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Press: First Mobile Gourmet Seafood Truck in San Francisco Bay Area
SAM’S CHOWDER HOUSE ANNOUNCES FIRST MOBILE GOURMET SEAFOOD
TRUCK IN SAN FRANCISCO BAY AREA: SAM’S CHOWDERMOBILE
Providing a fresh solution in challenging economic times, Sam’s ChowderMobile brings award-winning, affordable seafood directly to customers, for lunch and dinner, corporate and private group “on-sites”, beach clambakes, and major events
Half Moon Bay, CA – (June, 2009) Sam’s Chowder House in Half Moon Bay, California, the first high volume mainstream restaurant to go “mobile”, now delivers award-winning gourmet seafood throughout the San Francisco Bay Area in Sam’s ChowderMobile. A year in the making, Sam’s ChowderMobile was the result of tremendous customer demand for fresh, simply prepared seafood. This new mobile solution will deliver lunch and dinner and high quality events directly to customers.
“Though our business at Sam’s has continued to soar, with an 18% increase year-to-date over last year, we are hearing from our corporate customers that it’s more and more difficult for them to justify holding business off-sites, even though there is a business need,” said Paul Shenkman, Proprietor of Sam’s Chowder House. The nationally known oceanfront seafood restaurant opened in October of 2006 and now serves an average of 22,000 people a month. “With Sam’s ChowderMobile, we can bring a ‘mobile seafood shack’ with outstanding food right to companies at their location – we call them ‘on-sites’. When you remove travel time and employee travel expense, and add a reasonably priced menu, the entire event is much more cost-effective. We can do the same for private events such as weddings, birthday parties, and family reunions or community events such as street fairs, sporting events, or Farmers Markets. We can even hold Lobster Clambakes right on the beach, or your home or office.”
“We are always looking for a way to bring our groups together to do business and teambuilding without breaking the bank,” said Caroline Donahue, Senior Vice President of Sales at Intuit, Inc. in Mountain View, CA, recognized as America’s most-admired software company. “With Sam’s ChowderMobile we don’t have to worry about travel costs and logistics, and time away from the office – it’s an easy and convenient solution for us. We plan to use it for our first ‘on-site’ sales event later this month.”
Sam’s ChowderMobile Menu and Events
Sam’s eco-friendly menu includes the same fresh daily seafood that has won Sam’s Chowder House numerous awards, such as Top five “Best Sandwiches in America” by NBC’s The Today Show for the restaurants Maine Lobster Roll. Other menu items include Sam’s popular Fish and Chips, Crab Louie Salad, Clam Chowder and Fish Tacos, as well as Key Lime Pie for dessert. Prices range from $4.95 for a Fish Taco, to $9.95 for Fish and Chips to $14.95 for Sam’s Lobster Roll. Nationally known Executive Chef/Partner Lewis Rossman, who has been featured on NBC TV, “Best of the Bay” TV and whose seafood earned “Culinary Hospitality Restaurant of the Year” by Santé Magazine, is directing all food activities for the mobile kitchen. The ChowderMobile will always have an on-site team that includes a manager and several cooks, depending upon the size and nature of the event.
Sam’s is eco-friendly, and uses sustainably-fished seafood according to the guidelines published by the Monterey Bay Aquarium. The cooking oil used for Sam’s famous fish and chips is cholesterol and trans-fat free which allows Sam’s to recycle it, and all packaging and utensils used on the ChowderMobile are 100% biodegradable and compostable.
Sam’s ChowderMobile is 24 feet long and lobster-red in color. It is custom-equipped with a top-of-the-line kitchen on wheels, with a grill, several burners, and two separate fryers – one for Fish and Chips and one for Fries. Lunch and dinner customers can find the Van’s current location by following it on Twitter @chowdermobile or by visiting www.samschowdermobile.com where there will be a live Twitter stream describing the Van’s current location. An events calendar will also be posted on the website, and currently includes the following Bay Area events:
• July 31–August2 Santa Clara County Fair • August 7–9 San Jose Jazz Festival • August 15–23 San Mateo County Fair • September 18–20 Monterey Jazz Festival
New England Lobster Clambakes and Crab Feeds
Sam’s authentic New England style Lobster Clambakes are an east-coast tradition, and a favorite among customers of the restaurant. With Sam’s ChowderMobile, customers can now have them wherever they want – their home, office, or on the beach. A huge wooden steamer box is used to cook the Clambake, loaded with fresh whole Maine lobsters, clams, mussels, red potatoes, fresh corn on the cob and savory Andouille sausage, and layered with special Maine lobster seaweed. The box is covered in the traditional manner, with a special burlap tarp and steams for over an hour, bringing out the smoky sweetness of the shellfish. When the Lobster Clambake is complete, guests enjoy the excitement of the “unveiling” as the steam billows out and the seafood is poured into huge family style bowls in preparation for serving. The three-course feast begins with piping hot cups of Sam’s renowned Clam Chowder, made in the traditional New England style with natural ingredients including a light, savory clam broth, cream, clams, potatoes, smoked bacon, onion and thyme. Guests then serve themselves to the incredible seafood feast before them, ending with dessert of Key Lime Pie or watermelon.
Sam’s ChowderMobile Team
Shenkman, a Half Moon Bay resident, and his Partner and Executive Chef Lewis Rossman both hail from the East Coast, and have incorporated their remembrances of a true New England style family-friendly “fish house” experience and delivered it to both Sam’s Chowder House and now Sam’s ChowderMobile. Their backgrounds, coupled with Rossman’s remarkable skills in the kitchen, provide the definitive “Atlantic meets Pacific” seafood experience—straight-forward, sustainable seafood, using the freshest ingredients.
The team’s newest member, Juan Hurtado, will lead operations as Manager of Sam’s ChowderMobile. Hurtado is passionate about food and customer service, and brings a strong and diverse background to the team, from retail store management to technology sales to line cook. He hails most recently from Whole Foods Market, where he directed a team of 80 in the Prepared Foods Department. In his new role, he will direct the team in day-to-day operations, setting the highest standards for gourmet mobile seafood delivery.
About Sam’s ChowderMobile
Sam’s ChowderMobile is brought to you by Sam’s Chowder House restaurant, located at 4210 North Cabrillo Highway in Half Moon Bay. The restaurant is open seven days a week from lunch through dinner and can be reached at (650) 712-0245 or www.samschowderhouse.com. To request to be added to Sam’s ChowderMobile route, email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or call 650 288-9348. For current location, follow us on Twitter @chowdermobile, or view our website for a live Twitter stream. Customers interested in holding private events can contact This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it., or visit www.samschowdermobile.com and request a quote. Sam’s ChowderMobile also accepts major credit cards.
PRESS: For more information, please contact Julie Shenkman at 650 726-1005.