Tag Archive: food

  1. The Wait Is Almost Over

    4 Comments

    For Immediate Release:

    Monical’s Pizza Paris To Re-Open

    Following the recent retirement of long-time franchisee Diane Boyer and subsequent remodeling of the Paris Monical’s Pizza, the restaurant is scheduled to re-open at the end of August.  Formerly a franchise location, the Paris Monical’s will now be operated as a company-owned restaurant with Jennifer Denton assuming General Manager responsibilities.  Jennifer has served as an Assistant Manager at the Tilton Monical’s and as General Manager of the Mattoon restaurant.

    The Paris remodeling includes upgrades to the kitchen and dining room in addition to new ADA accessible restrooms.  Work was done by general contractor Tony Grimes and a team of local sub-contractors. Guests will also notice several new menu items as well as online ordering for carry-out and delivery. Hours of operation will be 11:00 a.m. to 10 p.m. daily.

    New GM Jennifer Denton says “This is a great opportunity for our Paris team to take a long-lasting Paris tradition and continue showing why the Monical’s Pizza experience is so special.  We’re going to do our best to live up to our tradition and hope the community will love what’s new and what’s the same about their Paris Monical’s.”

    Monical’s Pizza provides a number of community outreach programs including “School Reading” Reward, “Pizza with a Purpose” Fundraiser and “Sports Backer” for local athletic teams.  A complete list can be viewed at www.monicals.com.  The restaurant also offers a new Catering Menu with carry-out and delivery packages for meetings, wedding rehearsals, graduations and parties of all kinds. Monical’s “Dippin’ Club” provides members with updates on new products, community programs and special deals and can be joined at the company’s website.

    Monical’s Pizza is the recipient of numerous local and national recognitions not only for their community efforts and “Readers Choice” awards, but also as an “Employer of Choice” winner from the National Restaurant Association.   Founded in 1959 Monical’s Pizza currently consists of 65 locations in Illinois, Indiana and Wisconsin.

    For additional information contact:
    Max Brigham
    Team Leader, Guest Satisfaction
    815.929.2025
    max@monicals.com

  2. Monical’s Pizza of Paris Announces Ownership Transition

    Leave a Comment

    For Immediate Release

    July 13, 2015 – After more than 40 years with Monical’s Pizza, Diane Boyer has decided to move on to the next phase of her life…retirement. She became the Franchisee of Paris in 1976 and has been the face of Monical’s in the community ever since. As a long-standing member of the Monical’s “family”, Diane leaves her restaurant in good hands as it will convert from a franchise to company-operated location.

    Janelle Reents, Monical’s Pizza President, says “We are excited about the opportunity to work with our dedicated Monical’s team members along with serving the people and community organizations of Paris. While there is a transition to manage, we know that with Diane’s support the change will go smoothly. Donna Jakob, Monical’s Chief Operating Officer, adds “Our tradition as a company has always been to be the place where people can come together to relax and share good company with food everyone can enjoy. That has been and will continue to be our commitment to the people of Paris.”

    The schedule currently calls for some facility improvements to begin in July with a planned re-opening in August. Changes will include décor enhancements, equipment additions and select menu changes. Monical’s Pizza, founded in 1959, now consists of 65 restaurants in Illinois, Indiana and Wisconsin.

    For additional information contact:
    Max Brigham
    Team Leader, Guest Satisfaction
    815.929.2025
    max@monicals.com

  3. Monical’s Nutritional Calculator

    62 Comments

    nutritionalcalculator

    In response to both increased guest demand and pending legislation under the Affordable Care Act, we decided to update our on-line nutrition information to make it more user- friendly.  We searched for a provider who could give us a more comprehensive approach for accessing our nutritional information.  After reviewing a large number of nutritional information pages on restaurant websites, we concluded that a “nutrition calculator’ would be an excellent approach for us to follow.  The nutritional calculator allows guests to “build” their meals and then receive a broad range of nutritional information.  A bonus of this effort was that the nutritional calculator would also list potential allergens to assist guests with food allergies in making safe meal choices.

