubt: SALOMON ® and
NATURLAND ® are on the right
path to the future.
2
SALOMON ® Cevap
FINGER FOOD WORLD
ple, a comprehensive
report on the farm
which supplied the
meat for the products.
Even Marks & Spencers
has a long tradition of
stocking naturally fresh,
chilled precooked meals.
Organic food is already big business
in the UK with the number of
shops in the City of London
mushrooming. And the boom
has only just begun.
Fresh ideas on the plates of
the gastronomic trade
It was just a short step from the retail grocer’s to the
restaurant. As a trailblazer in the branch, trend gastronomy
demonstrated from the very beginning how the
new taste for freshness can be most effectively presented
to the public in the form of varied, crisp mixed salads
and mega portions of vitality. Even among fast food
producers. The long-established English pubs, on the
other hand, found it more difficult to respond to these new
consumer demands. As
a study carried out
in the Imperial
College at Wye
in Kent revealed,
more than half
of regular pubgoers
(52%)
would prefer
healthy, natural
fresh cuisine. An
idea that some pub landlords still have to get
used to. Another idea fast gaining ground in
the UK are tasty smoothies.
Continued page 8
Further up-to-date information
on the topic is to be found here:
http://www.naturland.de
http://www.naturland-markt.de
http://www.salomon-hit.com
http://www.verbraucherministerium.de
http://www.dge.de
Organic lemonade and coffee
Organic Joghurt Drinks
One of the biggest food stars at the TOLLWOOD
Festival: Organic minced meat specialities from
SALOMON ®
Festival Food Star
At this year’s Summer Festival in Germany,
the microphone once again passed from one star to the
next. The top-flight pop programme included such greats
as The Temptations, Jethro Tull, George Benson, Hubert
von Goisern, Helge Schneider. But it was not the artists
alone who whipped the audience into a frenzy of
enthusiasm as the fans also had every opportunity to cheer in
the intervals. This was when the SALOMON ® hamburgers
made from NATURLAND ® organically produced beef revealed
their star qualities, selling like the proverbial ”hot
cakes”. High praise indeed from a clientele which knows
what it likes when it comes to food.
Picture: Premium

Pleasure, enjoyment, satisfaction and
delight are now assured with the Asian
Delights Selection from SALOMON ® .
4
Asian snack highlights in four
different shapes and four
delicious fillings and flavors,
offering something to suit every taste
These are now available as a complete
assortment box from SALOMON ® .
And the convenience hit:
all four products can be prepared
quite simply together in the deep
fryer or oven as they all have the
same cooking time. It couldn’t be
easier to serve up a selection of
creative appetizers. A new highlight
for the evening menu in
scene and trend gastronomy, as
well as an attractive appetizer for
the F&B area and for catering.
1. OLIVENOS
¯
3. CHIK’N HITS
O
livenos! The new finger
food hit! Savory
stuffed olives are a popular
classic all over the world.
Recently a spiced-up version of this
versatile natural product
has become the ”hot”
new finger food hit, developed
and produced
in the USA by
SALOMON ® ’s partner
Anchor.
The shooting
stars of the
American gastro
scene are now being
presented in Europe exclusively by SALO-
MON ® ¯
. Olivēnos! – sun ride olive
halves stuffed with typical ethnic
cheeses in a crispy bread crumb coating.
Olivēnos! ,deep-fried in less than 3
minutes, are the ideal finger food with
an enormous demand potential. The
three varieties follow the major food
trends:
TexMex: Olivēnos! Salsa & Cheese. Black olive
halves with a characteristic hot filling of salsa,
Monterey Jack and cheddar cheese,
coated in crispy bread crumbs.
4
Duck Spring Roll: A thin crispy dough
roll, filled with tender duck, piquant
spring onions, seasoned with Asian
sauce. Pre-cooked, deep-frozen and
oven-ready.
Chik’n Money Bag: A real eye-catcher!
Crispy dough, filled with tender minced
chicken, white cabbage and prawns.
Pre-cooked, deep-frozen and ovenready.
Vegetable Thai Samosa: Triangular Samosa
pastry pouches which originally come from
Thailand. Filled with delicate glass noodles
and Asian vegetables, all rounded
off with fresh lemon grass. Precooked,
deep-frozen and oven-ready.
Shrimp Sesame Wan-Tan: Thin sesame
dough filled with shrimp pieces, cuttlefish
and surimi from Thailand. Delicately refined
with coriander leaf. Pre-cooked,
deep-frozen and oven-ready.
Mediterran:
Olivēnos!
Parmesan. Green olive
halves stuffed with tasty
parmesan cheese, seasoned
with garlic, coated in crispy bread
crumbs.
American: Olivēnos! Caesar. Green
olive halves with a creamy filling of mozzarella,
parmesan and romano cheese, coated in crispy
breadcrumbs and deep frozen.
