Marlin Connections

We're up for a summertime challenge. Summer, summer, summertime...and that means our summer challenge is well underway with employee teams competing to see who can check off the most activities and make their summers a little more fun, at the same time. Quests are bucketed into categories spanning culture, travel, adventure, self-care, volunteering, food and drink (of course) and even connecting with other Connections-ites! No matter who wins, our summers are gonna level up this year. #MarlinConnections #WeFoodBetter #SummerInAcxion #SummerBucketLists #SunsOutFunsOut

A BIG congrats to our July Employee of the Month - Cali Gitlin! Cali Gitlin has been with our team for 2 years, and what a fun couple of years it's been. You've probably seen her in our regular Trends on Deck series. "Cali is an amazing co-worker, and really knows how to bring the team together and makes everyone feel special!" Cali dove into the role as our Culture Club lead and has been doing everything from meeting with other employees, to flying to the physical offices to understand their individual culture. Not only that, but she kicked the summer off with a summer employee challenge which has had all-time high participation and excitement. We sure appreciate it, Cali! Thanks for being YOU. #MarlinConnections #WeFoodBetter #EOTM #CelebrateEmployees

Trendspotter Cali is here with the hottest summertime food trends There's lots to dish about, including the best samples at Chicago's National Restaurant Association Show, some very surprising news about fresh fruits and vegetables, and Vital Pursuits, Nestle's latest product, designed to support those who are on GLP-1 weight loss drugs. Get the scoop; it only takes a few minutes. Thanks, Cali! What's a trend you're interested in learning more about? Tell us about it, and maybe we'll go deeper! #MarlinConnections #WeFoodBetter #EatYourVeggies #EatMoreFruit #FingerLimes #HealthySauces #AvocadosFromMexico #WeightLossMeals #FoodserviceTrends #TrendsOnDeck

This week, Connections GM Alli Welker was able to attend the School Nutrition Association's Annual Nutrition Conference in Boston to connect with our foodservice clients, and then walk the floor to get a bigger picture of what the 2025 school year (and beyond) will be serving up K-12 students. It was a huge show, with over 6000 school nutrition professionals attending and over 800 exhibition booths. What's ahead is a far cry from the school meals we may have eaten as kids, with so many brands dedicated to healthful offerings that also taste delicious. Maybe we're kids at heart, but we really love the K12 segment. To find out more about the school nutrition event of the year, visit https://hubs.ly/Q02H60Ym0 Curious about how your brand could fit within the K12 segment? Ask us anything! #MarlinConnections #WeFoodBetter #ANC24 #SchoolNutrition #K12

Happy 4th of July, everyone! Our offices will be closed on July 4th and 5th to celebrate Independence Day, watch some fireworks, and dip bomb pops in the cocktail or mocktail of our choice. May everyone have a fun, colorful, and most importantly, safe holiday. See you back here on Monday. #MarlinConnections #WeFoodBetter

Aloha, Hello Hilo! We visit this gorgeous eatery one year later. In 2023, Connections/CSSI helped develop the menu for Hello Hilo, a Hawaiian-inspired restaurant and bakery in Gainesville, GA. Our team played a role in the development of gold standard processes, operations, and culinary best practices. Now that Hello Hilo has been running for about a year, we came back to help their team tweak some recipes and processes to make sure that everything coming out of the kitchen is the best and most delicious it can be. For our culinary team, it's incredibly fun to dive back into a project with a lot of moving parts to evaluate, assess, and troubleshoot in real time with the people who bring this amazing food to their guests every single day. Chef Cameron shared some pictures of the site visit, so take a look at the magic behind the scenes! And if you're near Gainseville, we highly recommend stopping in for a mochi donut or two. What's a change you had to make to your operation after it got up and running that surprised you? We'd love to hear about it. #MarlinConnections #WeFoodBetter #HelloHilo #AlohaSpirit #MochiDonuts #NotAfraidOfChange #ProblemSolving #KingsHawaiian #HawaiianFood #ShaveIce

We celebrate Juneteenth National Independence Day, a day that marks the end of slavery in the United States. Let’s honor the struggles and resilience of Black Americans and recommit ourselves to building a more just and equitable future. To quote Coretta Scott King, “Freedom is never really won, you earn it and win it in every generation.” #BlackHistoryIsEveryonesHistory #JubileeDay #FreedomDay #EmancipationDay #BlackIndependenceDay #Juneteenth #Connections

Sometimes trend spotting is dirty work...but we're just the agency to do it. Did TikTok influence one of the biggest beverage trends of 2024? Absolutely! Thanks to popular influencers from Utah, dirty sodas have burst onto the food and beverage scene in recent months and were the must-have drink at the 2024 Restaurant Show. Those outside of the TikTok world may not know what a dirty soda is, but don’t worry—you don’t have to download the controversial app —we’ve got you covered. According to Wikipedia, “Dirty soda is a drink consisting of soda ‘spiked’ with cream and flavored syrups or fruit juices.” Essentially, it’s a flavorful mocktail using a soft drink as the base. Naturally, soft drink manufacturers have jumped on the craze. Coca-Cola and Keurig Dr Pepper both showcased their versions of dirty sodas at the 2024 Restaurant Show. Coke offered a "make your own dirty soda" bar, while KDP served up a menu’s worth of delicious signature dirty soda mocktails. But it wasn’t only the traditional soft drink companies getting in on the trend. Nestle Professional teamed up with KDP to feature dirty sodas using their Coffee Mate Dr Pepper creamers. Energy drink company Celsius also served their own version of dirty Celsius mocktails. While dirty sodas might be seen as brand new, they actually evoke a sense of "newstalgia," reminiscent of the root beer floats and cream sodas older generations grew up with. But this time, their appeal taps into new research showing that young Gen Z adults are consuming less alcohol than previous generations. During the show, a session presented by Tractor Beverage called “Winning Gen Z: Beverages That Offer Bursts of Flavor Across the Menu” revealed that Gen Z is also more sober-curious than any previous generation. Enjoying a dirty soda is a fun, innovative option for those who don’t consume alcohol, and a delicious option for those wanting to liven up their drink. While TikTok trends will come and go, we expect dirty sodas to continue growing in popularity across foodservice menus. Cheers! Have you tried a dirty soda? Tell us about it! #MarlinConnections #2024RestaurantShow #DirtySodaRevolution #MixItUp #HotFoodTrends #SipOnThis #NoTikTokNoProblem #BetterBeverages #WeFoodBetter

