Our customers have voted! Ladies and gentlemen, the top ten favourite, award winning gourmet pizzas from our menu for 2009 are….(drum roll please)
10. Bacon Double Cheese features our signature marinara, 100% lean cooked ground beef, maple smoked crumbled bacon, red onions, extra mozzarella & medium sharp cheddar cheeses.
9. Gourmet Veggie with our signature marinara, low fat mozzarella cheese, chopped baby spinach, artichoke hearts, sundried tomatoes and red onions.
8. Classic Veggie features our signature marinara, low fat mozzarella cheese, fresh mushrooms, green peppers, Roma tomatoes and red onions.
7. BBQ chicken with BBQ sauce, grilled BBQ chicken breast, maple smoked crumbled bacon & red onions with mozzarella and medium sharp cheddar cheese blend.
6. Havarti Heaven a.k.a. “Finalist for 2007 Gourmet Pizza of the Year” featuring olive oil & herb sauce, roasted red peppers, red onions, strip bacon & grilled Cajun chicken breast with a blend of garlic‘n’chive Havarti and low fat mozzarella cheeses.
5. Hawaiian featuring our signature marinara, low fat mozzarella cheese, smoked ham, pineapple and maple smoked crumbled bacon.
4. Diana Supreme featuring our signature marinara, green peppers, dry cured pepperoni, smoked ham, 100% lean cooked ground beef, Italian sausage, fresh mushrooms, pineapple, maple smoked crumbled bacon & red onions smothered with double mozzarella (low –fat).
3. Ultimate Pepperoni - a.k.a. “Canada’s Best Pizza 2007” – World Pizza Championship games features our signature marinara, two layers of dry cured pepperoni on a bed of garlic’n’chive Havarti & low fat mozzarella on a Moosehead beer crust.
2. Canadian featuring our signature marinara, dry cured pepperoni, fresh mushrooms & maple smoked crumbled bacon.
1. Diana's Deluxe featuring our signature marinara, low fat mozzarella cheese, green peppers, dry cured pepperoni, fresh mushrooms, maple smoked crumbled bacon & red onions.
Tuesday, May 18, 2010
Tuesday, May 11, 2010
Words of Wisdom from a New Mom
Everything I need to know in life I learned from my newborn
Life is precious, enjoy every minute because when that minute has passed, so has our ability to be in that moment. We can relive those moments in our memories, but only if we were fully present in the first place.
We all need to experience touch, skin to skin contact daily. Why else are we covered from head to toe with it? Skin-to-skin contact releases oxytocin, the all natural, feel-good endorphin that our brain creates so we can feel happiness and joy. It’s how we feel connected to each other; it bonds us to our loved ones. How many people suffering from depression or addictions might show big improvements with a little human contact? Has anyone ever done a study on depression to see how long the last time these individuals had daily hugs and skin-to-skin contact? Hug your loved ones each and every day. Even your teenagers, even if they say they don’t want hugs – we all need them.
Breast milk is the best nutrition for us when we start off in life – it is liquid gold. Mother Nature built us to be able to care for our offspring, provided we take good care of ourselves, we just have to follow her lead.
A good poop feels great. A good fart feels pretty good too.
No one likes to sit with a poopy bum.
A good burp feels great.
Sleep is good.
Babies are born with the rooting instinct, which is a soft sucking motion, like a kiss. Could this be how kisses originated as an expression of love between humans?
Newborns are pure love and joy, the most powerful emotion/energy in the universe. People all over the world react to them with softness and love. Anyone who thinks that we are born evil has had their head screwed on backwards.
We all like to be snuggled in a soft blanket because it reminds us of the security of the womb.
We are born with the ability to sense energy around us and it affects us greatly. Eliminate tension and negativity from our environment and ourselves whenever we feel it. How do we do that? Take a deep breath and as you let it out replace every other thought with feelings of love.
Laughter is for the soul what food is for the body. Naturally entertaining, it feels great and we can share it with others or we can do it on our own.
We are spiritual beings living a human experience.
We like movement, staying still is not in our nature. We enjoy rocking, swaying and dancing because it reminds us of being in the womb.
You cannot give to others that which you deny yourself. Give to yourself first so that it’s in you to give to others.
This is all we need to be happy and fulfilled, it seems to me that the older we get and the further away from the first few weeks of life, we forget how important these things are to feel connected to each other and our environment. We search outside ourselves for answers to happiness and fulfillment. Over time, we lose the closeness that we once had with loved ones and we’re not sure why. We forget that we can sense the energy of our surroundings and the people in it and how much it can affects us. We forget that we create our own energy vibrations with our thoughts and feelings. We dismiss and deny the importance of meeting our most basic needs on a daily basis, arrogantly thinking that a happy life can’t be that simple. It is. You just have to spend a day with a newborn to believe it’s true.