Fire Roasted Poppers ® 2. FIRE ROASTED
. Also known as ”Chipotle”:
Fire-roasted Jalapeño chili peppers, stuffed with a
blend of Monterey Jack and Cheddar cheese,
rounded off with a colorful vegetable
mix. Coated in crispy herb breading.
Deep frozen.
3
arefully-selected books reveal the latest from the
world of ”in” trend cuisine. They are reference
works, entertaining and exciting reading, recipe collections,
trend guides and valuable suppliers of ideas – in
short, each one a ”must-have” for anyone interested in the
subject and those who simply enjoy eating
Authentic Tex Mex cuisine
The very design and appetizing presentation
of the Chevys & Rio Bravo ”Fresh
Mex Cookbook” make for true enjoyment.
And the wonderful authentic
recipes for fajitas, smoky salsas, spicy
Tacos and lots of other delicacies make the first
cookery book from the Californian Tex Mex virtuosos a
real hit. Easy ordering under www.amazon.de, Ten Speed
Press, ISBN 1-58008-191-6 · (DM 44,22) % 22,61*
THE NEW TRENDS
Call a book!
Books currently available to order
C
Attention bargain hunters. The few remaining
copies – only while stocks last
▲ ▲ ▲
”Top Secret Restaurant
Recipes” reveals the
secrets of the most
popular American
restaurant chains.
Everything you ever
wanted to know about their
successful products. In detail,
including recipes. Wow!
(DM 29,--*) % 14,83*
Bobby Flay´s ”Bold American Food” is
living proof of the revolution in
America’s restaurant kitchens. With his
Mesa Grill in New York, the author is himself
one of the founding fathers of the
”New Cuisine” in the USA. A book packed
full of ideas for new taste experiences and
spectacular preparation. It’s great!
(DM 86,--*) % 43,97*
"Wraps” – the handbook for the trend. (DM 32,71*) % 16,72*
Please address your book orders to:
Hotline 008000/7256666
* plus P + P
U
nmistakable even at first glance with
its extra-easy-hold bamboo skewer.
Chik´n Pineapple Sticks. Extra tender, marinated
chicken breast pieces, alternating with
juicy pineapple cubes. Pre-cooked.
Chik´n Onion Sticks. Hand-skewered mildly
marinated chicken breast pieces alternating
with delicious onion pieces. Pre-cooked.
Chik´n Teriyaki Sticks. Asian treat with chikken
breast pieces marinated in soya sauce, ginger
and Japanese wine. Pre-cooked.

Time is money: Take away – the golden opportunity
M
odern life is shaped by
constant change, and a
pace which is increasing all
the time, affecting jobs, leisure
and meals. Time is of essence,
particularly in the major cities, as
the gastronomic
trade
has discovered
for itself. More and
more restaurant guests
are unwilling to wait any length
of time for a meal so that the
entire branch is being forced to
re-think and come up with new
concepts. What the drivethrough
is to the fast food
chains, the take-away business
has become to restaurants. In
the USA, where gastronomy is
a booming economic factor,
52% of all meals produced by
table service restaurants in the
medium price category are
delivered or picked up. The
result is healthy sales, particularly
around lunch-time, as
many restaurants with takeaway
service profit from com-
panies in the neighborhood which regard them almost
as ”private canteens”. Today, even upper-class restaurants
are providing their meals ”to go”, and many of
them have set up a special take-away counter.
T
Easy servings
and packed
as per customers’
demands
Eating on the move:
„One-armed Bandit“
with Snacks and Drinks
To be served anywhere,
any time!
here was a time when anyone
who was hungry went home to
eat. This has changed. Today, eating
out is in. Either for pleasure or out of
necessity – no matter where you happen to
find yourself, or what you happen to be doing.
The range of appetizing food is endless – from small
snacks to complete, multi-course meals.
Something to suit every taste and every occasion,
and of course it is all ”to go”. Eat on the move or
take away is the motto. This explains why packaging
designers are experiencing such a boom,
because, after all, meals to go also need appealing,
appetizing packaging. With the result that a
whole new generation of packaging has come into
being – considerably more functional, absolutely needsoriented
and sales promoting.
It’s all in there: Meal, added value, image
Gone are the days of boringly uniform aluminum trays
for pre-cooked meals or cheap cardboard for French
fries. The packaging industry is pulling out all the stops
and original creations abound. One particularly smart
idea features dip containers which can be attached to
simple trays for ”stand-up” eating. This dip-to-go principle
offers an appetizing separation of dip sauce and
snack (seen at www.persistination.com). Quite witty,
but no less practical for all that, is
the cup tray, the ”one-arm
bandit”, which links the
beverage and the snack to a
convenient unit. It can be filled
with a range of
snacks, carried com-
Additional profits through flexibility
In Europe the ”take-away factor” is becoming increasingly
significant. The best example is probably
the pizza delivery services which developed with
enormous speed, especially in the cities, and
have now reached a level of general acceptance.
But who wants to eat pizza all the time,
when there is so much more to choose from?
