A tale of three kitchens

Nation's Restaurant News, August 30, 1993 by Jack Hayes

"As production space continues to evaporate, equipment needs to be flexible, multifunctional and instantly interchangable," Staib says.

Hard Luck's kitchen architect, Stephen Rousseau, designed the space to make every piece of equipment movable in the event that a future menu change calls for substitution or rearranging the line.

"Everything is plug-in portable," explains Rousseau, adding that back-of-the-house space also interferes with storage. But that is handled in an off-site facility at Grand Village.

Creative purchasing also overcomes the tight-space issue at the Hard Luck Diner, according to Grand Village food manager Diane Kennedy. Prepared ready-to-go items are crucial to the concept's fast, uncrowded and low-labor production flow.

"You don't really need all that food space," says Kennedy, who admits she had initial anxieties even though she had been hired with a small kitchen background.

"I doubted the thing was really big enough, but the front lines is so well set up and the menu so well designed that cold and hot production splits out at 30-70, making it doable."

Kennedy says that per meal period Hard Luck Diner serves 300 covers with an average check of $6.50.