FER Honors Eleven Winners In Smallwares & Tabletop Contest

Eleven tabletop, servingware and smallwares products have been honored with awards in Foodservice Equipment Reports magazine’s 12th annual Smallwares & Tabletop Awards.  Five judges—two operators and three dealer specialists—made the final selections during a judging session held Aug. 13 at the Boelter Cos. Superstore in Glendale, Wis.

Nearly 50 tabletop and smallwares manufacturers submitted entries for the program, which recognizes excellence in product design. Criteria include items that demonstrate innovation in their category, promote labor saving and ergonomics, enhance food quality, safety and presentation and exhibit overall excellence in design. Products had to be introduced after the 2012 National Restaurant Association Show.

A total of 38 products was entered by 24 companies in the smallwares category; there were 52 entries from 25 companies in the tabletop and servingware categories. The award winners were selected from 20 finalists in the smallwares category, chosen by the editors of FER; 19 finalists made the cut in the tabletop and servingware categories. The five judges examined and rated the 39 finalist products onsite during the judging.

The five winners in the smallwares category are:

1. Comark Instruments Inc./Fluke: Diligence WiFi Data Loggers

2. Edlund Co.: ARC Manual Fruit & Vegetable Slicer

3. Edlund Co.: Tomato Laser Slicer

4. LeKue USA: Tartlet Commercial Baking Mold

5. The Vollrath Co.: LidSaver Dispensers

The six award winners in the tabletop and servingware categories are:

1. American Metalcraft: Stainless Steel Milk Cans

2. Elite Global Solutions: Greenovations biodegradable dinnerware.

3. Mauviel USA: M'elite Stainless Steel Cookware Collection

4. Rosseto Inc.: Stainless Steel Rectangular Warmer

5. Spring USA: XCESSories Skyline Display Tower

6. The Vollrath Co.: Miramar Pans

Judges were Mike Steffen, food production manager-St. Mary’s Hospital, Madison, Wis.; Anne McCabe, president-The Boelter Cos., Wood Dale, Ill.; Chad Cerra, group sales manager-The Wasserstrom Co., Columbus, Ohio; Shannon Kroner, category manager-Edward Don and Co., Woodridge, Ill.; Rudy Diaz, sous chef-Maggiano’s, Schaumburg, Ill.

The winning products and finalists will be featured in the November 2013 issue of Foodservice Equipment Reports.