This is the golden opportunity for restaurants to establish
a new profile by exploiting the consumer’s ability
to select from the menu of an individual
restaurant in connection with the
take-away-service to activate an
entirely new target group. All those
who value quality, taste and variety
but have neither the time nor the
inclination for a longer visit to a
restaurant. As the central agency
for marketing
Picture: Zefa
All dressed up
fortably in one hand and
taken along anywhere (seen
at www.tingstad.se).
Packaging for street food
is ideally adapted to its
contents – all-in-one meals
such as pasta or Asian rice
and noodle dishes. It is generally
made from robust, coated special paper and
can be easily transported.
One particularly multi-functional meal tray is
made of plastic with a transparent lid. It can be
used by everyone from the fast food provider to
the high class restaurant. It acts as presentation
platter, transport container and appealing plate in one,
separating the meal components and generating
increased consumption through additional
impulses. It is used either to hold a
complete meal or to complement a snack
with the matching beverage. Many
restaurant-owners use their meal trays
both to document freshness and quality
and as image enhancers.
Airlines are also showing an increased
interest in catering packaging.
The new generation must be recyclable
as well as displaying good
printability. The latest example of
the innovative spirit of the industry
is pizza packaging made of
oven-proof cardboard which is
already in use on intercontinental
KLM and Northwest Airlines flights.
4
and pricing in Bonn discovered, the market volume of
out-of-house eating will have risen to DM 200 billion
within four years. This represents an enormous market
potential. Restaurants which are quick to develop consumer-oriented
take-away concepts will find them
responsible for a considerable part of their turnover in
the future. If they get the presentation right (out with
the cheap aluminum trays) and the appearance of the
”to go” meals matches the appetizing restaurant quality,
they have an enormous competitive advantage.
The restaurant as a virtual room –
eating on the Internet
Further opportunities to tap into the hunger of some
”virtual” consumers are offered by the Internet. In
Germany to date, this has mainly been the domain of
the pizza delivery services but increasingly restaurant
owners are also discovering the benefits of this new
medium, and those who have linked up with a reliable
delivery service are already ahead. The
customer can just click on the delivery service,
select the meal he wants from the
virtual menu of his favorite restaurant
and look forward to its arrival.
Specific suggestions and a wealth
of ideas for your own web design
are available from the American
gastronomic trade. Just take a look
in the Internet.
See also ”Know-how with links“,
page 6.
The new colorful wor ld of food-to-go packaging
Snack and Dip as
a unit
No more cold coffee:
The new beverage cups
Want to enjoy a hot drink without burning your fingers
on the cup? No problem thanks to the innovative new
drinks packaging with outstanding insulation properties.
Two new solutions are currently enhancing the
market. The first features a cup in thick-ribbed cardboard
whose ridges ensure that the outside stays cold
while the inside, and the contents, remain hot. As an
added bonus, the cup also looks super and feels good
to hold. (seen at www.costa.co.uk) With
the second variant, the optimum
thermal balance is
achieved with a foamed
plastic surface. It surrounds
the cup like a
heat buffer while at the
same time providing an
unusual visual appeal (seen
at www.gp.com). In addition,
both cups can be printed
with any color and a variety
of patterns.
And there are exciting
developments on the
cold beverage front,
too ! Transparent cups
dramatize and display their contents, greatly
adding to the aesthetics or appeal. In order
to ensure that nothing gets spilled, the freshly-squeezed
orange juice, iced coffee, smoothies
or cool drinks are protected by a
dome-like lid.
Picture: Zefa

L
Wraps: Mission
ooking at what was once purely ethnic food,
who would have thought that the originally
spicy-filled tortillas from the Tex-Mex kitchen
would be capable of one day reaching this level of popularity?
But, inspired by the enormous potential concealed
in this rather inconspicuous round, flat piece of
wheat pastry, food creators and trendsetters came up a
diverse range of exciting new fillings. Since then, scene
gastronomy, fast food providers and food-to-go suppliers
have a new hero, a hero who is breaking all the
records. It can be eaten around the clock, on every occasion,
from a snack for between meals to a satisfying
meal in its own right. From hearty, to healthy to sweet.
And its adaptability to any taste means that it also
meets the requirements of the modern trend to lighter,
healthier foods. Despite its enormous versatility, a wrap
is unbelievably easy to prepare, as the countless fillings
of crisply fresh salad, tender fried chicken, vitamin-rich
vegetables or delicious fish prove. A genuine high-flyer
which is well on its way to matching hamburgers, pizza
and pitta and taking its place on the Mount Olympus of
world food.
Wrapomania spreading fast
Particularly 18 to 35 year olds are crazy about the wrap
taste experience. The range of variations makes it a true
quick-change artist which not only provides constant
new impulses to the trend gastronomy but also terrific
Y
Wraps
Packaging experts on their way to world food
ou have questions? We have the answers!
