Thursday, 23 June 2011
Blendtec's "EZ" Blender
Do you love summer? What about smoothies? How about FREE stuff?? Big Train® has combined all of your favorite things for our very first Summer Smoothie Spectaular!!!! Every week during summer, we’re going to be giving away a free Blendtec blender, along with a free case of Big Train smoothie mix and even more free samples! While some companies may have you jumping through hoops in order to win prizes, we’re making it easy! All you have to do is go to http://www.bigtrain.com/real-fruit-smoothies and fill out a short registration with your name and contact information. That’s it! No purchases are necessary to sign up and win.
Get your small business geared up for summer with some high quality equipment (thanks again Blendtec!) and the refreshing, fruity blast of Big Train’s smoothie mixes. With so many flavors to choose from, the hardest part of this giveaway will be deciding on your prize!
Join our Summer Smoothie Spectacular!!!
The flavors include:
- Strawberry Sensation
- Lemon Cooler
- Mango Madness
- Banana Banana
- Wild Berry
- Pineapple Coconut
- Passion Orange Guava
- Peach Pizazz
- Pomegranate Blueberry
- Cranberry Raspberry
- Naturals Strawberry
- Naturals Mango
- Vanilla Smoothie Mix (NSA available)
The best part is that all of these flavors can be experimented with and mixed together to create your own signature taste! The Vanilla Smoothie mix is especially great as a base and mixed with our Fruit Tea Smoothie Blast flavors, fresh fruit and/or juices. Get creative and keep your customers on their toes. We also have our Add-A-Boost Supplements that can be added to the smoothies, offering your customers the option of an extra energy, immunity or vitamin boost!
Don’t wait, Sign up today!!! The contest ends August 15th. Good luck and have a great summer 
Wednesday, 8 June 2011
In 1992, a group of professional coffee brewers gathered together in Seattle, Washington to make and sell coffee for the everyday consumer. What began as a simple festival would soon transform into one of the most prominent gourmet and specialty beverage retail trade shows, and in 1998 that’s exactly what happened. Coffee Fest became an expo for retailers, distributors and manufacturers to get together and make their businesses better through increased knowledge and higher quality products.
Our friends Kady Wade and Matt Best from Blendtec mixing a Big Train® beverage
On June 3rd through the 5th, Big Train® was lucky enough to take part in the 2011 Coffee Fest in San Diego. Although we didn’t have a booth this year, Big Train® has been exhibiting products at this unique trade show for more than 10 years. What sets this expo apart from other coffee exhibitions, is that while most of them focus more so on whole bean coffee or roasting, the Coffee Fest shows feature everything needed to start a coffee shop; from whole bean coffee, drink mixes and brewing equipment (i.e. Blenders from Blendtec as seen on the right) to supplies like flavor syrups, cups, straws and lids. They even have cash registers and mints! Because there is such a variety in what’s being sold, it also leaves the door wide open for many different kinds of new and innovative products being introduced into the market, another highlight of attending.
Here are the upcoming Coffee Fest dates:
Coffee Fest Hawaii 2011 Coffee Fest Seattle 2011
July 08 – 10, 2011 September 23 – 25, 2011
Coffee Fest New York 2012 Coffee Fest Chicago 2012
March 09 – 11, 2012 June 06 – 08, 2012
From a business standpoint, attending Coffee Fest is beneficial for someone starting a specialty coffeehouse or a food service location because there is everything you need in one show – a one-stop shop. For those already in the business, it is a chance to see what new products and services are available and seeing ways to improve current systems. So if you’re involved in the industry, make a point to familiarize yourself with this worthwhile event
Have any questions about Big Train®? Visit our website or call us toll free at 800 BIG TRAIN (244-8724).
Thursday, 19 May 2011
Wow cow - Delicious and Nutricious!
Frozen yogurt, aka Fro Yo, is currently all the rage as the healthier alternative to ice cream, but it’s not the only contender. Although Big Train’s Wow Cow Soft Serve may not technically be considered frozen yogurt, it still has the same great taste, smooth and creamy consistency, with drastically less fat. Here’s why Wow Cow soft serve would make a remarkable addition to your yogurt shop, ice cream store, or café:
1. Three of our softserve lines, Wow Cow, Wow Cow with No Added Sugar, and Wow Cow Creamy Tart, are fat free, have no trans fat, no hydrogenated oils and are gluten free. But for all the carb counters out there, we have the perfect product: our very popular Skinny Minnie! While Big Train® Skinny Minnie also has no trans fat, hydrogenated oils or gluten, it also has only 5 net carbs per 4 fl oz serving! It’s the ideal treat after the gym because it’s tasty and guilt-free! And just like our mainstream products that have a great reputation for excellent flavor, Wow Cow does not disappoint.
2. Not only does Wow Cow have 4 different lines of soft serve base mixes, but each one has over FIFTY flavor options! Check them out:
So many flavors!!!
