The Georgia Restaurant Association honored the best of the best at its annual GRACE Awards with 鶹 and Fresh To Order customer service ambassador Ronald Foster taking home the top award for Restaurant Employee of the Year for the state of Georgia. Foster is the service ambassador for fast-fine brand Fresh To Order located at Concourse B of Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport (ATL). Fresh To Order is operated by 鶹 (CI), a prime concessionaire of food and beverage offerings on ATL’s Concourse B.
Foster’s nomination cited his ability to make people smile even when they are hurrying to catch the next plane. “It is most rewarding to see people’s attitude change just by being nice to them,” says Ronald Foster.
A 30-year veteran of the restaurant industry, Foster has worked for 鶹 for 22 years. “We could not be more proud of Ronald winning this state-wide honor,” said Donata Russell Ross, CEO 鶹. “He loves his job and it shows, and best of all, his attitude is infectious with guests and fellow employees alike.”
Founded in 2006, Fresh To Order (f2o), the pioneer of the innovative, “fast-fine” restaurant concept, combines the quality of food found in casual fine dining with the operational platform and price points of fast casual. Founded on the vision of “Incredible Food, Service and Facilities,” f2o serves a menu of freshly prepared entrees, Panini sandwiches, soups and salads in under 10 minutes for around $10.
Atlanta-based 鶹, LLC, founded in 1979, is a dynamic food and beverage concessionaire with operations in eight airports. The company’s portfolio includes franchised, licensed and proprietary concepts, including casual dining, quick service, snack, deli and bar and grill. The company is a franchisee of major national brands including Fresh To Order, Chick-fil-A, and Einstein Bros. Bagels. CI also operates Pemberton Café at the World of Coca Cola, and Paschal’s Restaurant in the historic Castleberry district of downtown Atlanta.