Here we present just a brief selection of all the
things which await you on the Homepage
www.salomon-hit.com:
■ Constantly updated news
■ Information on all products
■ Dates and events, e.g. trade fairs
■ Seminars run by SALOMON
■ Sales promotion materials
■ FAQs (Frequently Asked Questions) –
here you will find both the questions and
answers – e.g. sourcing, etc.
■ Information on the company
■ Recruitment
highlights for the fast food chains. BURGER KING ®
scored the 2001 summer hit with its Miami Wraps. And
the Twister from Kentucky Fried Chicken enjoyed a similar
success world wide the year before and now has a
firm place in the KFC range.
Original El Rey ® Tortillas featured by SALOMON ®
SALOMON ® is known among consumers for taste and
product quality of the highest order. El Rey ® , the original
American brand, is guaranteed to meet this claim to the
full. El Rey products are authentic, traditional and true
to the original – and here too extraordinarily high quality
is top priority. Their simplicity and the quality of the
ingredients make El Rey ® Tortillas the basis for the food
trend of the new health-conscious generation. The
secret of the unique El Rey ® corn tortillas is the famous
El Rey ® ”authentic natural style” process. In keeping
with the old tradition, sun-ripened, golden-yellow grains
of corn are ground between two enormous grindstones,
thus retaining their natural flavor, and more especially,
their healthy and valuable nutrients. The ideal basis for
tacos, nachos and co.
But not only the corn tortillas provide a tasty base for
crazy creations. So do the soft El Rey ® wheat tortillas –
for example as delicious base for all kinds of trendy
wraps. These are available in a wide range of flavors and
colors, achieved through the addition of different vegetables.
Diverse and varied – that stimulates the appetite.
www.salomon-hit.com
For special questions we have set up a
question forum (”Visitors”) – fast
answers per e-mail are guaranteed!
5
Picture: Fotex
THE
AMERICAN
REVOLUTION:
„The Bratwurst“
as a new
trend!
I
n Marlboro Country hot bratwurst hits are
storming up the food charts. The traditional
German original has long been a classic for
the barbecue. The bratwurst has now moved to center
stage and is rapidly gaining a cult following. Even
Americans are referring to it by name – bratwurst.
Bratwurst clubs, bratwurst homepages, bratwurst
fashion – in typical American style, the ”friends of the
bratwurst” are doing their own thing. What proof of
mass popularity could be more convincing than the
fact that this German favorite has found its way into
such institutions as McDonalds? Particularly in the
East, millions of ”bratwursts” are being inserted in hotdog
buns along with ketchup, kraut and mustard. So
now the Frankfurter hot dogs, the ”frank’s”, are being
joined by the ”brat’s” as the bratwursts are affectionately
referred to in fast-food terms.
The new bratwurst generation
The trendsetter in an entirely new bratwurst generation
is a group of young, mainly European butchers, spearheaded
by Hans Siegl, master butcher from the
Saarland. As a bratwurst pioneer in the New World, he
is causing a whirlwind in the market with a combination
of European tradition, American uninhibitedness
and imagination. The ”re-interpretation” of the bratwurst
is due in no small measure to his ideas. What has
emerged is a generation of imaginative bratwursts at
gourmet level, nutritionally sound and low in calories
thanks to the use of poultry. Ethnic diversity is the recipe
for success, with experience-oriented positioning
and particular emphasis on the absence of antibiotics,
preservatives, nitrite and curing salts.
In addition to the well-established ”German bratwurst”
made of pork, as available in most American
supermarkets nowadays, innovative poultry-based
bratwurst specialties are gaining a new, discerning and
high-spending clientele, impatient to try out the
”Olympia” with tofu and spinach, the ”Gilroy” with
cheese and garlic or the ”Spokane” with apple and
potato. It is only a matter of time until the first daring
bratwurst pioneer in this country presents gourmet
bratwursts Cajun Style, Jalapeno Pepper, Cheddar-
Cheese, Turkey, or Hot Pepper. The creative revolution
in the homeland of the bratwurst is eagerly awaited!
See also: www.curry-deutschland.de.
Picture: Mauritius

The ultimate taste offensive.
T
he SALOMON ® Sunny Burger is
a joint project from
SALOMON ® and HATTING,
Europe’s top specialist for
hamburger buns. With Sunny
Burger Vegi and Sunny Burger
Chicken, a whole new generation
of burgers has been created
which ideally cater to
today’s eating habits. Vital,
light, fresh and healthy are
the buzzwords among consumers.
And the Sunny Burger
has just these qualities,
making them the ideal modern
complement to the popular classic hamburger.
Vegi or Chicken ... get the sunny taste.
Hamburgers have never before provided such delicious
natural enjoyment. Not only for those
looking for meatless alternatives, although
SALOMON® did develop the
Sunny Burger Vegi with this particular,
highly-discerning target group in
mind. Its unique vegetable recipe and
the irresistible crispy breading are
what make it so seductive, as well as
the blend of Mediterranean salads
and sun-ripened pepper strips. A further
delicious element is the topping
made of El Rey ® guacamole, refined
with crème fraîche. The whole Burger
rounded off with Redpeppajam ® and
served in a toasted HATTING sunflower
bun with tasty malt extract and
healthy sunflower seeds.