Life is precious, enjoy every minute because when that minute has passed, so has our ability to be in that moment. We can relive those moments in our memories, but only if we were fully present in the first place.
We all need to experience touch, skin to skin contact daily. Why else are we covered from head to toe with it? Skin-to-skin contact releases oxytocin, the all natural, feel-good endorphin that our brain creates so we can feel happiness and joy. It’s how we feel connected to each other; it bonds us to our loved ones. How many people suffering from depression or addictions might show big improvements with a little human contact? Has anyone ever done a study on depression to see how long the last time these individuals had daily hugs and skin-to-skin contact? Hug your loved ones each and every day. Even your teenagers, even if they say they don’t want hugs – we all need them.
Breast milk is the best nutrition for us when we start off in life – it is liquid gold. Mother Nature built us to be able to care for our offspring, provided we take good care of ourselves, we just have to follow her lead.
A good poop feels great. A good fart feels pretty good too.
No one likes to sit with a poopy bum.
A good burp feels great.
Sleep is good.
Babies are born with the rooting instinct, which is a soft sucking motion, like a kiss. Could this be how kisses originated as an expression of love between humans?
Newborns are pure love and joy, the most powerful emotion/energy in the universe. People all over the world react to them with softness and love. Anyone who thinks that we are born evil has had their head screwed on backwards.
We all like to be snuggled in a soft blanket because it reminds us of the security of the womb.
We are born with the ability to sense energy around us and it affects us greatly. Eliminate tension and negativity from our environment and ourselves whenever we feel it. How do we do that? Take a deep breath and as you let it out replace every other thought with feelings of love.
Laughter is for the soul what food is for the body. Naturally entertaining, it feels great and we can share it with others or we can do it on our own.
We are spiritual beings living a human experience.
We like movement, staying still is not in our nature. We enjoy rocking, swaying and dancing because it reminds us of being in the womb.
You cannot give to others that which you deny yourself. Give to yourself first so that it’s in you to give to others.
This is all we need to be happy and fulfilled, it seems to me that the older we get and the further away from the first few weeks of life, we forget how important these things are to feel connected to each other and our environment. We search outside ourselves for answers to happiness and fulfillment. Over time, we lose the closeness that we once had with loved ones and we’re not sure why. We forget that we can sense the energy of our surroundings and the people in it and how much it can affects us. We forget that we create our own energy vibrations with our thoughts and feelings. We dismiss and deny the importance of meeting our most basic needs on a daily basis, arrogantly thinking that a happy life can’t be that simple. It is. You just have to spend a day with a newborn to believe it’s true.
Saturday, May 8, 2010
Healthy Pizza in Demand
More and more Canadians are demanding healthier meal options for themselves and their families. Like it or not, most Canadians do read the nutritional labels on products before deciding whether or not to purchase the item. Women, who still do the majority of household shopping, are the most likely to read the nutritional information.
Food manufacturing companies have noticed and are even adding things like Omega 3, DHA and extra iron to everything from yogurt to bread. Health Canada is demanding that restaurants reduce the amount of sodium in their dishes, although so far they’ve neglected to impose the same threats on all the ‘heat & serve’ meal options at the grocery store and the recommended levels of sodium are still in debate. There is a lot of discussion of banning trans-fats, which New York City did this past year. It makes a great deal of sense, a healthier population means less dollars need to be spent on health care and an overall better quality of life; call it preventative health care.
The movement toward healthier meals was instigated by the consumer. Back in 2000, we began making a line of 100% whole wheat pizza crusts and while it took time to catch on, today it represents 40% of our sales. Paired with our low fat mozzarella, a few vegetables and our lean grilled chicken breast it’s not just healthy, it’s also quite delicious. These days, Canadian consumers expect to find heart smart and heart healthy meal options on our menu – even on fast food menus. More and more chains are adding these options to their menus and are having positive feedback.
Most places are reactive about this change in the marketplace. Several companies thought that it was simply a trend which would pass quickly and failed to accommodate what’s now an expectation. The companies that are constantly asking and exposing their customers to different options which they may not have previously known about are in a better position to be ahead of the curve and profit from this change in consumer tastes.
