Superior Products Restaurant Equipment and Supplies has just distributed its July and August Concession Equipment Sale flyer. There will be savings on hundreds of products, and not just concession items. Several new items have been added to our website and appear in the flyer for the first time. To view these products, check out Superior Additions.



Hot dog machines, popcorn poppers, and cup dispensers are among the concession products featured in our new flyer. Also displayed in the flyer are beverage equipment, smallwares supplies, and restaurant glasses. Our new line of Manitowoc Indigo ice machines are also featured in a two page spread.

For all of your commercial foodservice equipment and supplies needs, Superior Products is a name you can trust for over 75 years. Our in-stock items ship out from 4 distribution centers located nationwide, and generally arrive within 3 to 5 business days. In-stock orders of $250.00 or more (excluding furniture) qualify for standard shipping at no cost to you. Liftgate service and inside delivery are available for larger equipment at an additional cost.

Summer's moving along, so take advantage now of great pricing and availabilty on the supplies you need to help make your business prosper this year. We carry such great brand names as Libbey, Cambro, True, and Hobart. Our online product selection includes nearly 12,000 products. Shop and save today with us!

• Intelligent Diagnostics
• Easy Read Display
• Active Clean
• Ice Assurance
• Energy Management
• Service and Support  

Looking for great bargains on commercial restaurant equipment and supplies? You need look no further than Superior Products. We have been in business for over 75 years and have over 11,500 products on our website. Our regular wholesale pricing is already a great deal, but we offer monthy specials in our flyers and on our website as well.

Next month you can look forward to the Furniture Sale and March Madness Sale. As an added bonus, sign up  to get your email address on our email promotional list, and receive special offers available only through email to be used on our website. This is our way of saying thank you for being a valued customer of ours! Once you've signed up, check your email in-boxes on Mondays and Tuesdays for these limited time offers, which we send out periodically each month.




Save on everything from commercial kitchen equipment to industrial ice machines to small kitchen tools. Shop with us and purchase all that you require to create culinary masterpieces. Although our products are intended for commercial use, many of them are a must for your household kitchen cooking needs. So, sign up now and save!

The annual Superior Products Winter Equipment Sale is now going on. Choose from a variety of commercial foodservice equipment from your restaurant equipper for over 75 years. We’ve got you covered with all of your restaurant equipment and supply needs.

Choose from refrigeration and ice products for the kitchen: sandwich and pizza prep units, stainless steel fridges and commercial ice machines. Bar equipment on sale this season include direct draw dispensers and back bar refrigeration units.

Take the chill out of winter with great savings on commercial kitchen equipment such as restaurant ranges, fryers and griddles. Concession equipment on sale ranges from popcorn poppers to hot dog rollers to frozen pizza ovens. Chill, heat, serve….all of the equipment you need this winter is available at Superior Products!

The year is coming to an end and it’s the time to highlight our best selling restaurant equipment and supplies from 2010. These products will be featured on www.SuperProd.com tomorrow but we are giving you a sneak preview on Superior Connections today.

With a variety of products ranging from commercial refrigerators and ice machines to glassware and china, Superior Products offers over 11,500 foodservice equipment and supply products on our website. Choose from a variety of commercial kitchen equipment and catering supplies.

Be sure to check out the seasonal savings that run through the end of the week. We would like to thank you for your purchases in 2010; we look forward to offering a great selection and great deals to you in 2011. Superior has been a leader in the foodservice industry for over 75 years, and many of our products are stocked in our four distribution centers, ready to ship out to you within one business day.

Fall is here and now is the time to tkae advantage of great deals on commercial kitchen equipment at Superior Products Restaurant Equipment and Supplies. We are now featuring our Fall Equipment Sale with savings on kitchen cooking equipment, including refrigeration and restaurant ranges.






Look for specials on industrial ice machines and bar equipment as well. Countertop electric fryers and commercial griddles are also sale priced. For your catering supply needs, we are offering lower pricing on popcorn machines, hot dog roller grills, and countertop pizza ovens.