Sunny Burger Chicken
I
Recently a new breed of café began to appear all
over Europe. The coffee bar, represented by such
names as the Balzac Coffee, Costa Coffee, Café
Nescafé, Cup & Cino, Segafredo Zanetti or San Francisco
Coffee Company. It has even conquered the petrol
stations. BP (soon Aral) has integrated fully-equipped,
authentic coffee bars into its outlets, with all the trimmings.
These are exciting times on the coffee market,
which is currently being shaped by two major influences.
The starting shot for what is now a world-wide trend was
sounded by American coffee bars. The forerunner and
unchallenged market leader, with over 4,400 outlets
world-wide is Starbucks, which based the concept of its
retro café culture on the Italian original, and successfully
Americanized it. The popularity of the Starbucks Coffee
Shops not only promoted a significant rise in the number
of competitors in its own country, it also sparked a keen
interest among Europeans. For some time now, the Italian
original, in the form of the Segafredo Zanetti chain, has
been enjoying a boom throughout Europe. Now in a
new outfit, an institution which has had cult status in
Italy for generations is increasingly winning over the
hearts of coffee-drinkers as well - the simple coffee bar
in the neighborhood where everyone goes to sip his
espresso.
It is particularly popular among the younger generation.
At present, the greatest local concentration of all
these concepts is to be found in Berlin.
Starbucks on course in Europe – Re-import of
a cultural asset
Is it a daring move or just downright cheeky?
The No. 1 among the coffee shops is boldly
Chicken fans can look forward to a
heavenly experience with the
Sunny Burger Chicken. It all centers
around the Crunchy Chik’n
Burger made of 100% chicken
breast fillet with spicy-crisp
"flake" breading, topped
with crunchy salads and
vitamin-rich vegetable
strips. And of course
it’s clear that the aromatic
El Rey ® guacamole
and the new sunflower bun from
HATTING are all part of the experience.
Sunny Burgers prove, once again, just how creative
and practically inexhaustible the whole burger theme is.
Know-how with links:
www.salomon-hit.com
A
re you looking for a new idea for food,
furnishing/fittings, staff recruitment or
merchandising? Simply surf with SALOMON
to ”Links” / ”News”. Under ”Restaurants, Bars, Cafes”
you have free access to an enormous collection of
menus, gastro-sites and webcams around the world.
Here is an extract from the SALOMON selection.
www.originalhooters.com
(Best Rest. Site `99)
www.olivegarden.com
www.bahamabreeze.com
www.outback.com
www.redlobster.com
www.rainforestcafe.com
www.pfchangs.com
www.applebees.com
www.hardrockcafe.com
www.thecheesecake
factory.com
www.chilis.com
www.fridays.com
www.burgerking.com
www.pizzahut.com
www.rubytuesday.com
www.lonestarsteak
house.com
www.macaronigrill.com
www.hootersofamerica.
com
www.kfc.com
www.planetsmoothie.com
www.donpablos.com
www.pizzeriauno.com
www.redrobin.com
www.ontheborder.com
www.ocharleys.com
www.tonyromas.com
N e w s f r o m t h e s c e n e
The invasion of the coffee bars
Picture: Zefa
Sunny Burger Vegi
Picture: Zefa
going where the most famous café culture has its roots:
To Vienna and Zurich. It remains to be seen, however,
whether the Americanized version will really succeed in
drawing the intellectuals, artists and writers traditionally
associated with the original of the species. Starbucks
experience in Britain made them recognize that Europe is
not America. In the trendy
metropolis of
London, the
coffee
6
shop multi often opened right next door to the local
market leader, Prêt-à-Manger, Europe’s answer to the
master himself - with unforeseen consequences. Within
a very short time, Starbucks had adapted its food range,
bringing it into line with its English competitor’s, which
proved a very successful move. Prêt-à-Manger, in turn,
expanded its range to match Starbucks’.
This trend – still new in Europe – has already entered the
next stage in the USA with the opening of the first
Starbucks Café in Seattle. The new bistro concept couples
the range of the classic coffee shop and that of a
restaurant. The menu features a light bistro cuisine of
crisply-fresh salads, mouth-watering pasta and tasty
poultry dishes. The response has been so positive that
the concept is now being multiplied further. It shows
once again, just what outstanding market leadership is
capable of.
Bank Abbey National and Costa Coffee-shop
Not to be sniffed at! While money may make the world
go round, it just lacks a certain tempting aroma, which
is why Bank Abbey National has joined forces with
Costa to introduce a breath of freshly-roasted coffee
into 40 branches of this traditional London bank. The
result is a busy transfer of funds.