At Diana’s Gourmet Pizzeria, we have always polled our customers and created pizzas and menu items to cater to them. Our whole wheat crust began in very small batches, with free samples slices to gauge our customers’ reactions. About a year ago we started getting calls requesting gluten-free pizza. The number of calls increased every week, so we decided it would be wise to invest time in creating a recipe. We spent about 6 months developing a from scratch recipe and then incorporating it into a busy pizzeria that specializes in wheat pizzas. The day we launched our gluten-free pizza crust, we already had a list of customers who were eagerly anticipating it.
Back in October 2009, we had the fortune of working with some folks at the Canadian International Grains Institute on perfecting a barley flour pizza crust. Barley is beneficial by providing both soluble and insoluble fibre, whereas whole wheat flour only has insoluble fibre. North American diets are severely lacking in fibre and our initial batches have had very positive tasting results from staff and customers alike. Just a little more tweaking to our recipe and we’ll likely add it to the menu as a taste of the month later this year. Depending on the response, it may end up on our menu as a permanent heart healthy choice.
We’ve also been taste testing turkey bacon as another heart smart option. Many of our regular customers are baby boomers and like my husband, have been told by their physicians to cut down on red meat. Customer reactions to sample slices with turkey bacon have been extremely positive, so positive that it’s been one of our featured ‘taste of the month’ since December 2009.
Regardless of whether you thought healthy pizza was a fad or a fleeting trend, you have to be living under a rock not to notice the increased demand for healthier meals in 2009. 2010 will no doubt be more of the same.
Food manufacturing companies have noticed and are even adding things like Omega 3, DHA and extra iron to everything from yogurt to bread. Health Canada is demanding that restaurants reduce the amount of sodium in their dishes, although so far they’ve neglected to impose the same threats on all the ‘heat & serve’ meal options at the grocery store and the recommended levels of sodium are still in debate. There is a lot of discussion of banning trans-fats, which New York City did this past year. It makes a great deal of sense, a healthier population means less dollars need to be spent on health care and an overall better quality of life; call it preventative health care.
The movement toward healthier meals was instigated by the consumer. Back in 2000, we began making a line of 100% whole wheat pizza crusts and while it took time to catch on, today it represents 40% of our sales. Paired with our low fat mozzarella, a few vegetables and our lean grilled chicken breast it’s not just healthy, it’s also quite delicious. These days, Canadian consumers expect to find heart smart and heart healthy meal options on our menu – even on fast food menus. More and more chains are adding these options to their menus and are having positive feedback.
Most places are reactive about this change in the marketplace. Several companies thought that it was simply a trend which would pass quickly and failed to accommodate what’s now an expectation. The companies that are constantly asking and exposing their customers to different options which they may not have previously known about are in a better position to be ahead of the curve and profit from this change in consumer tastes.
At Diana’s Gourmet Pizzeria, we have always polled our customers and created pizzas and menu items to cater to them. Our whole wheat crust began in very small batches, with free samples slices to gauge our customers’ reactions. About a year ago we started getting calls requesting gluten-free pizza. The number of calls increased every week, so we decided it would be wise to invest time in creating a recipe. We spent about 6 months developing a from scratch recipe and then incorporating it into a busy pizzeria that specializes in wheat pizzas. The day we launched our gluten-free pizza crust, we already had a list of customers who were eagerly anticipating it.
Back in October 2009, we had the fortune of working with some folks at the Canadian International Grains Institute on perfecting a barley flour pizza crust. Barley is beneficial by providing both soluble and insoluble fibre, whereas whole wheat flour only has insoluble fibre. North American diets are severely lacking in fibre and our initial batches have had very positive tasting results from staff and customers alike. Just a little more tweaking to our recipe and we’ll likely add it to the menu as a taste of the month later this year. Depending on the response, it may end up on our menu as a permanent heart healthy choice.
We’ve also been taste testing turkey bacon as another heart smart option. Many of our regular customers are baby boomers and like my husband, have been told by their physicians to cut down on red meat. Customer reactions to sample slices with turkey bacon have been extremely positive, so positive that it’s been one of our featured ‘taste of the month’ since December 2009.
Regardless of whether you thought healthy pizza was a fad or a fleeting trend, you have to be living under a rock not to notice the increased demand for healthier meals in 2009. 2010 will no doubt be more of the same.
Monday, May 3, 2010
Diana's Gourmet Pizzeria is Here to Stay!
There seems to be a misunderstanding about an article in the Winnipeg Sun that I was quoted for a few weeks ago.