     

    We selected Nutritional Information Services (NIS), a company headquartered in Washington D. C., as our nutritional information provider.  We submitted to NIS all of our recipes (including specialty recipes from our franchisees) along with portion information and product specification sheets for all of the food products we utilize in our operations.  Utilizing our information, NIS built a calculator specific to our corporate menu which will be linked to our new website.  While the calculator will be specific only to the corporate menu, each individual franchise location will have a link to a PDF, which will contain nutritional information specific to their local menu.

     

    Healthy eating is a product of making good choices based on accurate information combined with an active lifestyle.  For most people it doesn’t mean giving up the things you enjoy, just making choices with balance and moderation in mind.  Monical’s Pizza is working to provide enjoyable food of high quality with the information our guests need to make good meal decisions.

  4. The Shipping Project

    99 Comments

    As the holidays are coming, many people are making a list and checking it twice.  For those loved ones who have moved away from their hometown, they often would like a “taste of home” as a gift.  We have researched, long and hard, on how to ship Monical’s pizza.  So here is the story.

    In order for us to ship our Oven-Ready (frozen) pizzas, they have to be manufactured in a USDA-approved facility. To date we haven’t found a manufacturer who can make our pizzas to our standards. We make them in our restaurants and can maintain quality that way, but aren’t able to ship them due to the USDA restriction. We continue to work on this and are making some progress, but don’t yet have a satisfactory solution to the issue.

    The biggest challenge to manufacturing the Oven-Ready pizzas on a large scale was the quality.  Monical’s dough process requires two days with multiple “hands on” or manual processes.  This “handmade” process ensures that our doughs (the crust), the heart of our product, maintain the real “Monical’s” texture and taste.

    After researching the possibility of producing USDA-approved frozen pizzas ourselves and discovering that it would be cost prohibitive, we began searching for an existing manufacturer.  With only one exception every manufacturer we contacted wanted a guarantee of production of units far in excess of our estimates.  We first met with this manufacturer in July of 2010 to tour their facility and discuss a potential partnership with them manufacturing our frozen products.  After some time spent reviewing and revising a proposed agreement, we were able to begin the production of our first test batch of frozen pizzas in September 2010.  Our dough production procedures were quite a bit different than the manufacturer was accustomed to and several modifications to our procedures needed to be made to fit into their production process.  Five different product batches were produced in September without achieving the desired crust quality.  We continued to work with the manufacturer to achieve our product quality goal.  Monical’s started with smaller test batches.  5-10 pizzas went well.  So we moved to 50 pizzas.  Still successful.  However when we made 300 pizzas, the production run uncovered glitches in the process.  Because the finished product did not meet our quality standards we decided not to sell the product and instead donated those pizzas to a local food pantry.  To date we have not been able to develop a process that will produce the infamous Monical’s crunch, flavor and aroma.  And isn’t that what you want?  So we will continue to investigate but wanted to be sure our loyal customers knew the “real” story.

  5. Another great recipe from a loyal fan!

    Leave a Comment

    Here is an amazing recipe that was submitted by John Sales, Jr., a loyal guest and one of our biggest facebook fans! He says: “I’ve been known to refer to Meatloaf as FOTG ‘Food Of The Gods’ with this recipe it’s closer to the truth!!”

    If you are not near a Monical’s location, you can order our dressing online by clicking here.

    Find this and other recipes right here on our blog by clicking our ‘Recipes’ link above (or click here).

    Sweet & Tart Suffed Peppers

  6. Monical’s Pizza Makes It Happen

    Leave a Comment

    Christmas is a time of joy, community and goodwill. It is a time of giving and helping those who are less fortunate than us. This year, Monical’s Pizza made it happen during its annual holiday meeting on Monday, December 10th in Bloomington, IL.

