Upstarts: Back on Track

Zea returns to growth mode after rebounding quickly from Hurricane Katrina.

By Maya Norris, Managing Editor -- Chain Leader, 4/1/2006

The most devastating hurricane of the season wasn’t enough to keep Zea down for long. The New Orleans-based chain known for its eclectic, rotisserie fare was back in business soon after Hurricane Katrina hit the Gulf Coast in August, ending the year with higher-than-expected sales. Now it is resuming its plans to expand beyond the Big Easy.

The Comeback Trail
Zea’s Alabama unit and five Louisiana stores, including one in New Orleans, did not sustain major damage from the hurricane, so they all reopened by December. But not without difficulty. Two days after the hurricane, co-founder and Co-President Greg Reggio rented two semitrailers and hired drivers to transfer Zea’s food to a storage and distribution facility in Baton Rouge from its local distributor in New Orleans. Due to the labor shortage and distribution problems, the units initially served a limited menu, with front-of-the-house employees pulling double duty in the kitchen.

Yet Zea finished 2005 with a same-store-sales increase of 7.8 percent, and EBITDA improved 36.6 percent.

Now Zea wants to focus on what it says separates it from other upscale-casual chains: It features New American cuisine centered around rotisserie and wood-fire-grilled meats. Popular items include Zea Rotisserie Chicken, $12.49; Thai Ribs, $9.49 appetizer, $18.99 entree, slow-cooked pork ribs with slightly spicy soy and ground chile glaze, garnished with sesame seeds, fresh basil, green onion and cilantro; and Twice Cooked Crispy Duck, $16.99, slow-roasted, then fried in peanut oil, garnished with green onions, cilantro, sesame seeds and honey-soy glaze, and served with Thai Green Dirty Brown Rice. But the chain also offers traditional American fare such as salads and sandwiches.

“Even though we’ve got all these exotic things going on—some cutting-edge items on there—you can come to Zea and get a great burger. ...There’s enough of the basic items on the menu that I think pretty much anybody could be happy,” Reggio says. “It’s tough to eliminate Zea from a group dining decision because there’s so many things on there that appeal to just about anyone.”

Forging Ahead
But executing a menu of rotisserie and grilled meats is labor intensive. The meats take 90 minutes to cook and have short hold times. Chief Operating Officer Chris Rodrigue has been working on Zea’s expediting system, including implementing new kitchen software and cross-training all staff.

Reggio and co-founders Hans Limburg and Gary Darling, who are trained chefs, have created uses for the meats once they are past their hold times. For example, the rotisserie chicken is featured in the Chicken Quesadilla, $7.99, and the Grilled Chicken Zeasar Salad, $9.99.

With these systems in place and all units operating again, Zea plans to open two or three company stores and two or three franchised units a year for the next few years in its current markets of Louisiana, Florida, Alabama and New Mexico as well as new areas such as Baton Rouge and Atlanta. It recently entered Texas thanks to Bill Hyde, former president and CEO of Ruth’s Chris Steak House, who opened a franchised unit in Plano in January and will open another in Dallas by year-end.

The chain plans to have 100 restaurants nationwide in 10 years.