Bank clients quickly become
Costas coffee customers and
Costas coffee customers do
their bank transactions in
comfort at the in-house
bank. An ingenious bank link
that is paying for itself
(www.abbeynational.co.uk
and www.costa.co.uk)
Picture: Ifa

USA in
Merchandizing
M
Fever
erchandizing is among the rapidly expanding
world-wide markets, as proven once again by the
Licensing Fair in New York. For example, international
feature film productions are already achieving over
50% of their takings from the merchandizing business.
Fan articles have advanced far beyond the level of
simple souvenirs to become prestige objects, many
even achieving cult status.
Reaping the benefits of advertising that costs nothing
The ”leaders of the pack” in terms of advertising their
own brands and images are America’ restaurant and fast
food chains. And they have held this position for decades.
Two distinct forms of merchandizing - license merchandizing
and company-specific merchandizing. For the giants
among the chains, McDonalds and BURGER KING ® ,
license merchandizing has become a vital sales instrument,
accounting for enormous profits. Popular trends
or associated products are consciously exploited in campaigns
as a magnet for drawing customers into one’s own
outlet. McDonalds, for example, launched a series of
Disney film characters or Asterix figures, BURGER
KING ® responded with the popular Pokemons, both
achieving an impressive increase in visitor frequency.
Remarkably, the marketing of its license figures alone has
made McDonalds the world’s biggest toy distributor.
Hardly surprising, therefore, that competition among the
major chains for the most attractive campaign themes is
becoming keener all the time. In the USA, entire television
series are being promoted through this route.
The second form of merchandizing is the company-related
variety as practiced by theme restaurants such as
Hard Rock Café or Planet Hollywood who realize enormous
profits with consistent marketing of their own
brands. With trendy T-shirts, watches, stickers, pins,
drumsticks and more, the Hard Rock Café has created an
additional source of income which today accounts for
half of its overall turnover. Free advertising which not only
increases brand loyalty among guests but also fans the
passion of souvenir hunters. Demand among fans in
London, for example, so exceeded the capacity of the
local Hard Rock Café that it proved necessary to rent a
special outlet for the permanent product range. A click on
the Internet will suffice to show how these fan objects
have taken on a life of their own. The Hard Rock Shop,
which fills several web pages, is open for business around
the clock.
Considerable turnover potential for the
German restaurant market
This merchandizing fever has also infected the
German market, at least in the fast-food sector.
The restaurant scene, on the other hand, is at best
displaying a ”rise in temperature” but endless sales
potential slumbers within it, simply awaiting activation.
Brash and self-confident as ever, it is once
again the USA which proves how effective an
instrument of brand and customer loyalty
carefully-targeted merchandizing can be,
even in the premium class. With the
advent of top-class hotels and restaurants
in the merchandizing market,
the business suddenly assumed a
whole new dimension with even
such temples of gourmet cuisine
as NOBU in Los Angels getting
in on the act. A T-shirt with the
logo of this seriously up-market
restaurant can easily match the
price-tag on designer items. In
keeping with the motto ”show
me where you eat and I will
show you who you are”, a simple
shirt can be transformed
into a status symbol.
A
s the market leader in frozen minced meat
products, incomparable meat quality has
top priority at SALOMON ® . With no compromises.
Every consumer should be able to see exactly
where the meat came from. Which is why SALO-
MON ® Hitburger GmbH pursues an open information
policy. For years, the company has processed
beef exclusively from animals born, reared and
slaughtered in Germany which, particularly in the
case of BSE, is of enormous significance. Only in this
way it is possible to trace the origin of every animal
through a certified tracking system. An unbroken
chain of controls and perfect quality assurance
from meat production to the finished goods have
THE NEW
C
SALOMON® provides a safety
guarantee for its beef products
an love ever be a sin?
Certainly not among the
ravers at the Love Parade in
Berlin. Which is why this event, an absolute
”must” among the techno-minded, was the ideal
occasion for launching the new ”I Love You” burger.
This latest innovative product concept from the creative
partnership of SALOMON ® and HATTING was an
immediate success. With its highly-distinctive heart
shape, the ”I Love You” burger is an absolute super hit
in the burger charts. The unique, airy-light Hatting bun
with the delicious patty plays on emotions and desirability
– finding its way straight to the heart – and not
only among couples in love.
Shape and taste make the ”I Love You” burger a real
highlight in scene gastronomy and ideal for marketing
measures connected with special (romantic) occasions:
Blind Date, Valentine’s Day, a marriage proposal,
a declaration of love, and so on.
Kochlöffel GmbH in Lingen was quick to spot the
opportunities presented by the new product. This
German fast food provider was so delighted with the
innovative idea that they spontaneously decided to
incorporate the ”I Love You” burger into a new campaign,
”Neue Zeiten – Neue Liebe – I Love Burgers”
(New Times – A New Passion – I Love Burgers), with
resounding success. ”Product and campaign
could hardly be a more ideal match,” said
the enthusiastic Horst
Bellendorf and Matthias
Hannewald from
Kochlöffel. ”Our
Hawaii Burger in
particular turned
into a real
”Love Burger”.
7
always been an essential part of the safety concept.