    MidwestFoodBankDonation

    During the Holiday Meeting, attendees donated non-perishable food items, which prior to being given to the Midwest Food Bank, were used to create a (temporary) indoor miniature golf course. This went to prove that sometimes it’s ok to play with your food.  When finished, it was determined that 3,172 items (or 7,428 pounds) of food plus and additional $415 were donated to the Midwest Food Bank, which supplies over half of the food banks in Illinois.

    In lieu of having a gift exchange, Monical’s managers, corporate support staff, franchise owners and vendors attending their Holiday Meeting were asked to bring an unwrapped toy donation for Toys for Tots.  The Monical’s Team in attendance helped Central Illinois residents by donating nearly two vans full of gifts at this event.  Monical’s Pizza restaurants are also collection sites, where guests and restaurant staff can also make toy donations.

    The McLean County Toys for Tots is celebraring it’s 20th Anniversary this year. Matt Drat accepted Monical’s toy donations on behalf of the organization. Their goal for the county this year is 20,000 toys for more than 6000 children.

    Monical’s Pizza would like to thank Central Illinois Produce, Vermilion Valley Produce, Fontanini, Randolph Packing, Busey Bank, Enterprise Rent-A-Car and Grand Victoria Casino for helping make their Holiday Meeting a success! A special “Thank You” goes to Delco Foods, Gordon Food Service and Pepsi for donating food which will go to the Midwest Food Bank and for contributing to the success of this annual event!

    380738_10152378572650235_1356944960_n

    Donated food for the Midwest Food Bank

  7. Monical’s Named “Best Practices” Finalist!

    2 Comments

    People Report and Black Box Intelligence have announced 13 finalists for the 2012 Best Practices awards, which honor four restaurant companies for exceptional workplace practices and results. 

    In addition to Monical’s Pizza, the finalists include BJ’s Restaurants, The Capital Grille, Corner Bakery Cafe, Eat’n Park Restaurants, La Madeleine, Le Pain Quotidien, K&N Management, Longhorn Steakhouse, Maggiano’s Little Italy, McDonald’s, Red Lobster and White Castle.

    “These companies represent some of the best workplaces in our industry,” said Joni Thomas Doolin, founder and chief executive of People Report.

    The Best Practices awards, which represent industry segments from quick service to casual dining, will be given Nov. 8, during the 18th annual Best Practices Conference in Dallas.  People Report said the finalists were evaluated on their retention of both managers and employees, the diversity of their workforces, compensation practices, community involvement, corporate responsibility, employee funds and foundations, and initiatives in sustainable business practices.

    Dallas-based People Report provides employment analytics for its members on a monthly basis.  Its sister company, Black Box Intelligence, provides weekly restaurant industry financial and market data.  Together they report on more than 33,000 restaurant units with one million employees

  8. C is for Cookie (or Calzone!)

    3 Comments

    Do you remember the Sesame Street song “C is for Cookie”? We do! We thought we would try to come up with Monical’s menu items to fill up the rest of the alphabet! We were able to come up with 21 of the 26 letters in the alphabet. How many can you list?

    A: Apple Slices
    B: Breadsticks
    C: Cookie or Calzone
    D: Delight (pizza combination)
    E: Extra Meat or Veggies (pricing per topping)
    F: Family Pleaser
    G: Gluten Free Pizza
    H: Half Sandwich and Salad Combination
    I: Italian Special (pizza combination)
    J: Juice
    K: Kid’s Menu
    L: Lasagna
    M: Mozzarella Sticks
    N: Nacho cheese
    O: Oven-Ready (Frozen) Pizza
    P: Pecan Grilled Chicken Salad
    Q:
    R: Ravioli
    S: Sweet Tea
    T: Turkey BLT Sandwich
    U:
    V: Veggie Toppings (or pizza combo)
    W: Wings
    X:
    Y:
    Z:

  9. Charlie’s tradition

    2 Comments

    Charlie eats at his favorite restaurant on shot days.  I took this picture on July 27, 2010 at Monical’s- 3542 N. Vermilion, Danville, IL.