You can't go wrong by purchasing your foodservice equipment now at Superior Products. The busy holiday season is coming and now's the time to stock up your kitchen with all that you'll need to keep up with business!

Manitowoc Co. announced second quarter sales increases in their foodservice equipment sales which helped offset losses in their other divisions. This is a hopeful sign that the restaurant industry is rebounding as sales continue to increase for many companies. An article by Rick Barrett of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel on July 27, 2010 appears below.

Superior Products Restaurant Equipment and Supplies features Manitowoc as one of its major vendors. Many of their industrial ice machines are displayed on our website, and many of them are in stock in our restaurant supply warehouses, ready to ship to you quickly. Superior is proud to have been partnering with Manitowoc, a leading foodservice industry manufacturer, for many many years.

MEMORIAL DAY SAVINGS BEGINS TODAY!

• NRA Show 2010
   
• International Wine Spirits & Beer Event
   
• National Restaurant Association
   
• Upcoming Foodservice Shows

Check out our Spring Equipment Sale going on now at Superior Products Restaurant Equipment and Supplies. We offer special pricing on commercial kitchen equipment such as restaurant ranges, sandwich prep units and industrial ice machines. We do seasonal equipment sales for all four of the seasons of the year, and our Summer Equipment Sale is set to begin June 1.

To read more, view our Spring Deals press release.

To view products such as kitchen cooking equipment and double door refrigerators, visit the Spring Equipment Sale now going on at Superior Products. You'll find all your foodservice equipment and bar equipment in one spot!

STEPS TO TAKE PRIOR TO CALLING FOR SERVICE

• Consult the owner's manual. For easy access, tape this to back of unit.
• Verify proper electrical connection when applicable. Check voltage of unit and plug connection. Make sure circuit breaker is working, and equipment is in "ON" position.
• Verify gass connection when applicable. make sure that unit is in "ON" position and that the pilot light is burning.
• Check for safety devices that prevent unit from operating properly, such as an open door, or unit not sitting  level on surface.
• If all of these things have been checked and unit does not work, contact our Customer Support department.

• Installation costs, such as hardwiring, electrical hook ups, plumbing, gas connections,etc.
• Issues reulting from incorrect or improper installation.
• Issues resulting from frieight damage.
• Normal maintenance or routine upkeeping, such as cleaning.
• Modifications made to original equipment or supplies.
• Neglect or abuse of equipment.
• Adjustments or calibrations made, such as leveling.
• Mileage incurred, travel time, and trip charges by service agent.
• Equipment operated in manner contrary to manufacturers recommendations, including installation and operation of equipment.
• Loss of product as a result of equipment malfunction.
• Shipping and handling costs for replacement parts.

Generally, smaller pieces of equipment have a "carry-in" warranty that requires the owner to bring or send the equipment to the nearest service center. "On-site" service work is usually required for larger pieces of equipment such as refrigerators, gas deep fryers, and commercial griddles.

When calling for service be sure to have the following information ready. This will help expedite getting the service you need for your equipment.

• Type of equipment
• Manufacturer's name
• Model and serial number
• Date of purchase
• Best times to work on equipment
• Details about problem, and whether it is recurring
• Degree of urgency
• Contact name and information
  
   

April 22 marks the 40th Anniversary of Earth Day, and today is Day 2 of our week long series of information and tips posts on how to conserve energy and make your food and beverage establishment both more green and more profitable! Many foodservice equipment products are equipped with energy efficient features, and larger equipment can earn an Energy Star rating by meeting regulated standards for energy efficiency. If foodservice personnel learn to practice green behavior, they can save both natural resources and operational costs.



Each day this week, we will feature an article or information that will be helpful in your attempts to be more green. These will supplement material that we have previously featured in our Superior Connections blog. After reviewing the information, be sure to visit  our Superior Products Restaurant Supply Store website, where you will find energy efficient kitchen cooking equipment, such as double door refigerators and gas industrial ice machines.

Use the following tips to help reduce your restaurant's demand for energy. Some of these tips require capital investment, while others require only changes in operation and maintenance. Most of these tips are based on two principles: Turn it off if it does not need to run. For example, by eliminating one hour per day of broiler idle, you can save $200 annually. When it is time to purchase new equipment, choose the most efficient equipment that you can. Look for the ENERGY STAR label on appliances.

