Chris Moran

About Chris Moran

As a seasoned Principal Consultant, my expertise lies in driving strategic growth and fostering diversity within the culinary industry. Having led numerous projects that resulted in substantial savings and efficiency improvements, my focus is on delivering strategic menu development and optimizing procurement processes. The mission is clear: to empower food service leaders to enhance both cost-effectiveness and quality.With a proven track record at Sustainable Restaurant Group, my efforts in vendor selection and supply chain advancements led to significant cost reductions and streamlined operations. These initiatives were instrumental in supporting the opening of new locations and enhancing vendor relationships, showcasing a commitment to excellence and collaborative success in a competitive global landscape.15+ years of extensive experience with creating new menus, streamlining purchasing and procurement, while cultivating long-term supplier/producer partnerships across the US and Global Regions (North America, Europe, Middle East and Asia)Accomplishments Directed a culinary consulting project to drive greater efficiencies with deliveries, monthly par adjustments, prep par adjustments, and waste tracking, resulting in $430K in savings for the client within 3 months and ahead of forecast. Drove vendor selection and account set up for 3 new locations in Seattle, San Francisco, and Phoenix for Sustainable Restaurant Group, in 90 days, while driving supply chain efficiencies (including converting all F&B vendors to EDI and Fintech) to secure a 1.5% cost reduction. Partnered with the VPs of Operations and Training to redevelop kitchen, sushi, and cocktail menus (and associated training materials) at Kona Grill to deliver a 4.3% reduction in cost of goods on a $110M sales run rate over 18 months, as well as positive same-store sales for 29 out of 34 quarters. Streamlined procurement processes at Kona Grill by consolidating ingredient specifications, ingredient vendors and distributor partners, while maintaining or improving quality, leading to food ingredient rebates growing from ~$250K to $1M+ over 4 years. Spearheaded a rapid expansion of Kona Grill’s domestic and international operations by doubling domestic locations (from 23 to 46) in 3.5 years and opening 3 international franchises in Mexico, Canada, and the UAE within 9 months.

Experience

1. Principal Consultant, Proprietor

   Cem Consulting Llc

   Jun 2020 — Present · US

   KEY ACHIEVEMENTS Secured 4 clients in less than 3 months and built close, consultative client relationships that facilitated seamless implementation of process and technology improvements in culinary operations. Leveraged insights from in-depth analysis of market conditions and access to inventory supply to provide strategic recommendations on menu development and updating of ingredient specifications.

Education

• Northeastern University

  Bachelor of Science - BS, Dual Degrees in Business Administration and Management, and Entrepreneurship

• The Culinary Institute of America

  Associates of Occupational Studies (AOS) Degree, Culinary Arts

Skills

• Catering
• Income Statement
• Banquets
• Hotels
• Seafood
• Food Service
• New Restaurant Openings
• Hotel Management
• Wine
• Banquet Operations
• Hiring
• Inventory Management
• Food Cost Management
• Culinary Skills
• Event Management
• Food & Beverage
• Gourmet
• Fine Dining
• Cuisine
• Serve Safe Certified
• Cooking
• Hospitality Industry
• Training
• Customer Satisfaction
• Social Media Marketing
• Strategy
• Pre-Opening
• Budgets
• Food
• Pastry
• P&L
• Management
• Team Building
• Menu Engineering
• Menu Development
• Sanitation
• Menu Costing
• Hospitality
• Chef
• Leadership