    Mommy gets spaghetti and Nana gets pizza so he’s all set!

    The employees and customers at CVS thought this picture was just adorable. They said it belonged in a restaurant or a photo contest. All of our friends and relatives (as my daughter and I both have 8×10’s in our kitchens) say he should be a bright blue-eyed Monical’s Poster Child.

    We just had to share this with you since it’s our favorite snapshot. Enjoy!

    Mick & Ruby F

  10. Re-heating that “Magical Moment”

    2 Comments

    Top Tips for Re-heating Monical’s Thin Crust Pizza

     We love to tell our guests then when it comes to our pizza, we are experts at creating that “Magical Moment.”  You know, that moment when the cheese settles and the pieces separate into deliciously crisp, bite-sized squares of flavor-filled perfection.  While that moment lasts through the meal, we get questions all the time about how to create that moment at home without taking home one of our team members.  Whether you’re working with take home Monical’s or even leftover Monical’s here are a few of the top re-heating tips we’ve put together over the years.

    Re-heating Overview:

    Once you’ve got that pizza in your house, you have a decision to make – do you just want it warm, or do you want it warm and crispy?  The Monical’s Magical Moment we’re trying to re-create is all about the pizza being crisp and warm…so that’s where we’ll spend most of our time.  But if you’re in the microwave crowd, don’t worry – we’ve got a ”hot” tip in here for you, too.

    No matter which method you choose, when it comes to re-heating pizza, you always have to start with pizza that is at room temperature.  So before re-heating, pull your pizza out of the refrigerator and let it sit for approximately 15-20 minutes. (Reminder: do not leave pizza unsupervised during this process – our pizza has a tendency to mysteriously disappear when left unattended.)

    Stove Top:

    Get out the trusty old frying pan (bonus points if it’s a cast iron skillet) and turn the burner on low for a 1-2 minutes to warm up the bottom of your pan.  While the pan gets warm, prepare a tin foil dome to act as a cover. *For a crispier crust, one family member suggests brushing a very slight layer of butter on the bottom of each pizza slice. With the pan warm and the dome ready, place your room temperature pizza in the pan and heat at medium-low heat for 4-5 minutes while the pan is covered with the domed foil lid. The foil will help reflect heat back to the toppings without trapping steam inside.

    Oven:

    How you re-heat using an oven will vary between oven types and based on what you are placing the pizza on for warming. If you are using a pizza stone, place that in the oven.  If you do not have a stone, place a sheet of foil directly on the oven’s surface. Set the oven to preheat to 450 – 475 degrees and lay the room temperature slices on the stone/foil.  Leave the pizza in until the oven finishes pre-heating or until you see the cheese bubbling.

    Toaster Oven:

    Toaster ovens are a good option if they are available. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees and put your room temperature slices on some foil for about 10 minutes or until cheese is bubbling.

    Microwave Oven:

    This is the least preferred method for heating, but we would be remiss to leave this option out. Crispiness is not really an option here, but we do have a trick to keeping the pizza crust moist.  Place your room temperature pizza in the microwave, with a cup of water, and use the defrost setting in 30 sec. increments to prevent overheating. Remove when warm.

    If you have tried one of these or have your own way we may have missed, please take a minute to share your thoughts.

  11. We love trying your recipes too!

    2 Comments

    With the cooler weather quickly approaching, why not try this amazing meatloaf! This recipe was submitted by Christine Loy, a loyal guest. She says: “The sweet and tart makes all the difference. It is awesome!” If you are not near a Monical’s location, you can order our dressing online by clicking here.

    Find this and other recipes right here on our blog by clicking our ‘Recipes’ link above (or click here).

  12. A duo meant for the ages… “Sweet & Tart”

    2 Comments

    For 50 years, Monical’s has been famous (in part) for our Sweet & Tart Salad Dressing.  Our Guests have learned to use it not just on salad, but also on pizza, breadsticks, sandwiches and just about anything else on the menu.