Water Heating
• Fully load the dishwasher. It takes as much heated water to wash a partially full dishwasher as it does a fully loaded one. Install low-flow pre-rinse spray nozzles.
• Set the water heater thermostat no higher than it needs to be: 140°F for dishwashers, but only 110°F for hand washing. Consider using chemical sterilizers instead of higher water temperatures in dishwashers.
• Consider gray water heat recovery. If your dishwasher is a continuous fill and drain, consider installing a gray water heat recovery system. This system will recover some of the heat from the drain water and use it to reheat the supply water to the appliance.

Kitchen Ventilation
• Retrofit exhaust hoods with a two-speed blower. When the entire grill/fryer is not being used, you may be able to lower the ventilation rate over the appliance and reduce both make-up air and the energy needed to condition it.
• Locate exhaust hoods on walls. Wall-mounted exhaust canopies require lower air velocities to do the same job. Lower air velocities mean smaller fan motors and less make-up air to heat or cool.
• Install "smart" exhaust hood controls. Most kitchens operate at less than 25 percent capacity during the day, but the exhaust hood runs at 100 percent capacity. These controls sense when the exhaust hood needs to be on, based on exhaust air temperature and smoke load using a temperature and an optical sensor.

Heating and Cooling
• Use the thermostat factory setpoints. Leave the thermostat settings at 76°F for cooling and 68°F for heating. Each degree of heating or cooling can cost an additional four to five percent in energy costs. Leaving the thermostat at the factory setpoints will maintain comfort without breaking the bank.
• Use the "night setback" feature of the thermostat. Set the thermostat to bring your restaurant to temperature no earlier than needed.

Maintenance
• Clean air conditioning and refrigeration condenser/evaporator coils every three months.
• Check the refrigerant charge and fix leaks if necessary.
• Regularly clean or replace air filters on ventilation and heating/air conditioning equipment. Clean grease traps on ventilation equipment.
• Check freezer and walk-in seals for cracks and warping. Replace if necessary.

Superior Products Restaurant Equipment and Supplies offers financing for your commercial kitchen equipment and bar equipment purchases with our lease to own program. It is a great way to improve your cash flow and is available on foodservice equipment priced at $1000 or more.

Kitchen Cooking Equipment that can be leased includes restaurant ranges, industrial ice machines, and commercial food steamers. Considering other foodservice equipment products such as gas deep fryers, or countertop broilers? These, too, are leasable products.





Now's the time to expand your kitchen or bar and make payments as little as $50.00 per month (based on certain conditions and restrictions). Need a new double door refrigerator or tapster with draft beer towers? Now is the time to lease your equipment!


PDF VERSION OF LEASE APPLICATION AVAILABLE HERE.




 

      Today is a day celebrated around the world and the theme is: THINK GREEN! What better day than St Patrick's Day to discuss how you can turn your foodservice establishment into an environmentally friendly business. Certain practices such as recycling discarded materials is a start, but you need to do more than just that if you want to be considered "green". Making sure that restaurant equipment is energy efficient is a key to becoming green. Restaurant equipment and supplies that meet government standards for energy efficiency can receive an Energy Star rating. This rating is applied to foodservice equipment such as double door refrigerators, restaurant ranges, and other kitchen cooking equipment. 

      The Green Restaurant Association is an organization that has been rating and certifying restaurants on how green they are for over 20 years. They have created guidelines for both existing foodservice establishments, and new ones yet to be built. It is quite a prestigious honor to become certified as an environmentally friendly restaurant by the Green Restaurant Association. To view the certification standards, click here.

     

 

• About Energy Star
   
• Green Restaurant Association
   
• Going Greener
   
• Earth Day 2010
   
• It's St Patrick's Day!

In November of 2001 the price to commercial consumers for a thousand cubic feet of natural gas was $6.79 (average national price). Six years later and during the same month the going rate was $11.04 (average national price) — an increase of 77.3%. And oil prices have seen an even greater increase going from an average price per barrel of $15.76 to $95.33 — a whopping increase of over 500%! (Prices obtained from the Energy Information Administration.)

