ENERGY STAR for Restaurants

Success Stories

Jose O’Shea’s Café and Cantina, a Mexican style restaurant in Lakewood, CO, is providing an environmentally friendly dining experience in addition to a delicious one. Jose O’Shea’s General Manager Jim Burns proved savings could be made through intelligent and comprehensive energy efficiency upgrades. Burns started with upgrading the existing lighting system with new and efficient compact fluorescent lamps (CFLs), T-8s, high-pressure sodium and light emitting diode (LED) exit signs. The HVAC system was upgraded along with refrigeration improvements and new insulation. All together, Jose O’Shea’s efforts reduced energy usage by 157,000 kWh and saved $11,000 annually. In addition, the restaurant is preventing the production of 195,000 pounds of pollution per year.

The Reedville Café: Oregon — Reedville Café’s growth in the past few years has significantly contributed to its increase in energy consumption. To help reduce costs, Reedville Café incorporated measures to improve its food service equipment, including three new ENERGY STAR qualified gas fryers. These fryers are generating savings of 3,390 therms, or more than $3,800 a year, which is also preventing nearly 39,000 pounds of CO2 emissions from entering the air. More… PDF (581KB)

SUBWAY — Twenty thousand dollars can buy a lot of bread. That is what Subway franchise owner Steve Kaplan is saving by taking advantage of energy-efficient technologies at his restaurant in Norman, OK. What is Kaplan’s recipe for success? He upgraded his store’s lighting from 40-watt T-12 lamps and magnetic ballasts to T-8 lamps and electronic ballasts. In addition to his 50-percent energy savings, he now has brighter lighting to make the food look more appetizing. Kaplan replaced his old air-conditioning units with high-efficiency models and added ceiling fans to circulate the store’s air. He can now set the store’s thermostats 3 to 5 degrees higher in the summer without affecting comfort. With these upgrades, he will pay back his investment in 3 years.

Tripp’s Grill & Six Pack: North Bend Pennsylvania — Michael and Susan Tripp opened their 1,400 square-foot restaurant and grill in North Bend, PA in 2002, knowing that restaurants are among the most energy intensive businesses for their size and sales. That is why they purchased new ENERGY STAR qualified freezers to replace older freezers in their restaurant. With this smart purchase, Tripp’s Grill & Six Pack is saving more than $1,900 a year in electricity costs due to reducing usage by more than 31,700 kWh, which is also preventing nearly 50,800 pounds of CO2 emissions. More…