100% of the beef processed by SALOMON ® comes
from animals which have tested negatively for BSE.
Should you wish for more details, or to be constantly
updated, the latest information is available
on the SALOMON ® Internet platform www.salomon-hit.com
– safety and service around the clock!
PS: Would you like to keep your guests informed and
convey the greatest possible feeling of safety? On the
SALOMON ® Homepage, you will find a statement
on BSE which can be printed out for hanging up or
distributing in your restaurant.
It is
so light
and fresh
that it truly
captures that
”just-fallenin-
love”
feeling!
A great start under the slogan
FUNFOOD in the EUREST ® restaurants,
with Sunny Chicken Burger,
Sunny Vegi Burger and the I Love
You-Burger. A few statements from
Marketing Manager, Mrs. Susanne
Rieke of EUREST ® Deutschland
GmbH, after the successful promotion
of the three glorious products.
FINGER FOOD WORLD (FFW): On which background
did you base this promotion?
Susanne Rieke: We were looking for products which
enabled us to pick up trends from the public restaurant
trade and implement them in the contract catering.
Fun is not an ingredient like salt and pepper, but a feeling,
a mood. Fun is neither food nor beverage. Fun
appears while eating, i.e. to eat with fingers, to build
your own hamburger, to enjoy unusual creations and
recipes. We wanted to bring this kind of atmosphere
into our restaurants. At SALOMON ® we found the
products to assist us.
FFW: How did the Chefs / Managers react to this promotion?
Susanne Rieke: Our Chefs / Managers fully accepted
this promotion. What they liked was that we tried to
point out, that eating should simply be fun and that
the canteen does not always have to be a boring place.
FFW: How many canteens did participate?
Susanne Rieke: Our goal is, to have at least 500 canteens
taking part in our annual promotion. We exceeded
our goal concerning FUNFOOD! Approx. 600 canteens
participated.
FFW: How was the reaction of your guests concerning
this promotion?
Susanne Rieke: Positive. Without exception. We achived
our aim to add enjoyment into the canteen
restaurants.

How the Hamburger
conquered the world
Amalie Schmidt
Andrew Fordyce
he most popular meat dish in America, and
indeed in the western world, can look back on
a history spanning at least a century and a half.
Seafarers and emigrants are said to have introduced
this flattened patty of ground beef – which originated
among the Tartars of Mongolia – into the land of the
free. But nobody can be quite sure. One thing is certain
though, the official history of the hamburger
began in the year 1834
1834: The New York restaurant ”Delminico” advertised
a Hamburger Steak for the first time, hoping to
attract the custom of German seafarers and emigrants.
1885: A hamburger patty is said to have been sold as
a snack at a funfair in the town of Seymour.
Around 1900: The hamburger and the hamburger
steak are frowned upon by ”better society”, both
being considered ”common”.
1904: First fame at the Work Exhibition in St. Louis.
Fletcher Davis from Texas sold the hamburger as a
small snack.
1916: The American chef
Walter Anderson
sandwiched the
hamburger between
two halves of
a bun and sold it at
the open counter
of his stand, the
”White Castle”. In
the 20’s and 30’s,
dozens of these vehicles followed. Anderson popularized
the hamburger.
1948: Ultimate break-through and a firm place in
American eating culture. The brothers Richard and
Maurice McDonald open a hamburger outlet.
1954: Jim McLamore and David
Edgerton establish BURGER KING
Anyone who can’t make it in person, can surf there:
www.nacsshow.com. From 05 - 08 October, 2002 the
NACS Show will also be taking place in Orlando (Orange
County Convention Center).
The NRA (National Restaurant
Association) from 18
– 21 May, 2002
in Chicago.
A look at future possibilities
is provided
by the world’s biggest
and most important
fair of its kind. It is the
ultimate forum for the restaurant industry which presents
itself to a wide-ranging specialist public as an
”ideas exchange” for future-oriented restaurant concepts
and technology, as well as a breeding ground for
future trend products in the food and beverage area.
Anyone scouting ideas for original advertising and sales
promotion measures is sure to find them here. The NRA
is absolutely compulsory viewing!
®
in Miami, Florida.
1955: The McDonald brothers sell
out to Ray Krok, who also buys the
world-wide marketing rights. In the
same year he opens the first
McDonalds of his own.
1957: BURGER KING ® launches
the ”Whopper”, the company’s
most significant brand product.
1961: McDonald’s sets up the
Hamburger University. Over
the years, many hundreds of
McDonald’s managers have
been through the Chicago
management training center.
1965: McDonald’s goes onto
the stock exchange.
1968: Jim Delligatti,
McDonald’s franchise-holder, invents the Big Mac.
From now on, it becomes the most important product
in the chain.
1969: Branch newcomer Wendy’s opens its first outlet
in Columbus, Ohio.
1 9 7 5 :
BURGER
KINGS ® first
European
outlet in
Madrid.
1979: With
Happy Meal
– food and toy - McDonald’s sets its sights on kids’
marketing.
