Fisher-Nickel Inc. (FNI), the San Ramon, Calif.-based commercial-foodservice energy-efficiency testing firm, has been acquired by GTI Int’l., a wholly owned subsidiary of Gas Technology Institute.FNI, owned and operated by Don Fisher and Judy Nickel, is an engineering consulting firm with deep expertise in commercial-kitchen energy-efficiency and appliance-performance testing. It provides comprehensive, unbiased information to the…

Pitco Frialator has added Eric Anderson, CFSP, as v.p.-international sales. Anderson joins Bow, N.H.-based Pitco from Australia, where he had been a regional director for Manitowoc Foodservice. He’s spent two decades in sales and marketing in the foodservice equipment industry; the past 15 years have been internationally focused. Pitco Frialator, a division of the Middleby…

The Hobart Center for Foodservice Sustainability is now accepting applications for its seventh annual $5,000 sustainability grant. HCFS, a nonprofit, industry-wide forum supporting the foodservice industry’s drive for sustainable equipment and design, awards the grant to the individual or organization judged to have the best-executed foodservice or grocery sustainability project of the year. Last year’s…

The Middleby Corp. announced Jan. 7 that it has acquired the assets of Market Forge Industries, the 118-year-old manufacturer of steam cooking equipment, including countertop steamers, kettles and braising pans. Everett, Mass.-based Market Forge has annual revenues of approximately $15 million. “The steam cooking category is a large and growing sector in the commercial foodservice…

IHOP, which already has four locations in Kuwait and the United Arab Emirates, has opened its first store in Saudi Arabia. The mall-based restaurant, which opened Dec. 14, is part of a seven-brand restaurant destination in the seaside city of Jeddah. It’s the fifth grand opening in the Middle East region for the all-American breakfast…

Darden Restaurants, which announced plans last month to sell or spin off its Red Lobster chain, is suspending the opening of new Olive Garden locations and cutting back on the number of new LongHorn Steakhouse restaurants. Red Lobster, which has 705 restaurants in the U.S. and Canada, has seen stagnant same-store sales in the past…

FOLLETT ICEThe Horizon 700 series makes up to 675 lb. of ice in a 24-hr. period and is available in self-contained models with air- or water-cooled condensing options. Customers have their choice of Chewblet (1-in.L) or Micro Chewblet (3/8-in.L) ice chunks. Top-mounted or undercounter models can be paired with fountain dispensers or ice bins. Or,…

APP OF THE MONTHThe patents are filed, and production is just starting to ramp up on the very simple, very effective new FryerGate fryer accessory. The all-stainless units, which include side-by-side, spring-loaded gates over the fryer vat, just drop in place covering the entire open surface of the fryer and create an instant barrier between…