FM's 2005 Top 50 Management Companies 21-30

FM Staff

21 Southern Foodservice Management, Inc.
22 Crystal Food Services
23 Aladdin Food Management Services, Inc.
24 Whitsons Food Services Corp.
25 MMI Dining Systems
26 Metz & Associates, Ltd.
27 Parkhurst Dining Services
28 Sanese Services, Inc.
29 CL Swanson Corp.
30 Cura Hospitality

21 Southern Foodservice Management, Inc.
BIRMINGHAM, AL
www.southernfood.net

MAJOR SEGMENTS SERVED: B&I (80%)

In addition to its core B&I market, Southern also services clients in the K-12, military, government and higher education segments. Recently, it has developed "Southern Alternative," a marketing program designed to position its services as the top alternative to the industry's "Big Three" contractors. On the culinary front, it continues to refine its Smart Cuisine healthy dining and Culinary Classics upscale dining programs.

Despite its name, Southern operates in more than a dozen states and maintains operations in markets as far-flung as Cleveland and Seattle. Though B&I remains its core business the company has been diversifying in recent years into segments like private schools, zoos and special event catering services.

22 Crystal Food Services
INDIANAPOLIS, IN
www.crystalfs.com

MAJOR SEGMENTS SERVED: B&I (40%), K-12 (20%), Convention/Conference Ctrs. (17%), Parks/Recreation Ctrs. (13%)

A division of Marsh Supermarkets, Crystal derives about 45% of its revenues from catering and much of the rest from a combination of manual foodservice, vending, OCS and concessions. In the past year, Crystal has focused on enhancing its CAFE (Creating Amazing Food Experiences) onsite dining management services brand by emphasizing customer service and upgrading merchandising standards. Crystal also recently opened its first Trio's express airport restaurant and has rolled out the gourmet pizza/salad/ sandwich concept to several B&I accounts as well.

23 Aladdin Food Management Services, Inc.
WHEELING, WV
www.aladdinfood.com

MAJOR SEGMENTS SERVED: K-12 (39%), College/University (38%), Eldercare (19%),

Aladdin underwent a significant restructuring in the past year, splitting into three operating groups, reducing the size of its supervisory districts and designating a new vice president of business development. It also established a strategic plan for each operating group encompassing financial accountability, new operating standards set by each of their markets and the rollout of the company's New Perspectives account retention initiative. The company also introduced a pair of proprietary concepts: the Ciabatta's specialty bread and sandwich concept targeted to the B&I and education markets, and the Poblano's Southwest/Tex-Mex concept, geared to higher education accounts.

24 Whitsons Food Services Corp.
HUNTINGTON STATION, NY
www.whitsons.com

MAJOR SEGMENTS SERVED: K-12 (47%), B&I (19%), Delivered Meals (22%), Special Services (12%)

Whitsons has fully branded its Frait Express grab and go concept with menus, labels and packaging, and also rolled out a new line of Smart Choices healthy entrees, including menu items meeting the needs of popular diets such as South Beach and Weight Watchers. It has also revamped its school nutrition program to include mandatory menu components such as brown rice, whole wheat breads and buns, whole wheat crust pizza, entree salads, fresh vegetables with low-fat dips and a "Smart Snack" program. To reduce costs and expand efficiencies, it has implemented cook-chill technology. Currently, Whitsons is getting ready to move into its new 44,000-sq.ft. corporate office, scheduled for the end of the year, and is also in the process of branding its various segment operations with distinct identities.

25 MMI Dining Systems
FLOWOOD, MS
www.mmihotelgroup.com/diningsystems.html

MAJOR SEGMENTS SERVED: Eldercare (34%), Hotels (29%), Clubs (18%)

A division of the MMI Hotel Group for which it manages foodservice operations, MMI Dining also operates in the healthcare, B&I, higher education, K-12 and sports segments. Its most significant recent initiative was the rollout in May of its second Corky's Ribs & BBQ restaurant concept, which specializes in slow smoked pork shoulders and fresh foods. The restaurants average 5,000 square feet and generate around $2 million in sales. Among the company's largest foodservice accounts are the Jekyll Island (GA) Convention Center, the Airport Holiday Inn in Jacksonville, the King & Prince Beach Resort in St. Simons Island, GA, and the Moosehaven Retirement Community in Orange Park, FL, all with annual F&B volumes exceeding $2 million.

26 Metz & Associates, Ltd.
DALLAS, PA
www.metzltd.com

MAJOR SEGMENTS SERVED: K-12 (33%), B&I (27%), College/University (19%), Hospitals (10%), Eldercare (10%)

Metz celebrated its 10th annivarsary in business this past year with an elaborate event during its annual recognition and educational conference, Summit 2005. Also, company founder and current CEO John Metz was recognized in May by the National Restaurant Association Educational Foundation with induction into its prestigious College of Diplomates. Meanwhile the company continues to add clients—Pocono (PA) Medical Center and Bishop Hoban High School in Wilkes-Barre, PA, being the latest— and refining its dining offerings, particularly in the area of healthier alternatives.

27 Parkhurst Dining Services
PITTSBURGH, PA
www.parkhurstdining.com

MAJOR SEGMENTS SERVED: College/ University (50%), B&I (43%)

One of two onsite foodservice divisions of Eat'n Park Hospitality (see also #30 Cura Hospitality below), Parkhurst operates in the Mid-Atlantic region, including Pennsylvania, West Virginia and Ohio. Recently, it has been focusing on promoting its "brand mantra": Personal Relationships...Exceptional Culinary Experiences. The company also continues to expand its authentic ethnic cuisine offerings and has also added Mediterranian composed salads and a wider range of espresso based drinks to its menus.

28 Sanese Services, Inc.
COLUMBUS, OH
www.sanese.com

MAJOR SEGMENTS SERVED: B&I (76%)

Vending accounts for about half of Sanese's volume, while manual foodservice represents about a third. Sanese also delivers pre-plated, chilled lunches (made in its Columbus production center) to elementary schools in the company's 185 refrigerated trucks. The operating territory is Ohio and surrounding states.

29 CL Swanson Corp.
MADISON, WI
www.swansons.net

MAJOR SEGMENTS SERVED: B&I (96%)

Unusually, Swanson is both a foodservice and a software company. It operates a network of commissaries that provides more than 100,000 fresh food selections weekly to its vending customers while also managing manual foodservice operations in selected B&I, healthcare, college and corrections locations. Meanwhile, it has also sold its internally developed financial mangement software to more than 400 institutional clients worldwide. On the culinary front, in the past year Swanson rolled out its Better-4-You healthy fresh food and snack program and developed its Sabroso y Rapido program for client environments with significant Hispanic populations.

30 Cura Hospitality
OREFIELD, PA
www.curahospitality.com

MAJOR SEGMENTS SERVED: Eldercare (98%)

A division of Eat n' Park Hospitality Group since 1999, along with Parkhurst Dining Services (see #27 above), Cura provides dining and contract management services to residential facilities for independent living, assisted living and skilled nursing care, as well as retirement communities in Pennsylvania, New Jersey and Maryland. Recent initiatives include the development of LivingLife, a structured approach to eldercare resident well-being built around high-quality food choices and LifeStyle Dining, the company's master planning process to bring commercial restaurant options to retirement community living. In addition, Cura has also initiated the development of a front-line supervisor training/certification program, rolled out 200-level courses in its Culinary College and added a full-time training manager and a second director of clinical nutrition services.

Top 50 Contractors 1-10 | 11-20 | 21-30 | 31-40 | 41-50