By Tom Ryan
Safeway Inc. has quietly opened its first freestanding restaurant behind its store in Redwood City, CA. Apparently, Citrine is designed to test recipes for the prepared food sections in Safeway’s stores, but it also appears eyed for possible expansion.
The French-themed "bistro" opened in early June without any advertising or publicity, and Safeway officials have divulged few details on the project.
"This is an experiment where we'll have the opportunity to test some culinary ideas," Brian Dowling, a Safeway spokesman, told the Contra Costa Times. "We never talk about experiments that are in this early stage."
According to the newspaper, Citrine fits the "fast casual" category, where customers order from a counter for eat in or take out. The affiliation to Safeway is hidden, although it uses only products available through the chain's distribution center.
Entrees include Thai barbecue chicken, $12.49; margarita pizza, $8.99; and grilled fish, $13.99; as well as soups, sandwiches and salads. Its modern décor features blond wood accents along with a color palette of soft greens, oranges and yellows. Large posters display photos of foreign places and quotes from historical figures such as Galileo's "Wine is sunlight held together by water."
A website (www.citrinebistro.com) includes the bistro's menu, its philosophy, key management bios, a "Dash & Dine" online ordering service, a Club Citrine loyalty card, as well as a Destinations pull-down tab - although only Redwood City is listed.
Some grocers include cafeteria-styled dining areas inside stores, but a separate restaurant is unusual. The closest example is perhaps Tastings, a fine-dining restaurant in Rochester, NY, operated by Wegmans.
With Safeway mum on details, some market watchers feel the concept is primarily intended to test recipes for prepared foods sections. Sushi, sandwiches and gourmet soups have been added to Safeway's deli section as part of an overall remodeling effort in recent years to appeal to a more lifestyle-oriented customer.
"Having a restaurant allows you to get experience in [prepared foods]," Ted Taft, a retail consultant at Meridian Consulting, told the Contra Costa Times. "If Safeway just looks at Albertsons and other grocers as their competition, they are missing the fact that a larger share of the food dollar is going to restaurants."
But expansion is possible. Employees at Citrine said they expect other sites to open and an ad on Craigslist tells jobseekers that "others are to follow" the Redwood City location.
Safeway's Dowling said, "Whether or not it goes beyond this single unit, it's too early to tell."
Discussion Questions: What do you think of Safeway's experimental restaurant? Do you think more grocers should be opening restaurants to serve as laboratories for prepared foods sections? Or do you think grocers should explore opening restaurants as marketing or even growth vehicles?