If sampling food was a sport, our team would have won the gold medal. At Chicago’s Restaurant Show, we waited in line, sampled, and sipped like it was our job...because it is! Here at Connections, we’re no strangers to delicious food and beverages. For us, the Restaurant Show is something we look forward to and train for each year. We’re experts at scoping out the best samples, pacing ourselves, and talking with our mouths full. After a heated debate and an informal poll, we’re also happy to share our favorites from the show with everyone’s top picks represented below, in no particular order: The J.M. Smucker Co. The to-die-for Jif peanut butter marshmallow bites were a treat that everyone loved, with amazing lavender lattes that leaned into the botanical trend we’ve been seeing. A LOT of caffeine was consumed that weekend, but this one stood out to us coffee snobs. Tillamook A darling paper bag with a melty, ooey-gooey grilled cheese tucked inside? Yes, yes, and yes. We may have gone back for seconds and even thirds to try the grilled cheese, their new cheese curds, and even the mini-ice cream cones. Tillamook never disappoints. Keurig Dr. Pepper The KDP/Tractor Beverages bar was THE place for handcrafted dirty sodas and mocktails. We’ll be putting these on regular rotation for parties all summer long! Avocados from Mexico With the Guac Bar, heaven IS a place on earth. A heaping serving of guacamole, crafted in front of you and made to order by friendly, skilled avocado artisans. King’s Hawaiian Pretzel sliders, the perfect combo of salty and sweet and the answer to the question “how do you make something already spectacularly good even better?” This bread knocked our bread-loving socks off. Oregon Fruit Products Mango Pourable Fruit tastes exactly like summer. We can’t wait to try this dreamy product in a sauce or in a cocktail (preferably while relaxing on a white sandy beach). Rana Buffalo chicken fried ravioli—a sample so good it should have its own emoji. These were creamy, spicy, and melt-in-your-mouth good. Beyond Meat The lines were long, and for a very good reason; everyone wanted to try the new Beyond Meat crispy nuggets. Holy moly, you’d never know they are plant-based. Tajin Spiced buttercream cake bites put this product into new, sweet territory. The spicy Tajin flavor balanced out the rich fluffiness of the buttercream and created something new and unexpected. What was your most memorable sample at the show? We want to know! #elasticFTW #HungryForMore #FreeSamples #MarlinConnections #WeKnowFoodservice #TimeToEat #ItsTheLittleThings #WeFoodBetter #PaceYourselfB4YouWreckYourself #JobPerks #ChicagoRestaurantShow #DeliciousChicago #ClearMindsFullBellies

Can technology make you hungry? This technology can.  Every year at Chicago’s Restaurant Show, we race to get a first peek at the latest innovations designed to make both front- and back-of-house operations easier, safer, and infinitely more streamlined. This year did not disappoint! What we found made our inner tech nerds very, very hungry. Robo-Cook A burger and fries, but automated. Sigma Robotics’ Robo-Cook Autonomous Robotic Burger and Fries System is a groundbreaking back-of-house setup that flawlessly deep fries potatoes and flips patties. For operations aiming to enhance frying oil safety, production efficiency, and flavor consistency, the Robo-Cook system is the solution. Autec Sushi Robots A full-time sushi robot? The stuff dreams are made of. Welcome to the Autec Sushi Robot system, Japanese machines that create picture-perfect wraps and rolls, and mix rice to make maki, nigiri, onigiri, and shari. For high-volume sushi locations like college campuses or multi-unit commercial operations that offer both dine-in and takeout, these machines can significantly improve back-of-house efficiency and food quality. Babylon Micro-Farms As the foodservice industry strives for greater sustainability each year, operators are looking for new ways to reduce water usage and food waste. The Babylon Micro-Farms systems could be the solution. Designed to simplify back-of-house crop production, Babylon’s automated in-house hydroponic growing systems conserve water, prevent nitrogen from contaminating waterways, and reduce food waste. These beautiful systems can grow everything from lettuce varieties to herbs, microgreens, and flowers in a relatively small space, all controlled remotely through Babylon’s technology, sensors, and cameras. Scheeroscopio BBQ Is it art? Is it dinner? It’s both! Scheer USA’s Scheeroscopio BBQ was a true showstopper, captivating everyone who walked by. Inspired by the gyroscope, the Scheeroscopio offers a unique method for preparing barbecue and roasting meats in continuous circular motions. This rotation prevents dripping and keeps the meat rehydrated, resulting in succulent barbecues of all kinds. It’s also really cool to watch in action! What kind of tech would you love to have working for you? Let us know in the comments. #sushirobot #cheezeburgercheezeburgercheezeburger #MarlinConnections #technerds #growyourown #WeFoodBetter #BBQInSpace #TheKitchenOfTomorrow #BeepBoopBeep #TheFutureOfFoodservice #FriesWithThat #KitchenGarden #Hydroponic #NationalRestaurantShow