One of the things that has always troubled us about offering take out  is the packaging!  It seems like such a waste of resources!  

We've extended this environmental commitment to our catering program as well!   When you choose Pies & Plates catering, you have two packaging choices:  1)  Our elegant premium  packaging that is reusable and recyclable; or 2) Our green packaging that is made from recycled material that is biodegradable and compostable. 

 

We're committed to reducing our environmental footprint one bite at a time!

 

Leave nothing behind but your yums!

 

Cindee & Dennis Murphy,

Owners of Pies & Plates 

 

 Paper Vs Plastic

Reduce, Reuse, Recycle

• We train our staff to Reduce, Reuse and Recycle as much as possible.
• We give you a discount off your purchase of our olive oil and balsamic vinegar when you bring in your bottle for refill.
• We recycle the packing peanuts that are delivered to us by saving them for our own outgoing packages and when we have more than we can use, we donate them to the local UPS store.
• We try to purchase inventory items that have reduced packaging.
• In our Prepped & Ready program we use Ziploc bags instead of rigid aluminum packing.  Ziploc bags can be recycled!
• We are in the process of switching all of our to-go hot cups, cold cups, soup containers and to go boxes to products made from recycled materials that are biodegradable and compostable.
• Because the city does not pick up recyclable materials from businesses, Denae takes home our glass items, Heather takes home our aluminum products and Deborah takes home our plastic milk jugs so they can be recycled. 
• We receive a lot of catalogs and magazines.  Cindee takes these home to be recycled and cancels any unwanted subscriptions.  When offered she opts for an e-version rather than a print copy.
• We do much of our bookkeeping and bill paying on-line to reduce postage and paper.
• David collects the coffee water that drains off our espresso machine and takes it home to water his house plants. The coffee grounds are collected and used to fertilize shrubbery around the store.  Plain water (such as the water used in a double broiler or soup kettles) is also used to water vegetation around the store.
• We use computer paper made from recycled materials as much as possible.
• We recycle our ink cartridges by mailing them back to HP in the envelopes they provide.
• We've reformated our monthly e-zine, Food for Thought to make it easier for our readers to print only the articles they need instead of the entire e-zine saving paper and ink.
• We rely primarily on e-mail communications to stay in touch with or customers, avoiding printed materials.
• We wash and reuse our gelato cups and spoons and any kids cups and lids.  (All straws get thrown away!)
• We use reusable cloth bags to collect our groceries.
• We reuse kitchen packaging for storage. Our sour cream tubs make great tupperware substitutes!  
• Usable retail items that can't be sold at full price or used in the store are donated or sold on clearance.  We don't like to sell scratched and dented items but we've found that one man's trash is another man's treasure!  (And it's better than sending it straight to the landfill!) 
• We use rechargeable batteries when possible.
• After the hurricane rather than removing and replacing damaged cabinetry we chose to fix it. (Just couldn't see adding more stuff to the landfill.)
• When a piece of equipment stops working our goal is to fix rather than replace.  If we do have to replace something (like a coffee grinder, we save any usable parts to be used when the new one wears out).
• The majority of our display cabinetry (gondolas, hutches, etc.) are items that we've recycled.  
• Rather than disposing of display items we no longer need, we try to find good homes for them offering them to other businesses, etc.
• We chose to do an acid stain treatment to our concrete floors rather than installing hardwood (exception Prepped & Ready room).
• Water Conservation:
•  We train our employees to use water conservatively and teach them how they can make a difference.
• Rather than automatically serving water to our guests we wait for them to request a glass.
• We have reduced sink and tap use by thawing frozen food in the  refrigerator rather than under running water. 
• We avoid having to refill dish wash sinks as often by scraping dishes and cookware before washing them.
• We immediately repair leaking faucets and toilets.
• We keep water temperature at the right level required by health codes.
• We've installed low-flow pressure nozzles on all kitchen sinks.
• We use a spray head on our hose when washing floor mats so we can control water pressure and flow.
• We have selected a commercial dishwasher that is designed to minimize water usage by using rinse water for the next wash cycle. 
• We try to always fill the dishwasher completely before running a load.
• We turn the dishwasher off when not in use to save electricity
• We have a low water usage compact washing machine for doing our laundry and we wash only full loads as much as possible.

• We have tinted our windows to reduce the amount of air conditioning we require.
• We have our air conditioner professionally maintained and filters changed on a regular basis to reduce energy consumption.
• We have replaced many of our  halogen lights in the retail part of our store with low energy long lasting florescent bulbs.
• We keep lights off in our restrooms and storage rooms when not in use.
• We have selected energy star rated appliances as much as possible.
• We turn off our oven and panini press as soon as we are done with them.
• We keep our sandwich cart lids closed when not in use (Prepped & Ready and kitchen)
• We keep the back screen on our pastry and gelato cases down except when in use.
• We avoid opening and closing the door on our ice machine more than necessary.
• When we warm up our air pots in the morning we recycle the hot water by using it in our wash sink.  (Saves water and electricity)
• We turn off all but security lighting at night.
• We have a timer on the big sign above our store to conserve energy. 
• We plan our baking schedule to minimize the amount of time the oven must be on.
• We installed a small booster water heater next to dishwasher to reduce the distance the hot water must travel.
• We shut down our computers at night.
• The condensers on our refrigeration equipment are cleaned monthly to keep them operating efficiently.
• We perform routine maintenance on our espresso machine, grinders and brewers to keep them operating properly.
• We've had an FPL energy audit done to identify ways we can conserve energy.
• We minimize the amount of travel that is needed to conserve gasoline.