    [youtube=http://youtube.com/watch?v=fGoeVbU5gZY]The original Sweet & Tart recipe dates back many years, and the recipe is not easy to reproduce or duplicate. The slightest variation in the way it’s made can cause changes in color, texture or taste. Because of the incredibly loyal following this dressing has, our Guests or our Management Teams notice changes immediately. It’s then that our Quality Assurance Team must spring into action and work with vendors to find a solution.

    We not only purchase the dressing in large quantities for restaurant use, but also sell it (a lot of it) in pint bottles. We recently developed a “light” version with a nearly identical taste profile that is (shameless promotion to follow) for sale online or in our restaurants.

    Due to the extreme popularity of our Sweet & Tart Salad Dressing, we know we must do whatever is necessary to monitor and protect the quality and consistency of this product.  Salad dressing may not seem like a big thing to many restaurants, but to us and our Guests, it’s a significant part of what makes Monical’s special.

  13. Join Monical’s in taking a bite out of Childhood Hunger

    2 Comments

    Monical’s Pizza Joins Share Our Strength’s Dine Out For No Kid Hungry™

    September 18 – 24, 2011

    Restaurants Across the Country Embrace Week-Long Event to End Childhood Hunger in America

    Bradley, IL… Monicals’s Pizza is proud to announce its participation in Share Our Strength’s Dine Out For No Kid Hungry™, a week-long national restaurant event in cities across the United States. From September 18-24, Monical’s will be offering 20% off a one topping Family Pleaser® and making a $1 donation for every one purchased to NO KID HUNGRY. Participating store locations are available at DineOutForNoKidHungry.org and www.monicalspizza.com/shareourstrength.

    20% off Family Pleaser offer Aug. 29-Sept. 25, 2011

    This is one of the many ways thousands of restaurants all across America will be raising funds this September to support No Kid Hungry™, Share Our Strength’s national campaign to end childhood hunger in America by 2015. More than 17 million children in America—almost one of four—struggle with hunger. With the support of thousands of restaurants like Monical’s Pizza, dozens of corporate partners and millions of consumers, Share Our Strength is changing that.

    “Monical’s has been a an active supporter of numerous community services throughout our 51 year history. I can think of no better effort than to eliminate childhood hunger in America. That’s a cause we can get behind,” states Janelle Reents, President.

    “We are asking everyone—private citizens, businesses, policymakers and other nonprofits—to help us end childhood hunger in this country,” said Bill Shore, Founder of Share Our Strength.  “We continue to be amazed by the generosity and commitment of the restaurant industry and its customers. Last year, they raised more than $1.5 million through Dine Out For No Kid Hungry, a record high and twice what was raised the year before. Our goal is to involve as many restaurants and their customers as it takes to make No Kid Hungry a reality by 2015.

    “I encourage everyone to dine out often at participating Dine Out For No Kid Hungry restaurants in September, then visit our web site, Strength.org, to learn what more they can do to make sure every child in America has access to the nutritious food they need.”

    Share Our Strength’s Dine Out For No Kid Hungry is sponsored by Sysco, Ecolab, American Express, USA Today and the National Restaurant Association.

    About Monical’s Pizza

    Founded in 1959, Monicla’s Pizza consists of 63 restaurants in Illlinois, Indiana and Wisconsin.  More information about our company can be found at www.monicalspizza.com.

    About Share Our Strength

    Share Our Strength®,a national nonprofit, is ending childhood hunger in America by connecting children with the nutritious food they need to lead healthy, active lives.  Through its No Kid Hungry® Campaign—a national effort to end childhood hunger in America by 2015—Share Our Strength ensures children in need are enrolled in effective federal nutrition programs; invests in community organizations fighting hunger; teaches families how to cook healthy, affordable meals; and builds public-private partnerships to end childhood hunger, at the state and city level. Working closely with the culinary industry and relying on the strength of its volunteers, Share Our Strength hosts innovative culinary fundraising events and develops pioneering cause marketing campaigns that support No Kid Hungry. Visit Strength.org to get involved.

