Better 4 You Pasta LEANguini Thank You Noodles & Company

Evolving a brand is expected by consumers who are evolving faster than most restaurant brands.  When that happens consumers look, sample, try other brands.  It’s when those new brands have more relevance for the consumer that the consumer migrates to them for good.

Is your brand a past memory in the minds-eye of more customers this year than last year? Why?  How are you evolving with consumers? This week we are looking at plant-based foods and food that is deemed by consumers as ‘better-4-you’.  Steven Johnson Grocerant Guru® at Tacoma, WA based Foodservice Solutions®, stated, “if you are not evolving with your consumers your brand is losing consumers faster than garnering new ones.”

How do you know if you are losing customers? The best way to judge is look at your year over year customer counts?  Do you have more customer transaction this year vs last year?

Another company that is looking a customer ahead with relevance is Noodles & Company.  They are continuing on a R&D journey to offer healthier pasta options with the recent launch of a consumer relevant ‘better-4-you’ pasta they call, LEANguini.

So, get this the new pasta product has 56% fewer net carbs, 30% fewer total carbs and 44% higher protein than traditional linguini noodles. LEANguini was developed over the course of nearly two years by the Noodles’ culinary team to offer guests a pasta that delivers the same flavor, texture and qualities as fresh wheat noodles but with fewer carbs and calories.

In response to consumer request and research insights, Noodles & Company has been actively exploring low-carb pasta alternatives, starting with the national rollout of zucchini noodles in 2018, followed by cauliflower noodles in 2019 and cauliflower gnocchi early in 2021.

In a Battle for Share of Stomach

the Halo of 'Better-4-You' Matters

Noodles & Company, executive chef and VP of culinary Nick Graff, stated, “Menu innovation is extremely important to Noodles & Company. When adding new better-for-you options to our menu, we use only the freshest ingredients to deliver food that is not only better for you but robust in flavor,” … “Our guests took so well to Zoodles and Cauliflower Noodles, creating a health-forward noodle that has the same taste and texture as a traditional noodle was the clear next challenge.”

Currently, Noodles is testing the new linguini in three dishes. LEANguini Parmesan combines the noodles with roasted zucchini, Roma tomatoes and spinach in a lemon parmesan sauce; LEANguini Fresca tosses them with balsamic vinaigrette, olive oil, roasted garlic, tomato and red onion; and LEANguini Shrimp Scampi features the pasta with shrimp in light scampi sauce, roasted zucchini and Roma tomatoes topped with parmesan, parsley and lemon.

This is important, consumers can also substitute the lower-carb noodles in any menu item. LEANguini is being tested in select restaurants in Colorado, Illinois and Ohio.

Once again there is more, to encourage trial, Noodles created the January Healthy Options Challenge for rewards members. Throughout the month, guests who opt for a noodles swap of LEANguini at the test locations (or choose Zoodles or Caulifloodles at any unit) will receive double points on their order.

Success does leave clues. One clue that time and time again continues to resurface is “the consumer is dynamic not static”.  Regular readers of this blog know that is the common refrain of Steven Johnson, Grocerant Guru® at Tacoma, WA based Foodservice Solutions®.  Our Grocerant Guru® can help your company edify your brand with relevance.  Call 253-759-7869 for more information.

Noodles & Company Interactive Participatory Marketing

Making all the right move Noodles & Company, is focused on two key consumer touchpoints that all food retailers should be focusing on according to Steven Johnson, Grocerant Guru® at Tacoma, WA based Foodservice Solutions®.  

Those two touchpoints are brand messaging / marketing that interactive and participatory. In a new partnership with the acclaimed People's Improv Theater in New York City and the iO Theater in Chicago, Noodles & Company is going to bring the joy and spontaneity of live events directly to guests' homes via live-streamed interactive improv shows inspired by the endless possibilities of Noodles' signature dish: Wisconsin Mac & Cheese.

So, how is this for interactive and participatory opening the door to a world of 'Mac & Cheese & Yes &,' Noodles is hiring comedians from the two theaters to showcase their talent in five virtual 15-minute performances streamed via Facebook Live from Monday, August 17 to Friday, August 21 (each show will be made available at Noodles.com following the live performances). Starting with a prompt inspired by Noodles' Wisconsin Mac & Cheese and the infinite customizations and possibilities it brings, the live improv shows will take on a life of their own with the help of audience input and the performers' boundless creativity.

