Paradise Bakery & Café
Ovens for baking an array of breads, muffins and croissants are the focus of activity in this fast-growing chain's units. An exhibition-style sandwich and salad prep and assembly line also captures customers' attention.
By Donna Boss, Contributing Editor -- Foodservice Equipment & Supplies, 12/15/2005
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Lovers of bakery goods will look long and hard to find a restaurant experience that brings about a state of delight. This fact was well-known by four entrepreneurs who opened Paradise Bakery & Café, an establishment specializing in baking cookies and muffins while customers watched, in Long Beach, Calif., nearly 30 years ago. National real estate developers also recognized the potential of the concept and soon offered the owners an opportunity to bring the units, many with expanded menus of sandwiches, soups, salads, quiche, croissants and brownies, into shopping mall food courts in Dallas and other cities as far away as Phoenix. In 1998, a 4,500-square-foot street concept, which has added paninis and wraps to its menu lineup, was developed.
Today, the quick-casual chain concept exists in 10 states where 23 company units and 18 franchise stores generate $57 million in annual sales. Smaller units range in size and scope from a 100-square-foot kiosk selling sweets and coffee in a mall in Scottsdale, Ariz., to a 600-square-foot unit in Aspen, Colo., offering sweets, coffee, gelato and yogurt. The mall units measure 1,000-square-feet in locations such as Scottsdale Fashion Square in Arizona and the Prudential Center in Boston. In contrast, the 4,500-square-foot street locations in cities such as Phoenix, Salt Lake City and Indianapolis are built with a $250,000 equipment package that allows preparation of an even wider variety of menu items.
While positioning the chain to grow 15% to 20% each year for the next five years, the ratio of company-owned to franchised stores, which is now nearly 50-50, will tip toward more franchised stores in the future, says Dan Patterson, one of Paradise Bakery & Café's founders and its president and CEO.
"We started with excellence as the No. 1 criteria for doing business," Patterson says. "No company in this industry has been at this concept as long as we have. We believe that we offer a personal touch — three of the original four founders are still active in the business and managers have been with us for 15 years. This results in lower employee turnover than in most chains, a warm, personalized environment and high-quality presentation. Ultimately, we believe this brings in more customers."
Paradise Bakery & Café achieves excellence by preparing fresh food at the units and maintaining production and service controls to produce consistent products that meet the company's quality standards, Patterson says. The chain also accomplishes this by what he calls a "wow ambiance." For example, a multi-shelved welcome table at the entrance greets customers with menu item samples, menu displays and information about new products. At some locations, during openings, a giant decorated cookie displayed on a stand, greets customers. To the right of the welcome table is the "bakery" for breakfast and to-go service, with cold cases displaying yogurt parfaits and carrot cake. Room-temperature cases contain zucchini nut, mandarin orange, banana nut, raspberry and other muffin varieties; chocolate cream cheese, apple-filled and other types of croissants; and other bakery items. This area also features an espresso coffee machine. Customers order coffee at the main counter.
At lunch, a cafeteria line is available. Customers pick up a tray, then move to their left as they watch staff assemble sandwiches such as turkey cranberry on dark wheat bread and Paradise vegetarian on whole wheat bread, and wraps such as barbecue chicken. Behind glass food shields, staff prepare salads with everything from pasta to tomatoes and albacore tuna. Further along on the line are soups, desserts, drinks and cashiers. The condiment and fountain beverage stations are nearby. Menu boards with giant-sized pictures of featured items and generic food, and shelves lined with baskets of ingredients and prepared breads are sitting behind the exhibition station assembly line.
Décor in Paradise features pictures of people from many walks of life on brick walls, shiny surfaced counters, eclectic tile on the counter fronts and back walls, earth-tone colors, soft leather seats and fabric-backed banquettes, and wood trimmed tables with Formica and other inlaid materials. Various types of lighting, including track lighting, spotlight specific service areas. "We do all the design and graphics inhouse," Patterson says. "Our wives are involved, as well. Our business is us."
In the back of the house, a walk-in cooler and dry storage hold most of the food and supplies. A two-door freezer contains the small amount of frozen goods, such as berries for muffin and spinach for quiche. A dish-cleaning section contains a small dishwasher, sinks and hose reels.
Staff use sinks and spinners to prepare lettuce for salads, a buffalo chopper for tomatoes, and worktables for cutting vegetables and other salad and sandwich ingredients. They cut meats and cheese for sandwiches on a countertop slicer, and use portable, countertop burners to cook soups that are prepared to the chain's specs by a manufacturer and delivered in vacuum-sealed plastic bags.
Staff bring prepped ingredients from the kitchen to an eight-foot-long refrigerated salad unit with drop-in containers and an eight-foot-long sandwich unit along the back counter also with refrigerated containers. Stations are set up so more or fewer employees can work the line as needed during peak and slow periods.
At the end of the line are four wells for soups that are prepared for Paradise Bakery to spec by a manufacturer and cooked, and fresh bread. Further down the line are desserts and bottled beverages on ice. A nearby condiment area holds dispensers for soft drinks and iced tea.
"For each facet of the operation, we've studied productivity and have made adjustments over the years," Patterson says. "At peak periods, our goal is to serve a customer on the line in less than eight minutes. We do well reaching that target."
Bread is baked in convection ovens at all units, regardless of size. "Baking is the focal point," Patterson emphasizes. Dough for baked products is prepared in a large commissary in Phoenix and in mini-commissaries that are built into existing units and support five other stores. Equipment in the commissaries consists of a spiral mixer, a proofer, re-vent rotating ovens, smaller convection ovens for smaller batches and walk-in coolers and a freezer.
"We've used the same type of convection ovens for many, many years," Patterson explains. "We are experimenting with a different type of oven that doesn't require turning the products. But the bottom line is, the equipment must be durable and produce the product quality we need. Of course, we also must receive reliable service." The company's equipment dealer, he says, "jumps through hoops to get things done for us. We rely on a strong relationship."
Throughout the Paradise family of units, the equipment is fairly uniform. The corporate specification on the equipment package is detailed, though franchisees can select brand preferences and their own dealers and custom fabricators. "We approve franchisees' plans, so we are aware which equipment they are choosing. We rarely have a problem with their choices."
As the popularity of the quick-casual bakery café continues to grow, Patterson says Paradise will continue to expand at a rapid rate. He says the company's 27 months of positive comparative same sales growth "tells us we're pleasing the customers." On the other hand, Patterson adds, they continue to measure employee satisfaction by watching turnover, which he claims is low in comparison to the rest of the industry.
In the future, Paradise Bakery & Café's growth strategy will undoubtedly be supported by hiring an executive chef to revise menu items and keeping a streamlined equipment package that shows off baking and menu assembly. Ultimately, the strategy must be bringing customers to a state of delight. "Basically, we are still a 'hands-on' concept, which we believe sets us apart," he concludes.
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