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Grande diced or loaf

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Pakula_s_Pizza

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Today our local rep from grande came in to speak about a couple of
marketing campaigns we could run. We are using grande whole mill loaf, and have been since opening. Most would say it’s too buttery by itslef but it has done just fine. After speaking to the rep I decided it’s time to get some free stuff. Once we got
into it he had me laying diced east coast blend then diced whole milk then my hous shredded whole milk. He proved to me that I can cover an 18 inch piZza with 11.5 ounces of diced when it took me 15-16 ounces of shredded. Ovbiously the diced is .30 cents more per pound but simple math shows that the .30 cent difference is a small price to
pay to get one extra pizza every 3 lbs. Obvoisly I would
love to save 12 dollars a week in labor and at the same time be care free about the Hobart cheese grinder we are using. (I’ve seen someone take their fingers off).

So my question: does anyone have the capability to grind cheese but choose this way for any reason? And does it really work out in savings or do your customers think they at getting jipped?

I am gonna use grande eiter way so please refrain from bashing the product. I know what I’m selling I’d just like to know how to sell it? Thanks on advance.
 
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Hi Pakula,

I started out with diced and made the switch to shredding later. I’m loving it. I’m using a much better product, better storage, better cost. I found that I used LESS of the new shredded product than I used in the old diced product. The cost savings of LESS + lower cost + better taste and quality proved to be a no brainer. I don’t buy the labor argument - I’m already paying folks, having diced doesn’t lower payroll 1 bit. *Note: the shredded is MUCH better on salad than the diced.
 
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I began buying a shredded product, then another place we used diced (faster to top) then next place back to a shred & have blended Grande diced w/another…

current place, we shred a whole milk mozz & prov & tho a bit slower in topping pies than diced, we use a scale to control costa an I feel the coverage is a bit better - I’m quite satisfied but would consider buying a VCM and trying to dice my own blend, but still scale…
 
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A 4-5 ounces saving on product is substantial IMO, How many 18" pizza do you typically put out in a week/month?
Multiply that 1/4 pound of saved product over several thousand pizzas and see what your going to save, then ask again why this move to a diced product was not done sooner

I have used shredded,sliced, & ground cheese. But I have never seen or used diced. I expect it to be a similar product to the ground cheese I have used.

We used to get LM-PS mozz in 6-8 pound loaves, and run it though the meat-grinder attachment on the mixer to prep our cheese. Have you tried that?? it may turn out a similar product at an even better cost reduction with no reduction in quality or portioning.

I have decided to use sliced cheese in my upcoming establishment I am doing this mainly for portion control, but I also like the texture involved with a sliced product, I find it less stringy, and more creamy compared to the same cheese that is shredded. Has anyone else seen this happen? and what do you think is the cause for this?
 
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Why would the price of diced be different from shredded? Their cost is the same. Is it just the story that you will save usage and therefor should pay more?

Usage should be the same no matter what preparation you start with. I will grant you that some are easier to maintain consitant portions. Diced is easy, but it does not follow that you can/should use less. It is just easier to control than shredded.
 
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I use Grande and there is no difference in price between the two for me. I use the shredded because we put our toppings under the cheese, so the shredded covers better on bulkier toppings.
 
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bodegahwy:
Why would the price of diced be different from shredded? Their cost is the same. Is it just the story that you will save usage and therefor should pay more and increase their profit per pound? Just another reason not to like that company.
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Obviously you didn’t read more then the first two lines of what i wrote before you decided that your two cents mean more to this forum than anyone else. You didnt answer any questions, just showed how arrogant you are. I didn’t ask your opinion on Grande cheese or the company that makes it. I actually said i didn’t want the debate. If you don’t or didn’t use it, Let people who actually know answer it.
 
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Have a nice day yourself.

I have used diced, shredded, sliced and ground my own from block in the decades I have been around this business. The characteristics of those preparations do not vary by brand. My point was that there is not an automatic savings in diced. That point is supported by other posts in this thread. As I stated, in my opinion, diced is easier to control when it comes to portion, but does not actually require less product. If that ease is worth 30 cents a pound to you, then you should go ahead with it.

I also called into question the price difference you quoted between diced and shredded. As supported by the statement of the poster that followed mine, not everyone is paying a difference, so you might look into that.

As to your statement that I think that my “two cents means more”… well, that is just a gratuitious slap at me. Have a free one. If just posting to a thread implied that, we would all be in trouble.