The article was about the upcoming minimum wage increase to $9.50 per hour. In addition to co-owning Diana’s Gourmet Pizzeria, I’m also on the Board of Directors for the Canadian Restaurant and Food Association (CRFA) and as such I was contacted by a reporter for the Winnipeg Sun to comment on the fifty cent increase to minimum wage and what effect that would have on the restaurant industry.
Part of my comments were in regards to what our company needs to do in order to remain competitive – which is to cut hours off of our schedule or to increase sales substantially. The former is easier, the latter is difficult to do in the best of times, never mind in the current economic conditions. Since the article was in the paper, many restaurants have already raised their prices as a result of the government’s decision. I was also expressing my outrage that the day after the NDP government announced the wage hike, they have the audacity to ask all the unions for a 2 year wage freeze ‘due to economic difficulties’. Apparently this government doesn’t think that businesses have been living through those same economic difficulties and therefore could (and should!) also benefit from wage freezes. I might find the hypocrisy amusing, if it wasn’t going to add $16,000 to my payroll.
The other part of my comments were in regard to independent restaurants in general, the truth being that many would close their doors because they’re unable to absorb another fifty cent wage increase in addition to increases for all other input costs. The restaurant industry operates on very slim profit margins, typically between 2-5% and almost all independent restaurants are operated by the owners. It would seem that some people think that all small business owners are evil, greedy and are cutting ourselves million dollar cheques, when in fact, most of us work side by side our staff, putting in longer hours and often without a paycheque. We come in when employees call in sick, we pay thousands of dollars into EI for our employees, yet as owners we aren’t eligible for the same benefits, like maternity leave.
There are 500 fewer restaurants in Manitoba today than 10 years ago, that’s one restaurant a week shutting down. I have personally met many of the families behind these closings and can tell you first hand that many of them have sunk all their life savings in their dream of owning a restaurant, only to discover that this industry requires an incredible amount of work and has an insatiable appetite for cash. I often say that the restaurant industry is the easiest business to get into, the hardest to stay in and the most difficult to make a profit.
Many people posted comments online, almost half of whom were ill informed of the facts. Some people wrote things like ‘it’s only fifty cents’, not doing the math correctly. It would ‘only be fifty cents’ if it was only one employee, who only worked for one hour each payroll. I don’t know any businesses, big or small that have one employee working one hour every pay period.
What wasn’t in the article was the fact that many of my staff already make more than minimum wage, they’ve been with us a while and have mastered the skills needed to work with us AND that is reflected in their wages. We all can’t fathom paying a new hire the same wage as the trainee – and everybody needs training, people no longer come with skills. This means that we need to have a trainer teach the new guy that just running cold water over a dirty dish isn’t actually ‘doing the dishes’. It may surprise you to know that it costs an average of $1500 - $2500 to train a new employee and also not all employees work out. In the more than 12 years that we’ve owned our business we have worked with many great people, but we’ve also had to let people go for not showing up (or only showing up when it’s convenient for them), not treating our customers right, not treating other staff members right, stealing, poor work ethic, closing early, damaging equipment and a host of other things I’d rather not get into. This is the reality of owning a business these days and when the government decides to increase minimum wage it increases the cost of training while devaluing those same skills required for our industry.
Some people misread the article and comments and then incorrectly assumed that Diana’s Gourmet Pizzeria is closing down – which is not true. We are well established, well known and have a loyal clientele for which we are very grateful for. Most independent restaurants are not as fortunate, and as a director for the CRFA I spoke up on their behalf. Someone needed to.
For the record, I strongly disagree with the government induced inflation. Raising minimum wage does nothing to lower poverty rates, if it did, we would have seen positive results within the past 3 years while minimum wage has increased 33%. There is no data to support the argument that raising minimum wage lowers poverty rates; in fact there is evidence that shows just the opposite. Raising minimum wage is a ploy to look good for the voters; however it is really increasing taxes for the minimum wage earner. What we should all ask for, what would make a difference for everyone, is to increase the minimum taxation level. That way, every Manitoban with an income will get a raise. Some Manitobans will spend all their money, others will invest part and spend part, others will save part and many will donate more to charities – and all this will stimulate the economy. The government will collect more taxes from the increased spending and we the people would get to enjoy more of the money we earn. It’s a win-win-win situation.
Should you happen hear a rumour that Diana’s Gourmet Pizzeria is closing, please set the record straight with the facts taken directly from the top; we’re not going anywhere. We have adjusted our hours of operation and are now closing one hour earlier, however you’ll still find us open for lunch and dinner each and every day.
