Steak and Ale names Mandes prexy

Nation's Restaurant News, Jan 1, 1996 by Ron Ruggless

DALLAS -- Steak and Ale restaurants, the dinner-house concept that turns 30 this year, will continue to reposition its units under its new president, Bob Mandes.

Mandes, 38, assumed the position in December after serving as interim replacement for John W. Alderson, who resigned in September after a year in the post.

"We went through some troubled times, as everybody saw and everybody knows," Mandes said. "But I'm extremely confident that what we've done the last couple of years has put us back in the position of being the restaurant company people want to emulate."

Michael Kaufman, president of Steak and Ale's parent, Metromedia Restaurant Group, said: "As we moved forward with our search for a concept president, we found our strongest candidate right here. ... And his tenure with the company is an added bonus."

Mandes joined Steak and Ale in 1980 as a waiter in Valley Forge, Pa., and most recently was a vice president for a nine-state region.

Steak and Ale is owned by Metromedia Restaurant Group, a division of Metromedia Co., one of the nation's largest privately held conglomerates with branches in telecommunications, medical technology, entertainment, hospitality and computer software.

Mandes said the 151-unit Steak and Ale chain would continue to roll out ideas systemwide that are being tested in two completely renovated restaurants in Tulsa, Okla.

"We have basically created two new concepts," said Mandes, referring to the refocused Steak and Ale dinnerhouse restaurants in Tulsa. "We will bring anywhere from three to five components of those restaurants into the main core business in 1996."

Changes in those two units include a lighter decor, new menus, new uniforms and a training program for staff.

"Plans are under way to convert two other properties in early 1996," said Mandes, indicating those units will probably be in the concept's strong markets of Florida or Texas. "We probably won't go as far with those, both in capital investment and in differentiating ourselves from what a traditional Steak and Ale is. We'll do some menu design, we'll do some uniforms, we'll do some lighting packages, we'll do some exterior presence with signage but we won't go nearly so far from a decor standpoint."

Mandes says he expects little change in pricing, which carries a check average of about $14.50 for dinner and $13.50 for lunch and dinner combined.

"I think we are at a price point now where there's not whole lot of room on the upside of prices," he said. "Especial as competition gets stronger, consumers look for prices a one of the differentiating factors. That's one of the factors we want to be cautious of."

Mandes said customer can expect changes, borrowed from the restaurants in Tulsa, in:

* Waitstaff uniforms. The waitstaff now wears varied-colored shirts but that will move toward to white shirt, slacks for both men and women, white bistro apron and contemporary tie.

* Menu items. Selections will include more varied sauces and fish selections. The popular prime rib also is seasoned and prepared differently.

* Staff development programs. "From the behavioral or people side, that's going to be one of the biggest changes," Mandes said.

* Menu formats. The Tulsa restaurants use laser-printed tri-fold color menus rather than the standard Steak and Ale eight-page hard-backed menu. "It gives us tremendous flexibility to adjust menus on a very short timetable," Mandes said. Currently, the menus are printed at the restaurants, cutting the lead time from six to eight weeks down to a few minutes.

* Homemade items. They include test recipes, such as one for cheesecake that's been especially well-received, Mandes said. "Expanding these to more restaurants is still up in the air, but I think that throughout the year they will enter the system in one way or another," he added.

Mandes said he is aware that the Steak and Ale concept has suffered in the past few years. "Obviously, 15 years ago we were the only ones out there," he said. "The world is much more competitive and the consumer dramatically more demanding The challenge is that the tar get has been increased.

"Fifteen years ago, we were leading the charge. Today, unfortunately, we are not. Today, we've put a lot of processes back in place." Mandes said that has brought former employees back into the organization and helped recruit new ones. In addition, the company has added regional training managers and instituted more contemporary information services and support for people in the field.

Mandes, who has worked in various management positions since starting his Steak and Ale career after graduating from Westchester University, said, "My background is operations. I've been a field person for all 15 years. I know the restaurants incredibly well, and I understand what the guests want from us. I also understand how decisions affect not only the guest but the management and the employees. That perspective can do nothing but help us."

The company also plans to have a new training and service program, tested at the Tulsa restaurant, ready to roll out to its 9,000 employees systemwide by the end of January, Mandes said, with the goal of having it through the entire system by the end of March. The 450 management employees will also go through the program.