The Challenge
The Pressure to Streamline
Hilton Hotels faced a challenge familiar to every major hospitality group: the need to reduce overhead without sacrificing the guest experience. They partnered with Cuisine Solutions to track specific goals across their properties: reducing food and overhead costs, decreasing kitchen waste, and increasing overall yield.
The objective was not just to “buy food,” but to fundamentally reshape how their kitchens operated in an environment of rising costs.
The Solution
The "External Commissary" Model
Cuisine Solutions stepped in to act as an external commissary kitchen for Hilton. By providing pre-cooked sous vide products ready to heat, finish, and serve, we allowed Hilton to shift their labor focus. Our approach went beyond delivery.
Cuisine Solutions’ expert chefs integrated with Hilton’s teams, providing on-site education and assistance to staff on the proper application and management of sous vide products. This ensured that the operational shift was seamless and the culinary standards remained high.
Analyze the workflow
Develop recipes
Conduct trainings
Optimize performance
The Results
Innovation on the Bottom Line
The collaborative study across four different hotels yielded immediate financial wins.
By implementing sous vide ingredients, Hilton achieved an average decrease of 1.6% in food costs and 2.38% in kitchen labor costs.
We received a lower total food and labor cost while still being able to elevate the end product—a reduction in cost, but not at the expense of quality.
—Chef Marc Ehrler,
Culinary Vice President, Hilton Americas