  14. If you love Sweet & Tart Dressing …you’ll love these recipes!

    Leave a Comment

    Here is a quick and easy recipe for Sweet & Tart Taco Salad! It’s great for Dinner,  Picnics or Pot-Lucks! Swing by Monical’s today to get your Family Garden Salad and Sweet & Tart Dressing! If you are not near a Monical’s location, you can order our dressing online by clicking here.

    Find this and other recipes right here on our blog by clicking our ‘Recipes’ link above (or click here).

  15. Community Programs

    2 Comments

    One of the reasons I love being part of the Monical’s family is because of the dedication to giving back to the great communities we serve.

    We believe that reading is one of the most important things a child can learn. Monical’s promotes childhood literacy through the School Reading Program and Summer Library Reading Program. Both programs instill the importance of reading while making the learning process fun and exciting for children.

    Monical’s also helps new families with our Lamaze program (no, Monical’s doesn’t teach breathing techniques for when you eat too much pizza). When expecting parents go through a Lamaze class at a participating hospital, they get a coupon for a free Monical’s Family Pleaser®, something which will help on one of those nights when the new parents are simply too tired to cook.

    There are so many great programs here at Monical’s, and it’s more than just about pizza – it’s family. We are privileged to be a part of our communities, honored that our communities include us as one of their own, and we’re thrilled to give back whenever we have the opportunity.

    Full descriptions and opportunity for participation by organizations are available for review in the Community Programs area of our company webpage. 

  16. Recycling at Monical’s Corporate Support Center

    2 Comments

    It began with recycling aluminum cans. Many of us were drinking canned soft drinks, so we installed a can crusher on the wall in our employee kitchen and placed a lined plastic garbage can under it. After empty cans were crushed, they simply fell into the lined garbage can. Once a bag became half-full, we took it to the local recycling center and redeemed it for cash. The money was then used to buy Dairy Queen treats for the office.

    Next, it was paper and cardboard. We spoke with our waste collector and found that by choosing one day of the week to recycle paper and cardboard (Thursday worked best), we could reduce the quantity of pick-ups. In addition to helping the environment, this method of recycling actually saved the company money.

    Then, plastic recycling tubs were placed under our desks and a we put a large tub in the fax/copier area. We designated a 4’ x 8’ area in our file room to collect corrugated cardboard during the week. On Thursdays, we spend 15 minutes dumping our tubs into a large pick-up can where it’s then pulled to the outdoor trash area near our employee entrance. The corrugated cardboard is broken down, placed in saved corrugated cardboard boxes, and set out with the paper to await for pickup. It’s gone before the end of our work day.

    Next, we tackled the prospect of recycling plastic bottles. A garbage can was placed in our kitchen specifically for PET and polyethylene bottles. We began noticing that the employees who didn’t have recycling collection at home began bringing their used bottles too. This presented two more opportunities: batteries and plastic bags.

    We only needed three square feet of space to accomplish this. For batteries, we placed a basket next to our shredding area. For plastic bags, we placed a plastic laundry hamper in the same area. As we began recycling the batteries from various office tools, the plastic bags from our lunches, the used packing materials and mailing sleeves, we once again found that our employees were continuing the effort by bringing their own used batteries and plastic bags from home.

    The batteries are recycled at the Interstate Battery Store, located just a couple of blocks away from our office. Interstate has taken it upon themselves to collect and store used batteries until a recycling center in the area is identified. The laundry hamper full of plastic bags is taken to a local grocery store where they happily accept them.

    Finally, our IT coordinator began accepting copier and printer cartridges for his church to recycle. As a result of this, we’ve been able to divert 50% of our spent cartridges to support his efforts.

    We seem to be treating this process casually and consistently. The reality of recycling is that it doesn’t take much time or require huge amounts of extra space and, in the end, we save the company money. We enjoy this small group effort for a variety of reasons, and rewarding our employees with ice cream certainly adds to the enjoyment.