A Rant On Recipes (or Lack Thereof)

<p>On this episode of The Repertoire Report, Ray Delucci starts with a rant about recipes and why they matter so much to a food business. He makes the case that well-written, tested recipes are the base of consistency, efficiency and profit in any kitchen. He explains how to write them so they actually work: list ingredients in the order they&#39;re used, write for someone with basic cooking knowledge, and treat your recipe book as the kitchen&#39;s Bible. He also pushes back on the chef culture that sees recipes as a weakness, especially as restaurants face a tough market heading into 2027.Then Ray turns to the week&#39;s biggest industry news. Uber is buying ezCater for $2.3 billion, and he looks at what that means for restaurants and B2B catering. Starbucks is reportedly considering a Chipotle acquisition, which would be the biggest deal in restaurant history. Cheap direct-to-consumer brands are changing the caviar market. He closes with three quick hits: AI startup Bites taking on DoorDash, a former Top Chef contestant who blames tariffs for closing his Portland steakhouse, and Chick-fil-A saying no to AI in its drive-thrus.</p><p><br></p><p>Links: </p><p><br></p><ul><li><p><a href="https://investor.uber.com/news-events/news/press-release-details/2026/Uber-to-Acquire-ezCater-as-it-Brings-Catering-to-Uber-Eats/default.aspx">UberEats Acquires ezCater</a></p></li><li><p><a href="https://1851franchise.com/uber-ezcater-acquisition-catering-franchise-2733280">UberEats Acquisition Analysis</a></p></li><li><p><a href="https://www.nrn.com/mergers-acquisitions/starbucks-is-reportedly-eyeing-a-chipotle-acquisition">Starbucks eyeing Chipotle</a></p></li><li><p><a href="https://www.wsj.com/style/fashion/discount-caviar-is-everywhereand-the-luxury-food-is-having-an-identity-crisis-17f49cf6">D2C Caviar</a></p></li><li><p><a href="https://www.theverge.com/ai-artificial-intelligence/1005726/doordash-ai-agentic-food-delivery-bites">AI Threatens Food Delivery</a></p></li><li><p><a href="https://www.theverge.com/ai-artificial-intelligence/1005726/doordash-ai-agentic-food-delivery-bites">Tariffs Sink A Restaurant</a></p></li><li><p><a href="https://www.restaurantbusinessonline.com/financing/why-chick-fil-view-drive-thru-ai-right-one">Chick Fil A Says &quot;No&quot; To AI</a></p><p><br></p><p>💬 <strong>Notice something we missed?</strong>If you come across something we had to search for, send us a message—we&#39;re always looking to make these show notes even better.</p><p