|||||| PROFILE
Left : Recent Snooze holiday specials included the Cosmopolitan Mimosa , with vodka , orange liqueur , cranberry juice , Snooze Sparkling wine and lime wheel . Right : Snooze offers a few coffee drinks and beer cocktails , such as the Michelada , plus seasonal and local craft brews .
Snooze ’ s Bella ! Bella ! Benny take on Eggs Benedict is thin slices of prosciutto , Taleggio cheese , and poached cage-free eggs on toasted ciabatta , topped with cream cheese hollandaise , balsamic glaze and arugula .
RISING AND SHINING The resilience of the employees and the company ’ s nimbleness around the ability to pivot during the pandemic lockdowns and restrictions helped Snooze weather the challenges , Jaffe says . From implementing new hygiene and social distancing measures for the dine-in experience , to embracing new technology and shifting to off-premise service , the Snoozers rose to the occasion .
On the food and beverage front , “ we made a concerted effort to make sure we were meeting guests where they were when we went into lockdown ,” and bring the Snooze experience to customers at home , Jaffe says . That involved paring down the menu and innovating new offerings such as pre-cooked meal packages and cocktail kits .
The best-selling cocktail kit was the Mimosa : a bottle of Snooze Sparkling and a 32-oz . container of orange juice . The Bloody Mary has also been “ unbelievably successful ,” he notes .
Both kits remain on the menu today as “ one of those lasting , unintended consequences [ of Covid ] that has actually opened up some other revenue opportunities ,” Jaffe says . Now when guests order Snooze to go , many are adding on a Mimosa kit . “ It ’ s been nice to transfer that four-wall experience to the at-home experience .”
Prior to Covid , Snooze was doing maybe 3 % in off-premise sales ; currently more than 25 % comes from takeout and delivery . Technology powered the transition to a togo business . The company lucked out in that it had already started developing an online ordering platform and was in the process of testing it just as Covid hit .
The initiative went from a test in one region of Colorado to rolling out nationally across all restaurants , Jaffe says . “ The timing couldn ’ t have been better , and we were really proud of how our Snoozers were able to adapt to manage so much to-go business .”
Snooze anticipates that even when dining rooms open it will hold onto the to-go business simultaneously . But breakfast poses some challenges as to how well the food travels .
“ We have done a ton of work in and around our packaging , making sure it ’ s on-brand from an experience standpoint and delivering on all the things we stand for from a sustainability standpoint ,” Jaffe says . “ But we also have to make sure that the packaging does a really great job at presenting the food , helping the food and beverages travel really well .”
It ’ s important that when guests receive their food at home , there ’ s still that “ wow ” factor , that great moment of anticipation you often get when you ’ re in a restaurant and you see the food or drinks coming down to the table , Jaffe explains . “ Providing that same experience at home is something we ’ re tremendously focused on right now .”
Pre-Covid , Snooze was opening 12 restaurants a year . It had to pump the brakes on expansion in 2020 , but the chain is getting back into growth mode , with the most recent opening in Atlanta this past February .
To help fund its next phase of growth , Snooze received a minority investment from private equity firm Brentwood Associates in December . It ’ s now up to 45 units , with restaurants opening in Kansas City , Houston , Laguna Niguel , CA , plus a location at the Denver International airport scheduled to open in June .
“ We ’ ll end up getting to six new openings in 2021 , and will be back in the 10 to 12 range for 2022 ,” Jaffe says . “ Getting back to growing and really excited to be able to bring the Snooze experience to more guests .”
16 • Summer 2021 www . cheersonline . com