NPR Sunday Puzzle: Feb. 19, 2012

Here's the solution to last week's NPR Sunday Puzzle (Feb. 19):

Answer: SANTA + IAGO = SANTIAGO

NPR Sunday Puzzle for Feb. 19:
The word "marten," as in the animal, consists of the beginning letters of "Mississippi," "Arkansas," "Texas," and "New Mexico"; you can actually drive from Mississippi to Arkansas to Texas to New Mexico in that order. What is the longest common English word you can spell by taking the beginning letters of consecutive states in order as you travel through them? Puzzlemaster Will Shortz's answer has eight letters, but maybe you can top that.

Submit your answer to NPR for a chance to be on next week's broadcast and be sure to visit Jenny's Noodle next Sunday to see the correct answer!

Zero Revenue Food Cost Control

Dear Joe,

How are you doing? Hope your are doing fine there. What a great articles you have. It's quite late for me to know but I read it and it helps me a lot at work. I almost read all your articles but still I need your guidance.

I am working onboard a cruise ship (more in casino ship) and I need to make F&B budget. (The ship is not opened yet, still preparing for opening).
I have learned from your articles how to make food cost etc. But there is one thing that makes me confused, do you have any idea how to make F&B Budget or deal with this matter:
1. If the buffet (Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner and Supper) in the Restaurant are free?
2. How to make Food Cost against revenue if its all free?
3. How to make food cost percentage from this buffet cost?
As far as i know when i was in the hotel, when the buffet breakfast is free, we get revenue from the room charge. for ex. USD 5/ room for breakfast.
Our restaurant is open 24 hours (Ala Carte menu available 24 hours). We have only one Main Kitchen to serve 3 outlets so to count food cost for 3 outlets, the main kitchen will make one food requisition then it will transfer to different chillers for different outlets so i can account for each outlet's food cost. According to your articles, if it is central kitchen so the central kitchen will make one food requisition and tranfer to other kitchen outlets. (That's what I understand from one of your articles) so I use different chillers to count the food cost in each outlet. Or do I need to make different food requisition for each outlet? If I'm wrong, please guide me.

Thank you very much for your kind assistance. Stay healthy and Have a nice day.


Kind regards,

Yulisar

Thanks for the question Yulisar.  I believe there are many readers who have the same issue.

How do we account for food cost when there is no revenue figure to divide?  In your operation, there will be a final, confirmed passenger count.  This count will provide a divisor.  As we discussed last month, the food cost calculation will be the same:  FC = BI + P - EI.  You will divide this result by your passenger count.

Since all passengers and crew can eat 24 hours a day, our main concern is over production by day part or for a specific recipe.  Tracking food movement by outlet is interesting after a main shift.  Look for too much or not enough food in stock for each outlet.  If the outlet is a buffet, track pans (by %) leftover.  You will begin to get a handle for the popularity of both the outlets and the specific menu items.  This data can be used in menu planning and production.

Spoilage can be quantified and tracked by passenger-days.  

Focus your initial efforts on the main buffets due to the large volume of consumption.  I like to analyze buffet layouts.  If you cost buffet components (by pan), you can begin to see how layout changes can impact overall food cost.  Ingredient costs change by season and a dynamic recipe model will pay for itself as your prices fluctuate.

There is a tendency in cost analysis to focus on grill items since they are easy to track.  In large volume buffet operations, I prefer to analyze the overall layout (by station) with cost and consumption data for each component (including condiment usage).

ABCinema, an Animated Movie Quiz

If you liked the recently-popular 80s and 90s Film Alphabet Poster Quiz, you'll surely enjoy ABCinema, an animated movie quiz.

How many can you identify?

(via THD)

Woman's Pizza-Only Diet Could Be Deadly

And then a hero comes along...

A WOMAN who has eaten only cheese and tomato pizza for 31 years has been told she could DIE unless she quits her bizarre dining habit.Mature student Claire Simmons, 33, gags if she puts anything but a plain pizza slice in her mouth.She also SHAKES the moment she is presented with any other type of food.

Frankly, I can't think of a better way to go.

(via The Sun)

Future Social Media Hipsters

"When I told people I was a Community Manager, they really didn't understand what I was doing." —Me, in 50 years

(via Neatorama)

Google's Valentine Surprise

Type the following gobbledygook math function into Google for a Valentine's Day surprise:

1.4sqrt(cos(x))*cos(300x)+sqrt(abs(x))-0.7)*(4-x*x)^0.01, sqrt(6-x^2), -sqrt(6-x^2) from -4.5 to 4.5

Happy Valentine's Day!

(via Mashable)

NPR Sunday Puzzle: Feb. 23, 2012

Here's the solution to last week's NPR Sunday Puzzle (Feb. 5):

Answer: GORILLA + (A, T) = ALLIGATOR

NPR Sunday Puzzle for Feb. 12:
Name two fictional characters — the first one good, the second one bad. Each is a one-word name. Drop the last letter of the name of the first character. Read the remaining letters in order from left to right. The result will be a world capital. What is it?

Submit your answer to NPR for a chance to be on next week's broadcast and be sure to visit Jenny's Noodle next Sunday to see the correct answer!

Cute Hello Kitty Jets Fly the Friendly Skies

The friendly skies just got even friendlier, courtesy of the cute Japanese character Hello Kitty.

According to CNNGo, Taiwanese airline EVA Air is launching three Hello Kitty-themed planes, serving Japan, South Korea, and Guam.

On board, more than 100 in-flight items are specially designed with the Hello Kitty motif — including headrest covers, tissues, paper cups, utensils, milk bottles, snacks, soap dispensers, hand lotion, meals and ice cream.

Passengers can also purchase limited edition duty-free products, such as Hello Kitty-shaped pasta, from flight attendants wearing Hello Kitty aprons.

Who wouldn't trade tiny peanut or pretzel packets for Hello Kitty-shaped pasta?

(via CNNGo)

NPR Sunday Puzzle: Feb. 5, 2012

Here's the solution to last week's NPR Sunday Puzzle (Jan. 29):

Answer: 1234 - 5 - 6 + 789 = 2012

NPR Sunday Puzzle for Feb. 5:
Name an animal. Add the letters "A" and "T," and rearrange the result to name another animal. These are both animals that might be found in a zoo, and the last letter of the first animal is the first letter of the last one.

Submit your answer to NPR for a chance to be on next week's broadcast and be sure to visit Jenny's Noodle next Sunday to see the correct answer!

'The Princess Bride' 25th Anniversary Tribute Wine

"All right. Where is the poison? The battle of wits has begun. It ends when you decide and we both drink, and find out who is right... and who is dead."

The year was 1987 when we first watched as handsome Westley rescued the lovely Buttercup from evil Prince Humperdinck of Florin. Now, 25 years later, Alamo Drafthouse Cinema is releasing a tribute signature wine inspired by "The Princess Bride" movie.

The “Bottle Of Wits” wine line will include two varieties: “Inconceivable Cab” and “As You Wish White” — both will be available online in the near future.

The company also promises that neither blend will contain any trace of iocane powder.

 
(via Eater)