1986: Wendy’s establishes the Big Classic.
1989: Ten BURGER KING ® Academies start their
training courses in the USA, four years later a BUR-
GER KING ® Academy in London follows.
1996: Annual consumption in the USA breaks the
five-billion hamburger barrier for the first time.
2001: Around the world, McDonald’s, BURGER KING ®
A unique biography
T inger food is booming world-wide and Europe
enjoys a leading position, second only to the
USA. SALOMON
and Wendy’s currently operate tens of thousands of
branches. Estimates indicate that these three giants
alone easily sell 20 to 30 billion hamburgers annually.
® kick-started the finger food
boom in the German speaking countries and is now also
among the big players in the European league. With
Customer Service Europe, a European success story
began for SALOMON ® under the leadership of Amalie
Schmidt and Andrew Fordyce.
Service quality for our customers and the selection of a
wide finger food range have top priority. We look after
importers and wholesalers who serve the gastronomy
trade and also supply major chains like BURGER KING ®
Europe. SALOMON ® F
Customer Service Euope
Customer Service Europe is there on the scene, reporting
back live.
The team’s most important brief is to ”feel” and identify
the differing requirements of the national European
markets and to meet these with a maximum of customer
benefits and satisfaction.
This also includes the international edition of "Finger
Food World" which you are now reading, as well as our
is also represented at the major
international fairs such as "SIAL" in Paris and at national
fairs in other European countries. And of course our
Homepage www.salomon-hit.com in French and
English.
Customer Service Europe would be happy to answer any
questions you may have about our European neighbors.
GIVE US A CALL!!
Free Call Hotline 008000/7256666.
Continued from Frontpage:
The Evolution of Finger Food!
Lemon grass, coriander and crunchy vegetable fillings
provide variety. And the ever-popular duck is still
going
strong, in a crunchy mini spring roll. So no matter whether
you use your fingers or take your chances with the
tricky chopsticks, fun food is on the menu.
A current big trend is "fusion food”, an astonishing
blend of elements of all ethnic cuisine. How about
Wrappetizers®, for instance, with the outward appearance
of an Asian spring roll but a hearty Mexican filling?
The motto is: Imagination has no borders, and
anything goes in the new ”finger food world”. The excitement
remains high and the enormous potential in this
long-running trend is by no means exhausted. What
flights of fantasy will finger food take in the future?
What new creations await us? With a start like this,
there is no end in sight – the unstoppable evolution of
finger food continues apace!
Two highlights for insiders
and trendsetters
Presentation is everything – naturally beautiful
Some cooks are true artists when it comes to arranging
and presenting their food creations. In a riot of color,
green salads and herbs are piled up alongside light strips
of chicken breast or grilled Mediterranean fish on boldly-patterned
plates for an impressive three-dimensional
effect. Or crunchy, seductively-fresh vegetables gleam
green, red, yellow or white beneath a light cheese crust.
The very look of the dish whets the appetite, and fires
the imagination. Which is why ever-more restaurants are
placing particular emphasis on striking presentation.
And this appeals greatly to their guests.
Publisher:
SALOMON ® The new generation approaches – natural, healthy and
highly modern
At last, one of the most popular types of European cuisine
has found its way into the finger food world:
Mediterranean cooking. From the rich variety of popular
tapas snacks, a completely new experience has been
created featuring, for example, one of the characteristic
fruits of the South, the olive. This traditional product
has been imaginatively ”re-invented” and now appears
in an exciting new crispy coating. The already popular
and long-running Asian trend is still bubbling with new
ideas, both in appearance and taste.
Mediterranean
feeling with the
Olive
Continued from Frontpage
HITBURGER GmbH
Nordring 13 · 63762 Großostheim
Tel.: 06026/506-215 · Fax: 06026/506-218
Hotline 008000/7256666
Internet: http://www.salomon-hit.com
Editor and production managment:
Philip Dean Kruk
Email: pdkruk@salomon-mail.de
Tina Schneyer
Email: tschneyer@salomon-mail.de
Design, text and layout:
RESAS COMMUNICATION & DESIGN
GmbH & Co. KG
Schwagerstr. 12 · 33739 Bielefeld
Tel.: 05206/4797 + 4555
Fax: 05206/5094
Email: info@rcd.de
-nos! TM plate
8
Continued from Page 2:
Back to nature
In the USA, where they were invented, these imaginative
mix drinks made of fresh or semi-frozen fruit and vegetables
are already firmly established as healthy liquid
refreshments. And they are doing a phenomenal trade in
the UK as well, being consumed all over the place and at
every time of day, for sheer pleasure or simply because
they are so healthy (seen at www.schoeller.de). A
somewhat different drink has established itself at the
very top of the current ”in-drinks” charts: wheat grass.
What looks like a piece of someone’s lawn is freshly
squeezed to make a natural energy provider – either neat
or mixed with vegetable or fruit juices (seen at www.funfood.de)
E D I T O R I A L