9A - Testing the Hypothesis, Part II

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Interviews:


1. Owner of PDQ Gainesville

This is a repeat from Part I, but I had extended interview time and asked him some extra questions that made him a great fit for this portion of testing the hypothesis. I learned that:

  •        PDQ has an allergy menu
  •        PDQ outsources some functions of its business (marketing, customer outreach, etc.)
  •        The owner of PDQ Gainesville could not outsource the creation of an allergy menu to me even if they did not have one because he does not have the authority as merely a franchise owner representing an entire brand


2. Owner of Relish Burger

I learned that:

  •        Relish does not have an allergy menu
  •        Relish sees not need for an allergy menu because all of their ingredients are displayed in front of guests and the workers can assist customers with any further inquiries


3. Manager at Mojo Hogtown BBQ

I learned that:

  •        Mojo Hogtown does not have an allergy menu
  •        Mojo Hogtown determined there is no need for an allergy menu because their servers are deeply educated on the food products at the restaurant and can ask customer questions directly to the kitchen staff/chef if necessary


4. Manager at Tijuana Flats

I learned that:

  •        Tijuana does not have an allergy menu
  •        Similar to Mojo, Tijuana does not use an allergy menu, and instead relies on the servers to relay information between the customers and the kitchen staff


5. Manger at Bento

I learned that:

  •        Bento has an allergy menu, but it is not exhaustive; it highlights only certain allergen presences (shellfish)
  •        Bento sees no need for an allergy menu. They interact with the customers with food allergies on the basis that they can not guarantee there will not be cross-contamination
  •        Bento relays information to kitchen staff similar to Tijuana in order to accommodate customers



 Boundary Table
Inside the Boundary
Outside the Boundary
Restaurants who do not currently have a system to accommodate customers with food allergies
Restaurants which have an allergy menu or other method to accommodate guests with food allergies
These businesses need a way to accommodate customers with food allergies
These businesses do not necessarily need an allergy menu specifically, but that could still be a solution
Restaurants aren’t away of the importance of having an allergy menu
Restaurants are unable/don’t know how to create system to accommodate these guests




Comments

  1. Brooke DesantisSeptember 26, 2019 at 8:47 AM

    Hey Jonathan,
    As I was reading through your interviews I noticed something about relish the the owners probably did not think of. While they do not feel having an allergy menu is important because all the items are seen my the customers and separated, this is not true for their sauces. An allergy menu detailing what ingredients each sauce contains would be very helpful as it is hard to tell what could possibly be in them.

    ReplyDelete
  2. AustinAbramczykSeptember 30, 2019 at 9:43 AM

    While relying on the staff is an okay form of asking if the ingredients have an ingredient you might be allergic to, I feel that some of the staff don't know exactly what may be in it, and I feel that if they have to keep asking the cook it halts him from working for a few seconds. This could add up to loss of profit. But it would definitely be a great idea to say put a small peanut by things on the menu that contain peanuts would be a quick and easy fix for some of the restaurants that you interviewed so that they don't have to be continually be asked about ingredients.

    ReplyDelete
  3. Remi TaylorSeptember 30, 2019 at 9:52 AM

    Hi Johnathan! Great job on the assignment as it is very weird that not all of these restaurants have allergy menus on them. These places may think that all their food is laid out so you do not need in allergy menu but that is certainly not the case. At places like this their food can contain things that you are not aware about, so there should not be an allergy menu. Great job!

    ReplyDelete

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