Food Service

Jacmar Cos., a private firm that operates wholesale specialty food-service distribution, is moving to acquire a majority stake in Chicago Pizza & Brewery Inc., the Huntington Beach operator of casual dining restaurants said Thursday. Jacmar affiliate BJ Chicago is planning to purchase 28% of Chicago Pizza's shares outstanding, which would give Jacmar a majority stake, Chicago Pizza said. BJ Chicago agreed to purchase 2.21 million Chicago Pizza common shares outstanding from ASSI Inc.

As sports and entertainment facilities become increasingly geared toward wealthy and corporate patrons, operators of arenas and stadiums across the country have sought to boost the quality of their amenities, especially the food, to keep rich ticket-holders coming back, even if the home teams are lousy.

Nearly 60 American Airlines employees and food service workers were charged Wednesday with smuggling what they thought were drugs and explosives onto planes in a sting operation that federal authorities said revealed alarming security breaches at Miami International Airport. The two-year undercover operation began when an American Airlines pilot complained about a cup of coffee on the plane that was later found to have been tainted with heroin. "The pilot said, 'There's a distinct taste.

It might seem a mystery why anyone would give up a lucrative occupation as a lawyer, accountant or salesperson to enter the notoriously low-paying field of food service, in the slim hope of becoming the next Wolfgang Puck. Yet career-shifters are fueling strong growth in dozens of culinary arts programs at community colleges and private schools statewide.

There are deep discounts available these days at Smart & Final Inc.--for the company's stock. As the chain of warehouse-style grocery stores struggles to turn itself around, Smart & Final's shares so far aren't recovering from a disastrous slide in mid-1998, when they plunged 60% to less than $10 as problems mounted. And since October, the stock has treaded water. It closed Friday at $11.81 a share, up 19 cents for the day, in New York Stock Exchange composite trading.

There are deep discounts available these days at Smart & Final Inc.--for the company's stock. As the chain of warehouse-style grocery stores struggles to turn itself around, Smart & Final's shares so far aren't recovering from a disastrous slide in mid-1998, when they plunged 60% to less than $10 as problems mounted. And since October, the stock has treaded water. It closed Tuesday at $10.56 a share, up 38 cents for the day, in New York Stock Exchange composite trading.

The public's growing appetite for dining out and a chronic shortage of qualified cooks are feeding a labor crisis in the restaurant industry, in which it's harder than ever to find people willing to stand in front of a hot stove. Food service and preparation jobs are the fastest-growing occupations nationally, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, which predicts a 17% increase in chef jobs between 1996 and 2006. The industry grows fatter each year, with sales ballooning from $42.

Walter "Jelly" Coleman, a retired hospital food service worker, died July 14 at his Ventura home after a lengthy illness. He was 74. Coleman was born Feb. 24, 1924, in Okmulgee, Okla. A 36-year resident of this county, he worked at Ventura County Medical Center for more than 25 years. In retirement, he played poker almost daily at the Avenue Adult Center, said his daughter, Annette Coleman.

The food is tastier and more diverse, and it's no longer a terminal experience, so to speak. That's why restaurant owners and executives recently gave Los Angeles International Airport the first Restaurant Industry Innovation Award for its "successful culinary make-over" and expansion of food services throughout the airport over the last four years. For 30 years LAX contracted with only one food and beverage service.

Nita Coffman St. Ann of Oxnard, a retired food services employee for Camarillo State Hospital, died Friday in a hospital following a brief illness. She was 58. St. Ann was born June 30, 1939, in Branch, Ark., and lived in Oxnard for 52 years. She and her husband, Adam, were wed Nov. 23, 1963. They had planned to be married the day before, but had to postpone the ceremony because of the assassination of President Kennedy, said her mother, Ina Coffman of Oxnard.