These increases in energy prices have a trickle-down effect across many different expense categories for a foodservice operator. In addition to directly impacting the utility expense category, rising energy prices are also affecting food costs as food distributors add “energy surcharges” as a means of trying to maintain their profit margins. In a recently conducted industry study, foodservice operators from across all segments of the foodservice industry indicated that rising utility costs ranked as one of the top factors they felt would have the greatest negative impact upon their operations. The same study also revealed that energy costs had the highest percentage increase of all major expense categories. So, what is a foodservice operator to do in the face of such energy dynamics?

Of course the obvious answer to this question is to find ways to reduce the energy expense component, and there are several ways an operator can do this. To begin, using natural gas as your primary cooking fuel will save considerable cash. The price increases noted above are not singular to gas and oil: electricity prices have risen as well. The map on this page shows that in almost every state in the U.S. natural gas for cooking still costs less than electricity.

Now more than ever, operators need to seek out the most energy-efficient equipment they can find. Thankfully, manufacturers are introducing new models of gas equipment across all major categories that are significantly more energy-efficient than the models they are replacing.

Fortunately, greater efficiency does not translate into less equipment productivity — the capability of a piece of equipment to “pump out” product. In fact, numerous independent studies have shown just the opposite. Through the combination of better overall design and the employment of new energy-efficient technologies, many categories of foodservice equipment are demonstrating greater output with significantly less energy input. In other words, operators do not have to trade output for efficiency.

Energy Star®, a division of the EPA (Environmental Protection Agency), has established energy efficiency standards for six different categories of foodservice equipment — fryers, commercial food steamers, refrigerators, holding cabinets, industrial ice machines, and warewashing equipment. When looking to purchase a new piece of equipment for their facilities, foodservice operators should seek out items that have the Energy Star “seal of approval” if they are serious about wanting to reduce their energy costs.

At the same time, operators should seek out the assistance of their local gas utility representative. In this very competitive energy environment, gas utilities are working closer than ever with equipment manufacturers in an effort to find new technologies that will help bring down the amount of gas consumed by foodservice equipment. As such, they are well aware and informed of the latest pieces of equipment that will provide operators with maximum performance and productivity with minimal energy consumption.

Operators should also consider multifunction foodservice equipment as a means of reducing their energy bills. Most foodservice operators do not use their equipment at 100% capacity, even during the busiest times of the day. A convection oven that is not in use is still “on” and consuming gas even when it is in idle mode. The same holds true for a convection steamer — most operators do not use it 100% of the time to actually cook, so when it is in the “standby” mode, it is still consuming a significant amount of energy — energy that is not “productive” in nature. One potential way to deal with this type of scenario is to purchase a combination oven/steamer that is multifunctional by design. A “combi” oven would most likely be in standby or idle mode a relatively short period of time on a daily basis, thus reducing the overall energy consumption for operators.

When purchasing foodservice equipment, operators should consider only items that will meet their operational needs and avoid purchasing equipment that is “oversized” just because they feel they’re getting a “great deal.” Generally speaking, larger capacity pieces of equipment consume more energy, and if an operator’s goal is to reduce energy costs, then larger, underutilized equipment is not part of the energy efficiency equation.
And of course, operators must look at their own operating practices as well as a means of reducing energy consumption. They must instill throughout their entire organization a culture of “energy conservation” and put in place, and enforce, practices and procedures specifically designed to reduce energy consumption and garner greater output per energy unit consumed.

As the “greening” phenomenon starts to penetrate deeper into the foodservice industry, the subjects of energy use (and misuse) and energy conservation will certainly grow in significance. Proactive operators will need to look at various options that are available to them as they seek out ways to reduce their total energy consumption and hence energy costs. Purchasing more energy-efficient, multifunctional natural gas foodservice equipment that is properly sized for their operations, along with instilling a culture of energy and resource conservation throughout their organizations, will go a long way in helping operators reduce their total energy costs in light of escalating prices.