3. It’s a powder! Because it’s not yogurt it doesn’t need to be refrigerated so Big Train® Wow Cow doesn’t take up space in your freezer, it’s cheaper to ship and it has a longer shelf life, saving you money! All you need is a soft serve machine at your restaurant. To do so, Big Train® recommends Taylor and Electro Freeze Soft Serve equipment for making the highest quality desserts for your customers.
4. Flavors galore: Neutral powder softserve bases can be mixed with the any of the flavor syrups to create a wide variety of flavors. That means you’ll carry less inventory than with pre-flavored frozen yogurt products and have more flavor options that last longer!
The perfect treat for your puppy pal!
5. Your pets will love it too! Mary Thompson of the Animal Friends Pet Hotel in Garden Grove, CA is always sure to serve her canine guests some Wow Cow soft serve. They can’t get enough, although you may want to steer clear of the chocolate bases!
6. Big Train® Wow Cow is Kosher! L’chaim!!
If you decide to sell Wow Cow in your store, you’ll be given tons of promotional items like posters, sell sheets and flavor strips to educate and entice your clientele. So start off your summer with the ideal froyo alternative, and let Big Train® Wow Cow’s soft serve powdered mixes have your customers begging for more. What is your favorite soft serve flavor?
Have any questions about Big Train®? Visit our website or call us toll free at 800 BIG TRAIN (244-8724).
Thursday, 5 May 2011
Vitamix and Big Train®: Two Peas in a Pod
Due to the nature of how Big Train’s drinks are made, it’s easy to recognize the true soul mate of our delicious blended iced coffees, smoothies and crèmes: Blenders.
According to Dictionary.com, a blender is
“An electric culinary grinding and mixing appliance, consisting of a container with propeller like blades at the bottom that are whirled by a high-speed motor to purée, chop, or mix foods.”
In a nutshell, that’s what a blender is and that’s what one does. However, not all blenders are created equal. We’ve all had or used blenders that are so outdated or cheap that they’re incapable of blending everything, take too long, or are so loud that using them becomes an excruciating chore.
That’s why, since 1937, Vitamix has been making some of the most trusted and high quality blenders out there. But while that may have been the year they created the first blender, it wasn’t until 1949 that Vitamix found its name and put themselves on the map with one of the first television infomercials ever to be put on air. Afterwards they continued to showcase their new and improved blenders including the “Kitchen Center”, “Vitamix 3600” and later the “Vitamix 4000”. In keeping with the tradition of always having the most advanced product of its kind, Vitamix released “The Quiet One” in May of 2010. As can be assumed by its name, it’s easily the quietest blender on the market. Here are just a few of this remarkable machine’s features:
- Operating at an amazing 18 decibels below its closest competitor, The Quiet One would be perceived as being four times quieter.
- Six program buttons with 34 optimized programs to choose from provide operator ease of use and consistent beverage preparation every time. Create custom blending programs for signature drinks, smoothies and blended coffee drinks.
- A magnetically secured back cover means it’s easy to clean and there are no screws or pieces to take apart, significantly reducing cleaning time.
- The container’s unique design and built-in dripless spout improves pourability, resulting in time and cost savings and improved customer experience. The container’s double-sealed bearing also provides improved wash-ability, extending life of the blade assembly.
- A high quality ≈ 3 peak output horsepower motor and exceptional smoothie blade design yields efficient, consistent, quality blends of even the most challenging ingredients.
Katie and Jocey from Coffee Tree Roasters in Pittsburgh, PA shared with us what they like best about the Quiet One Blender:
Vitamix The Quiet One at Coffee Tree Roasters
“We LOVE:
- It’s nice to converse with customers while making smoothies. This is something that is difficult, if not impossible to do with other blenders we have used.
- It’s very easy to clean
- The Vitamixes are faster than other blenders”
Anthony Ciepiel, Vitamix’s Vice President of Marketing, noted that “By focusing on designing blenders for the most demanding users and the most demanding applications, we create blenders that last longer and need fewer repairs.” This rings true for many store owners who rely on the silent power of The Quiet One to keep their customers happy.
Brent Kennedy, owner and Operator of the Looney Bean Cafe, bought one of the blenders at a convention last year. When asked about his experience with the Quiet One, he said “We really like it…We will buy them again. In fact, we are in the market for 2 now!” Maybe that’s why Vitamix’s revolutionary new machine was awarded the 2011 Kitchen Innovation (KI) Award from the National Restaurant Association. Whatever the reason(s), it’s safe to say that it was well deserved.
Whether you’re a busy restaurant owner trying to create the perfect feel and taste for your café or a regular Joe who enjoys finely blended beverages, could Vitamix and Big Train® be your perfect match? Why buy your Vitamix blenders from Big Train? Besides the fact that we love our customers, you get 2 pitchers and 3 FREE cases of Big Train product. What’s your favorite blender?
Have any questions about Big Train®? Visit our website or call us toll free at 800 BIG TRAIN (244-8724).