"We want to deliver the live entertainment that our guests are craving right now, and what better way to do so than through an interactive event, connecting people virtually through the power of laughter?" said Stacey Pool, chief marketing officer of Noodles & Company. "With more than 2.7 million ways to customize your Noodles mac, the possibilities are truly endless, and we can't wait to see how these clever performers are inspired by the very dish that excites our own individuality and creativity here at Noodles."  

In addition to providing a bit of comic relief, Noodles & Company is continuing the cheesy fun with a sweepstakes offer for five lucky guests to win big. All week while the improv shows are running, Rewards members can enter to win a year's worth of free Wisconsin Mac & Cheese* when they use the code "Coke&" online or on the mobile app to unlock a free beverage with the purchase of an entree. Plus, guests can use the free beverage deal to be one of the first to try the new Very Berry Minute Maid Lemonade Flavor, developed exclusively for Noodles by Coca-Cola Freestyle, available starting August 17.

As if guests don't have enough reason to register for Noodles Rewards right now, for a limited time only, new members will automatically receive unlimited free delivery for 30 days simply by signing up. To participate in the all the fun, guests need to register via the mobile app or online at Noodles.com/Rewards prior to their first order.

Winners will receive a reward for one free bowl of Wisconsin Mac & Cheese loaded to their Rewards account every week for 52 weeks

Are you ready for some fresh ideations? Do your food marketing ideations look more like yesterday than tomorrow? Interested in learning how our Grocerant Guru® can edify your retail food brand while creating a platform for consumer convenient meal participation, differentiation and individualization?  Email us at: Steve@FoodserviceSolutions.us or visit: us on our social media sites by clicking one of the following links: Facebook,  LinkedIn, or Twitter

Fast Casual or Fast Food Casual

Price points and speed of service converge at the consumer as the line between restaurant sectors continues to shrink.  What the customer wants the customer gets according to Steven Johnson, Grocerant Guru® at Tacoma, WA based Foodservice Solutions®.

Today our Grocerant ScoreCard indicate that there is less than $0.18 between the average fast casual check average and that of the average fast food restaurant.  More importantly many fast casual chains are evolving service attributes that speed up service to the point of fast food. 

One such company is Noodles & Company, known for serving classic noodle, zoodle and pasta dishes from around the world, announced two new limited-time-only (LTO’s) dishes: Zucchini Spicy Peanut Saute and Zucchini Truffle Mac. Noodles & Company is also expanding its delivery and quick pickup options to make trying your favorite noodles and world flavors easier than ever.

For zoodle-lovers who prefer a lighter meal option, the two new dishes, Spicy Zucchini Peanut Saute with Grilled Chicken and Zucchini Truffle Mac, will hit the spot. The dishes are only available for a limited time and feature zoodles rather than traditional noodles. Zoodles, which the company added to its menu in May, are full of vitamin C and potassium and have 90 percent fewer carbs and calories than a serving of elbow noodles.

1.        Zucchini Spicy Peanut Saute with Grilled Chicken: Zucchini noodles in a spicy, peanut-flavored sauce with grilled chicken, broccoli, carrots, snap peas and cabbage. Topped with peanuts, black sesame and cilantro.

2.        Zucchini Truffle Mac: Zucchini noodles in the famous Noodles & Company cheese sauce with black truffle, roasted mushrooms, Parmesan cheese and toasted breadcrumbs.

Nick Graff, executive chef at Noodles & Company stated "We're redefining the noodle in our World Kitchen by providing a variety of options to ensure there's something on our menu for everyone," .. "The new zoodle dishes, which are available for a limited time, combine some of our favorite and classic flavors to excite your taste buds."

Faster service or more relevant service options have been added at Noodles. Now there's an even easier way to try the new dishes through Noodles & Company's expanded delivery and quick pickup options. Noodles & Company expanded its partnership with DoorDash, to bring easy and convenient delivery to 300 Noodles & Company restaurants nationwide. The change comes in addition to Noodles & Company's delivery partnerships with Grubhub, Uber Eats and EatStreet, and on-premise easy pickup options.