The article was about the upcoming minimum wage increase to $9.50 per hour. In addition to co-owning Diana’s Gourmet Pizzeria, I’m also on the Board of Directors for the Canadian Restaurant and Food Association (CRFA) and as such I was contacted by a reporter for the Winnipeg Sun to comment on the fifty cent increase to minimum wage and what effect that would have on the restaurant industry.
Part of my comments were in regards to what our company needs to do in order to remain competitive – which is to cut hours off of our schedule or to increase sales substantially. The former is easier, the latter is difficult to do in the best of times, never mind in the current economic conditions. Since the article was in the paper, many restaurants have already raised their prices as a result of the government’s decision. I was also expressing my outrage that the day after the NDP government announced the wage hike, they have the audacity to ask all the unions for a 2 year wage freeze ‘due to economic difficulties’. Apparently this government doesn’t think that businesses have been living through those same economic difficulties and therefore could (and should!) also benefit from wage freezes. I might find the hypocrisy amusing, if it wasn’t going to add $16,000 to my payroll.
The other part of my comments were in regard to independent restaurants in general, the truth being that many would close their doors because they’re unable to absorb another fifty cent wage increase in addition to increases for all other input costs. The restaurant industry operates on very slim profit margins, typically between 2-5% and almost all independent restaurants are operated by the owners. It would seem that some people think that all small business owners are evil, greedy and are cutting ourselves million dollar cheques, when in fact, most of us work side by side our staff, putting in longer hours and often without a paycheque. We come in when employees call in sick, we pay thousands of dollars into EI for our employees, yet as owners we aren’t eligible for the same benefits, like maternity leave.
There are 500 fewer restaurants in Manitoba today than 10 years ago, that’s one restaurant a week shutting down. I have personally met many of the families behind these closings and can tell you first hand that many of them have sunk all their life savings in their dream of owning a restaurant, only to discover that this industry requires an incredible amount of work and has an insatiable appetite for cash. I often say that the restaurant industry is the easiest business to get into, the hardest to stay in and the most difficult to make a profit.
Many people posted comments online, almost half of whom were ill informed of the facts. Some people wrote things like ‘it’s only fifty cents’, not doing the math correctly. It would ‘only be fifty cents’ if it was only one employee, who only worked for one hour each payroll. I don’t know any businesses, big or small that have one employee working one hour every pay period.
What wasn’t in the article was the fact that many of my staff already make more than minimum wage, they’ve been with us a while and have mastered the skills needed to work with us AND that is reflected in their wages. We all can’t fathom paying a new hire the same wage as the trainee – and everybody needs training, people no longer come with skills. This means that we need to have a trainer teach the new guy that just running cold water over a dirty dish isn’t actually ‘doing the dishes’. It may surprise you to know that it costs an average of $1500 - $2500 to train a new employee and also not all employees work out. In the more than 12 years that we’ve owned our business we have worked with many great people, but we’ve also had to let people go for not showing up (or only showing up when it’s convenient for them), not treating our customers right, not treating other staff members right, stealing, poor work ethic, closing early, damaging equipment and a host of other things I’d rather not get into. This is the reality of owning a business these days and when the government decides to increase minimum wage it increases the cost of training while devaluing those same skills required for our industry.
Some people misread the article and comments and then incorrectly assumed that Diana’s Gourmet Pizzeria is closing down – which is not true. We are well established, well known and have a loyal clientele for which we are very grateful for. Most independent restaurants are not as fortunate, and as a director for the CRFA I spoke up on their behalf. Someone needed to.
For the record, I strongly disagree with the government induced inflation. Raising minimum wage does nothing to lower poverty rates, if it did, we would have seen positive results within the past 3 years while minimum wage has increased 33%. There is no data to support the argument that raising minimum wage lowers poverty rates; in fact there is evidence that shows just the opposite. Raising minimum wage is a ploy to look good for the voters; however it is really increasing taxes for the minimum wage earner. What we should all ask for, what would make a difference for everyone, is to increase the minimum taxation level. That way, every Manitoban with an income will get a raise. Some Manitobans will spend all their money, others will invest part and spend part, others will save part and many will donate more to charities – and all this will stimulate the economy. The government will collect more taxes from the increased spending and we the people would get to enjoy more of the money we earn. It’s a win-win-win situation.
Should you happen hear a rumour that Diana’s Gourmet Pizzeria is closing, please set the record straight with the facts taken directly from the top; we’re not going anywhere. We have adjusted our hours of operation and are now closing one hour earlier, however you’ll still find us open for lunch and dinner each and every day.
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