Month: April 2020

Substance Abuse in the Kitchen

Recognized as the Best New Chef in 2015 by Food and Wine, Jacob “Jake” Bickelhaupt is the owner and chef of Stone Flower Restaurant in Chicago. In this capacity, he manages all day to day operations at the restaurant. A part of the sober chef movement, Jacob Bickelhaupt has gone through his own substance abuse journey and is passionate about sharing his story with others.

Many people don’t suspect that substance abuse and the restaurant industry are so interconnected. However, the double shifts, late hours, and high levels of stress commonly seen in the industry all contribute to substance abuse among restaurant workers at all levels. In fact, people involved in bartending, food preparation, and serving use illegal drugs roughly twice as often as the national average. In one study, nearly 12 percent of workers in food service reported that they had engaged in binge drinking at least once during the previous month.

Such substance abuse problems are seen in fast food, casual, and fine dining restaurants. Many chefs self-medicate using drugs and alcohol following a difficult day at work or to maintain their performance. This occurs regardless of the chef’s professional standing in the industry. The same is true of staff members working in Michelin-starred restaurants. Anthony Bourdain first shone a light on substance abuse in the restaurant industry with his 2000 book “Kitchen Confidential,” and it has since paved the way for additional research into the subject.

Influencer Marketing for Restaurants

Jacob “Jake” Bickelhaupt is the founder and owner of the Stone Flower restaurant in Chicago. Formerly, Jacob Bickelhaupt rose to the spotlight by turning a no-name pop up restaurant into a Michelin star powerhouse. He hopes to use his culinary expertise as well as restaurant brand-building experience to replicate his success at Stone Flower.

Restaurants can effectively leverage social media influencers perhaps even more so than other types of businesses. The first step is to seek out bloggers in your culinary niche. There are countless food blogs with decent followings and they mostly specialize in one or two types of cuisines.

You should not dismiss the potential of micro-influencers, especially on a highly localized basis. If you do not have an extensive marketing budget, micro-influencers are an outstanding resource because they may be happy to accept non-cash incentives for their help.

As a busy restaurateur, you may not have the time to contact dozens or even hundreds of influencers individually. That is where an influencer agency can help. These companies manage influencer networks and provide you with tailored services for your restaurant.