Dave Boennighausen, chief executive officer of Noodles & Company stated "We know our guests are looking for ease and convenience in all aspects of their lives, so to better serve our guests, we made delivery and quick pickup a priority," "Whether our guests don't feel like leaving the house or they need to make a quick pickup between sports practices, we're making mealtimes delicious, easy and fun."

For guests making their way into restaurants, but who don't want to wait in line, Noodles & Company offers Quick Pickup in all restaurants and Quick Pickup Windows in select test restaurants. Guests can bypass lines by simply placing their order online or through the NoodlesREWARDS app and picking up their food at the Quick Pickup station in each restaurant. Are your prices lower? Are your service options expanding?

Foodservice Solutions® specializes in outsourced food marketing and business development ideations. We can help you identify, quantify and qualify additional food retail segment opportunities or a new menu product segment and brand and menu integration strategy.  Foodservice Solutions® of Tacoma WA is the global leader in the Grocerant niche visit Facebook.com/Steven Johnson, Linkedin.com/in/grocerant/ or twitter.com/grocerant

Noodles & Company Vegan Zucchini Noodles take Center Stage

Millennials continue opting for an increased frequency of vegan menu items according to Steven Johnson Grocerant Guru® at Tacoma, WA based Foodservice Solutions®. Noodles & Company, known for serving classic noodle and pasta dishes inspired by flavors from around the world has a new menu item for those looking for vegan meals with the launch of zucchini noodles. Does Noodles hopes vegan will be its new electricity?

Made from fresh zucchinis spiralized in-house daily, the delicious low-calorie and low-carb zoodles will debut in two worldly dishes—the all-new Zucchini Romesco and the fan-favorite Zucchini Thai Green Curry with Shrimp. Noodles is the first national fast-casual chain to offer zoodles coast-to-coast.

Menu innovation the ilk of zoodles can create incremental brand relevance and can create a platform for new electricity according to Johnson. For a successful platform innovation in new food products requires new avenues of distribution for the new electricity to truly drive incremental sales, according to Johnson; partnerships specifically strategic partnerships are driving retail success today. 

Johnson stated that in my minds-eye the new electricity must be very efficient for the supply and includes such things as fresh foods, grocerant consultants, urban farming (produce, seafood, etc.), autonomous delivery, cashier-less retail, cash-less payments, digital hand held marketing.

Retailers the ilk of Noodles & Company and  to survive the next generation of retail must embrace the artificial intelligence revolution in menu development, deployment, and distribution while simultaneously embracing fresh food that is portable, fresh, with differentiation that is familiar not different. 

The two new featured zoodle dishes include:

Zucchini Romesco: This new dish has a sweet and tangy chunky roasted red pepper sauce—reminiscent of a Spanish pesto—made with almonds, sundried tomatoes and garden vegetables.

Zucchini Thai Green Curry with Shrimp: A new take on a Noodles staple, this dish pairs a sweet coconut green curry sauce with pineapple, broccoli, red onion, snap peas, lime, black sesame seeds and cilantro.

Chas Hermann, chief brand officer at Noodles & Company stated "Our new zucchini noodles are sure to please with bold flavor and fresh, quality ingredients." To encourage guests to give zucchini noodles a try, Noodles is offering a taste guarantee. Any guest who orders a bowl of zucchini noodles and doesn't feel the zoodle love can get a replacement traditional noodle dish at no additional cost. 

Zucchini noodles are a great choice for noodle lovers looking for a lighter option. A regular portion of zucchini noodles has 90 percent fewer calories and carbs than a regular portion of elbow noodles, and all the flavor and taste guests have come to expect from Noodles. Plus, zoodles are packed with vitamin C and potassium and are gluten-free, vegan and vegetarian.

Are you trapped doing what you have always done and doing it the same way?  Interested in learning how www.FoodserviceSolutions.us can edify your retail food brand while creating a platform for consumer convenient meal participation, differentiation and individualization?  Email us at: Steve@FoodserviceSolutions.us or visit:  www.FoodserviceSolutions.us for more information.

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