NRN.com - Restaurant brands are punting on expensive in-game commercials for Super Bowl XLVIII in favor of more cost-effective marketing strategies like pregame commercials or, increasingly, social-media campaigns before and during the big game.

Unlike last year, when Taco Bell and Subway ran in-game commercials during the National Football League’s championship game, no restaurants have announced plans to advertise during the Super Bowl, which will be televised Feb. 2 on Fox. The game’s airtime reportedly sold out last December, and marketers reportedly paid as much as $4 million for a 30-second spot. Continue

Patch.com - A Cobb Grand Jury has indicted an Alpharetta man for the apparently accidental shooting death of another man at a Marietta Square restaurant in November.  

Raouf Sanad, 63, has been charged with involuntary manslaughter and reckless conduct, according to Cobb District Attorney Vic Reynolds. 

Investigators believe that Wael Ali was showing a gun to Sanad late in the evening of Nov. 1 at the Laziza Restaurant, when Sanad accidentally pointed the gun at Ali and pulled the trigger, assuming that the safety was on. Continue

OrlandoSentinel.com - The Orlando restaurant that UCF and NFL football great Daunte Culpepper helped open on University Boulevard near his Orange County alma mater has closed. The Knight-themed upscale-casual sports bar opened in August of 2013. Culpepper's involvement was part of a partnership with another former UCF quarterback, Kyle Israel; Tony Comas, a UCF alum and radio personality; and others.

TJ Davenport Group, the majority investors in Culpepper's Orlando, have decided to sell the location to a Miami based franchise who will be introducing a new concept to the area. Continue

Tallahassee.com - Florida restaurants will see their business grow in 2014 with a forecast 4.5-percent expansion in sales, a statewide trade association reports.

According to the Florida Restaurant & Lodging Association, this is will mark the fifth consecutive year nationally of restaurant industry sales growth despite what analysts referred to as a continued challenging economic landscape. Florida will be one of the pacesetters. Continue

PNJ.com - First Pensacola Beach opened beaches for dogs.

Now Escambia County Commissioner Grover Robinson IV wants to open outdoor areas of beach restaurants to the canine crowd.

Today the Santa Rosa Island Authority board will consider Robinson’s idea for the county to adopt the state’s “Dixie Cup Clary” ordinance allowing beach restaurants to become “pet friendly.” Continue

Floridatoday.com - Melbourne Police say detectives are still investigating the circumstances surrounding the death of man who drove a vehicle into That Little Restaurant at Aurora and Wickham roads.

When officers checked the 49-year-old driver of the white Dodge Ram truck, they discovered he had a single gunshot wound to the head. A firearm was discovered at the scene.

FLORIDA TODAY isn't naming the driver. Continue

Dailymail.co.uk -A quick thinking Florida mother saved the life of her young child by pushing him out of the way just as an out of control SUV driven by a drunk driver barreled into the restaurant the two were eating in.

The vehicle ran a red light and smashed into another car before careening into the Orlando, Florida, Popeye’s December 30. No one inside the restaurant suffered serious injury.

Phillip Brown, 26, was charged with DUI with serious bodily harm, driving on a suspended license and failure to obey a traffic control device

Read more:

NRN.com - Organizers of the Multi-Unit Foodservice Operators (MUFSO) conference have named 15 leading foodservice executives to its MUFSO Advisory Board.

Now in its 55th year, MUFSO is presented by the Penton Restaurant Group, comprised of Nation’s Restaurant News, Food Management and Restaurant Hospitality. The new advisory board members will help guide program development for the 2014 conference being held Oct. 5-7 in Dallas. Continue

NRN-com - Since the inception of the Affordable Care Act, there has been no shortage of confusion surrounding its details — especially as it relates to the insurance marketplaces known as exchanges. Between the clumsy kickoff last year of the website hosting federal insurance options and the patchwork of state-led networks, a growing number of restaurant companies are turning to private exchanges as they prepare to comply with the upcoming employer mandate. Private exchanges operate ... Continue

For The Vendors!

Interested in Sponsoring or Exhibiting at our upcoming i.Menu Forum conference in Naples, Florida ? This day is planned with Seminar Tracks, Conferences  and a Vendor Fair to see our partners from all over the world showcasing their Hospitality Mobile Technology Solutions. We have partners with the local and state hospitality associations to promote the event to the hospitality owners/managers of the area. SouthWest Florida is a growing community in the hospitality industry with over 10,000 new dining/hospitality businesses opening up each year.

 i.Menu Forum Naples, Florida on Monday January 20, 2014. For more information on or exhibitor package visitExhibitor Kit,Sponsorship&Application.

For the Restaurants!

Want the latest restaurant technology solutions in your investment ? Wanted to purchase the new Tablet Point of Sale Menu system but want to try it out first ? Come join us at the i.Menu Forum, the Forum is  a full day conference track full of seminars and hands on conference with the latest technologies solutions like Tablet Menus, SmartPhone Credit Card Swipe Readers, Mobile Payment Solutions, Security Enclosures, Text SMS Reservations, Waitlists, Online Menus, Cloud & Social Media Solutions.

Please let us know if your interested in exhibiting or sponsoring this event. We hope to hear from you soon.

Carmine De Santo

Show Manager

i.Menu Forum

416-907-8410