US Department of Housing and Urban Development Approves Christie’s Disaster Recovery Action Plan

Dear NJRA Member,

Today the US Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) approved Governor Chris Christie's Community Development Block Grant Disaster Recovery Action Plan. The first wave of funds available will be for small business recovery. Once applications are available, which we expect will be in a few days, storm-impacted businesses will have access to $400 million in grants, no-interest loans and low-interest loans to be used for rebuilding. We were told the applications will be available through the State’s EDA website; http://application.njeda.com/strongernjbusiness. Before you apply, be prepared. ...
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Trenton, NJ – On April 22, the New Jersey Restaurant Association (NJRA) will host the 2013 Restaurant Operators Conference, better known as “ROC,” at Pines Manor in Edison, New Jersey. All members of the restaurant industry are encouraged to attend the annual, interactive conference. The showcase event will be packed with celebrity chefs, hands-on demonstrations, tastings, contests and educational seminars throughout the day. Attendance is free to NJRA members and non-members as well. “This is by far the most informative and fun event we host all year,” said NJRA President Marilou Halvorsen. “Because our industry is so widespread and affects a plethora of people and businesses throughout the Garden State, the participants speaking and displaying at the conference cover many genres and interests for attendees,” she added. ROC is the leading restaurant conference of the year for New Jersey. ...
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As an Allied Member of the NJRA, New Jersey Natural Gas wants you to be aware of the commercial food service equipment rebates that are available to everyone. The rebates are a great way to help you lower your energy costs by helping you buy down the cost of energy efficiency equipment.

The following is a link to the web page which lists the rebate amounts and the applications:

We regret to inform you that: Inspiring Women: A Celebration of the Visual & Culinary Arts, scheduled to be held on March 4th, has been cancelled. If you have any questions please don't hesitate to reach out by calling 609-599-3316.

As a New Jersey restaurant owner you’ve probably noticed how attached your customers are to their mobile phones. From texting at the dinner table to surfing the Internet, mobile phones are engrained into our daily lives. And the rise in mobile usage is projected to continue. With mobile web traffic set to increase 2600 percent in four years, restaurant owners need to consider how a mobile world affects their business.

Consider this: 88 percent of all web searches related to restaurants are made from a mobile phone. Put simply, if you’re not adjusting to a mobile world, you’re behind. This is especially true for restaurant owners, as your customers – more than any other industry – turn to their smartphones to connect with you. Customers use their mobile phones to read your menu, find store hours and call you with a click of a button.

So, can your mobile customers view your webpage on a small screen?

Customers today expect websites to be mobile friendly and easy to navigate with their fingertips, without having to pinch and zoom. And with mobile browsing speeds getting faster, the desktop computer is no longer the access point to the Internet. ...
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Help us reach our goal of 1,000 likes...and don't worry, we follow back!

www.facebook.com/NJRestaurant and www.twitter.com/NJRAssociation

You help us, we help you...it's working together & uniting as an industry that allow us all to prosper!

Interested in being featured on our pages? Contact Allyson at 609-599-3316 or aobrien@njra.org

On January 7th, 2013, Jack Koumbis, of Assembly Steakhouse, passed the torch to George Vlahos, of Gusto Grill at the NJRA's Installation Dinner & Silent Auction held at the Grand Summit Hotel in Summit, NJ. Below is the speech given by the new Chairman, who is looking forward to serving his term.

“We represent an industry that holds new beginnings, beginnings for immigrants in a different world full of Oneira (dreams); a peaceful environment a parent can count on to teach their child the importance of earning and the work ethic needed to become our future nurses, doctors, lawyers and political leaders; the place our communities go to, to celebrate joy and find comfort in sorrow; the place the local charity depends on for donations & even a hot plate of food for those less fortunate; a place to celebrate new beginning and rejoice old ones.

You see, a restaurant is far more than its definition on dictionary.com (a commercial establishment where meals are prepared and served to customers).

The New Jersey Restaurant Association is bigger than the great state it represents. ...
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SENATE ANNOUNCES INITIATIVE AIMED AT HELPING NJ BUSINESS COMMUNITY Senate, Retailers Join ‘JerseyShore Is Open for Business’ Campaign To Let People Know Which Businesses Are Open In Areas Hardest Hit By Sandy

TRENTON – Senate President Steve Sweeney and Republican Leader Thomas Kean, Jr. today announced that the Senate will be joining the ‘Jersey Shore Is Open for Business’ campaign, an initiative to help New Jersey residents find which stores and businesses are open in the areas hardest hit by Hurricane Sandy. The project is being done in conjunction with the New Jersey Restaurant and New Jersey Retail Merchants Associations, as well as the Jersey Shore Convention and Visitors Bureau.

“The only way we are going to truly recover from Sandy is by giving our small businesses the tools they need to succeed," said Sweeney. "One of the things we have learned from our hearings and tours is that many businesses have reopened, but people in the community and surrounding area do not know it. We have to do something to correct that. It is bad enough that these places had to close during the storm, but now they are losing business through virtually no fault of their own. ...
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A brief letter from NJRA President Marilou Halvorsen:

As 2012 is coming to a close and the holiday season is right around the corner, I want to thank you for your continued support as a NJRA member. Your annual dues investment helps us in our mission to represent and serve NJ’s 25,000 eating and drinking establishments, employing 311,000 people. Our $8 billion dollar industry needs to remain a united front and we hope you see us as your voice in Trenton and come to us to take advantage of our member benefits and networking opportunities.

We are excited to kick off the New Year and continue to offer you money-saving benefits and answers to questions you may have. We welcome suggestions from members of services and benefits we could offer you to help your business prosper. If you have any ideas of what you’d like to receive from your NJRA membership, please email Allyson at AOBRIEN@NJRA.ORG.

As a holiday treat, we are offering FREE ServSafe Food & Alcohol classes. The new mandate for all Risk 3 establishments, that takes effect in early 2015, will require one person per SHIFT to be certified in an accredited program. ...
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In an effort to assist our members recover from this devastating hurricane, we have compiled a list of websites and phone numbers to better assist you in your recovery. Please feel free to contact the office directly with any questions or concerns you have. We are here to help you!

Restaurant operators in need of information on how to apply for disaster relief can register online at http://www.disasterassistance.gov, or call 1-800-621-FEMA (3362)Speech or hearing-impared individuals can call 1-800-462-7585. The toll-free telephone numbers are operating daily from 7 a.m. to 10 p.m. EDT. You can also follow FEMA online at blog.fema.gov, www.twitter.com/fema, www.facebook.com/fema, and www.youtube.com/fema. In addition, the Small Business Association is offering loan assistance at www.sba.gov/content/applying-disaster-loan.

Also, the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) announced that federal disaster aid has been made available to the State of New Jersey. ...
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