You are right that my statement about not liking the company was unneccessary. I removed it.

Sorry that my post came off as “arrogant” to you. I guess you will recover eventually.
 
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Pakula's Pizza:
So my question: does anyone have the capability to grind cheese but choose this way for any reason? And does it really work out in savings or do your customers think they at getting jipped?
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I’ve used both shredded and diced. We uses diced now and strict protioning. They do cover differently but at the end of the day if you are using one method to try and get away with less cheese I think the customers notice and will think they’re getting ‘jipped’.

IMO cheese quantity is more important than quality to a lot of customers, regardless of whether its grande or whoever and regardless of whether I thing its right or wrong. I use 100% Mozzarella whereas nearly all my competition use ‘pizza cheese’ which turns thick gloopy and greasy. We get feedback from time to time that other shops ‘pile on the cheese’ where as we don’t use much at all. So quantity is an issue to some.

Go with whichever covers more, use the same quantity but don’t pay more for one cut over the other.

Hope this helps
 
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Bodegahwy: Actually he didn’t say there is a price difference between shredded and diced, but between loaf and diced.

We use loaf whole-milk Grande that we shred ourselves. We make one size, approx. 13 inches, and use 5.5 oz. per pizza. Extra cheese is 7.5 oz. As rich as this cheese is, that’s plenty for our purposes and for our customers. We are a brewpub with a high-quality image for our beer and our pizza, our customers aren’t looking for large amounts of cheese and toppings.

Just my 2 cents (worth no more than everyone else’s).

—Guy
 
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Pakula, why not get the best of both worlds and dice the cheese yourself? You can probably get a used VCM for $2,000. At 30 cents per pound it will pay for itself pretty quickly.

As for putting less on because diced covers better - I think your customers will notice. It’s still less cheese than they were getting before regardless of how fact or smooth you’re able to put it on the pizza.
 
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Pizzabrewer, I see you are right and I mis-read the post. I just saw the comparison to shredded in the same sentance and did not make the leap back to the earlier part.

30 cents is still a big difference. I am used to seeing something like 15 cents difference. That small difference is why we went to buying loaf and processing ourselves. We use a VCM which gives a product similar but not identical to diced which I have also used extensively. When we are pretty busy, that 15 cents a pound is several hundred $$s a month. If the cost difference was 30 cents, the savings would be that much bigger.

I agree with the posts above about needing to use the same amount regardless, so there is not a savings in usage. The potential savings comes in consistancy in portion. It is a little easier to ensure that the coverage is complete with diced or VCM processed which avoids the pizza makers dipping back into the tray for “just a little more” to cover a spot they missed.

For us, labor in processing cheese is a non issue. One person can easily do 100 lbs in about 20 minutes. I suppose you could say that is 5 cents a lb but the reality is that it is 20 minutes less time spent on the crossword puzzle during the slow time in mid-afternoon.
 
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We have used both. Diced and shredded. We have shredded but never diced our own cheese. As much as I LOVE the ability to portion with ease using diced I found that the overall finished product was not worth the ease. We are a pizzeria and the final melting texture of the cheese just wasn’t the same. Side by side there is a difference to the end product. Would anyone really notice…not sure but I can.

We also use cheese for our salads and the diced was not attractive. (I realize that wasn’t really an interest to your original post but putting my 2 cents in anyway)

I agree with bodge that you should be able to get the 30cent difference reduced.

I also agree in the usage being the same regardless.

Good luck to ya and simmer down everyone’s opinion is worth something even if it nothing to you.

Kris
 
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Looks like I won’t be making the switch :-)…

Kris- What was the price difference between loaf and diced?..should be a steady margin i would assume. and

Have you tried any of the Grande fresh mozz?..fits perfectly in a salad. We use Rotodino its fantastic.
 
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I would say it has been at least 5…heck maybe even 10 years since we have used diced. Used to come up a couple of years and we would give it a whirl and I guess we finally realized it wasn’t working out for us. But like I said it has been years so as far as the price I can’t remember the actual difference. Like you, we are tempted by the “savings” but wasn’t worth it for us.

Honestly, I have never tried grande at our place. Been in business going on 16 years and never tried it. I somewhat find that odd since they are so “well known” in our line of work. I am sure I have had one over the years at perhaps a food show or perhaps just when sampling a pizza while out of town.

We use a provolone cheese on our salads (which we shred).

Kris
 
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Just my 2 cents worth.
We used to shred our cheese from block - 50% each of mozz and cheddar. It was cut and a small block of each was put through the shredder at a time (Robot Coupe type machine). It came out blended.
Too many times there was one or two mini blocks left over of the same variant despite the 20kg blocks being cut evenly, or inconsistent quality of the final blend (pushing it down the shute too softly came our whispy and too hard caused squishy congealed blobs.
We were given a sample of pre shredded 100% low fat mozz, probaly along the same quality etc as your Grande. I was sceptical of how it would work but I was assured by the guy (from our state) who one the world pizza title a few years back that I would be sold on the finish and customers would love it. He also had similar staff problems with dicing/shredding himself.
Now we only use the 100% low fat shredded mozz. It comes in 12kg bags which we just dispense into 3 tubs per box. No staff errors, no inconsistencies and WE USE LESS. Our useage has gone from around 100 - 110kg per week to an average of 96kg. The coverage is better, the finish is great and customers love it, especially the low fat side of it.
We have saved on overall cost by using less, our cost is lower despite it being a dearer product and we put out a better and consistent end product. Labour cost are down, plus all the associated costs of blade replacements, cleaning etc.
For mine I wouldn’t go back to shredding ourselves, nor would I used diced. Diced didn’t melt as well, we had to put more on to “look” appealing and I just didn’t like it.
Just my 2 cents (you get a lot for 2 cents 😃 )
Dave
 
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wa dave:
Just my 2 cents worth.
We used to shred our cheese from block - 50% each of mozz and cheddar. It was cut and a small block of each was put through the shredder at a time (Robot Coupe type machine). It came out blended.
Too many times there was one or two mini blocks left over of the same variant despite the 20kg blocks being cut evenly, or inconsistent quality of the final blend (pushing it down the shute too softly came our whispy and too hard caused squishy congealed blobs.
We were given a sample of pre shredded 100% low fat mozz, probaly along the same quality etc as your Grande. I was sceptical of how it would work but I was assured by the guy (from our state) who one the world pizza title a few years back that I would be sold on the finish and customers would love it. He also had similar staff problems with dicing/shredding himself.
Now we only use the 100% low fat shredded mozz. It comes in 12kg bags which we just dispense into 3 tubs per box. No staff errors, no inconsistencies and WE USE LESS. Our useage has gone from around 100 - 110kg per week to an average of 96kg. The coverage is better, the finish is great and customers love it, especially the low fat side of it.
We have saved on overall cost by using less, our cost is lower despite it being a dearer product and we put out a better and consistent end product. Labour cost are down, plus all the associated costs of blade replacements, cleaning etc.
For mine I wouldn’t go back to shredding ourselves, nor would I used diced. Diced didn’t melt as well, we had to put more on to “look” appealing and I just didn’t like it.
Just my 2 cents (you get a lot for 2 cents 😃 )
Dave
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Hi dave… just wondering… Do you advertise the fact that you are using ‘low fat mozz’ ?

If so… Is there any concern about the perception of it. as low fat cheese might not have that bold taste? Like don’t you have customers who are like pfffft low fat ?
 
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We advertise it on our website in the “About Us” section where we sell the benefits of us vs the others and also in the FAQ section, again when we talk about our quality
As Australia is now recognised as the next obeses nation to USA, low fat is a big thing here. We have been tuned to the adjusted taste but to be honest there is little difference when you use quality products. You tend to find high fat products also have high salt and high sugar content for taste, but a quality product will have a true natural taste
Also we only lightly cheese our pizzas preferring to give the customers the taste through our quality toppings. Heavier cheesed pizzas such as I see on many US pizza shop websites would go with our customers

Dave
 
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wa dave:
We advertise it on our website in the “About Us” section where we sell the benefits of us vs the others and also in the FAQ section, again when we talk about our quality
As Australia is now recognised as the next obeses nation to USA, low fat is a big thing here. We have been tuned to the adjusted taste but to be honest there is little difference when you use quality products. You tend to find high fat products also have high salt and high sugar content for taste, but a quality product will have a true natural taste
Also we only lightly cheese our pizzas preferring to give the customers the taste through our quality toppings. Heavier cheesed pizzas such as I see on many US pizza shop websites would go with our customers

Dave
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Thanks Dave. Just wanted to understand how much you let your customers know that. I personally would be happy with low fat cheese. Anyway thanks for explaining. I wonder if that would work in the USA
 
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