It is one of the questions I always ask during initial meetings with a new restaurant client: When was the last time you changed your menu? They would give an answer and would always ask in return: How often should we change the menu?
As in many situations, it depends on a lot of things.
For other restaurants, it's as often as every month. For others as long as twice or once a year.
First, changing a menu takes time. If you're a seasoned chef or restaurateur, it might be the easiest thing to do for you. I know of a chef who changes menus every month and does the whole thing in one hour. Of course, that does not include testing and costing. Other chefs take months.
Unassisted, I can change a menu in a month. That's because I take the time to recost and test recipes I have not tested. I also like to arrange dishes properly.
The frequency of menu revisions depend on the following:
YOUR CUSTOMERS. Country clubs and other exclusive clubs have to change every month. This is to avoid customers from getting tired of the menu. In this case, a once a month revision is necessary. In other cases like specialty restaurants or lean menu arrangements, a twice a year revision should be okay. This could be applied for places who specialize in certain dishes like crabs, chocolate and the like.
SEASON. It is always best to use what's in season. So to adapt your menu to what's in season, it would be good to revise the menu to make use of seafoods, fruits and vegetables that are easily accessible to you.
ECONOMIC MOVEMENTS. Inflation would always be a key factor to any restaurant. When prices increase and your food cost cannot handle the increase anymore, it's time for a revision. When there's a sudden increase or shortage of an ingredient, it's time for a revision.
Remember, changing a menu doesn't mean totally replacing your current offerings with all-together new ones. It is best to retain your bestsellers and introduce fresh dishes. Don't be afraid to put new or experimental dishes just as long as you've tested them.
In the next blogpost, i'll let you in on how to revise your menu.
Sunday, January 25, 2009
Saturday, January 17, 2009
Love is in the air
It's January. The New Year is done. Chinese New Year is a few days ahead. After that, what's next?
Yes, you got it. It's Valentines day! That means probably one of the busiest times for a restaurant. If you have not planned for Valentines day, you still have time to do so.
So what exactly do you want to do on Valentines?
You might say, "No, not the same 'dinner for two'...", "How about a family Valentine feast?" or what about a Chocolate buffet?
What promotion or special offer, if you have any, will be dependent on what is hot or most profitable in your locality. That will apply to your decision on the food, service, serving size and other promotions.
Valentines is mainly targetted towards couples, husbands and wives. Second would be families who eat out on February 14 with their children adn relatives. Next would probably be group of friends. Where I live, I have seen both. There are restaurants who target couples. Others stick to family diners.
As to the menu, it is usually items in the menu made extra special or named to suit the day like Heart Crepes with Chocolate Sauce or "Steak my Heart away" or something to that effect.
No matter what works for you, it is best to keep in mind, like other special occasions, this is no time to mess with the food. The food, the service, the place, all have to be special.
One thing I would like to remind restaurant managers is to take it easy on the heart shapes. Don't overdo it! Flowers would be expensive during these times but there are other ways to make a romantic setting. you may use candles, figurines, covered votives, rose petals (tell your florist to collect for you in advance), plants, pillows, music. Keep the heart shapes to invites, cake or dessert and flyers. Other than those, it just might get tacky.
Also, take it easy on the "red" color. Overdoing it might make others see red. Red is a great color but not to be overused on Valentines day.
One other thing is keep the good ambience going. Don't overpack your restaurant just because you want to optimize the day. Diners need some space.
So happy valentines day planning to you!
Yes, you got it. It's Valentines day! That means probably one of the busiest times for a restaurant. If you have not planned for Valentines day, you still have time to do so.
So what exactly do you want to do on Valentines?
You might say, "No, not the same 'dinner for two'...", "How about a family Valentine feast?" or what about a Chocolate buffet?
What promotion or special offer, if you have any, will be dependent on what is hot or most profitable in your locality. That will apply to your decision on the food, service, serving size and other promotions.
Valentines is mainly targetted towards couples, husbands and wives. Second would be families who eat out on February 14 with their children adn relatives. Next would probably be group of friends. Where I live, I have seen both. There are restaurants who target couples. Others stick to family diners.
As to the menu, it is usually items in the menu made extra special or named to suit the day like Heart Crepes with Chocolate Sauce or "Steak my Heart away" or something to that effect.
No matter what works for you, it is best to keep in mind, like other special occasions, this is no time to mess with the food. The food, the service, the place, all have to be special.
One thing I would like to remind restaurant managers is to take it easy on the heart shapes. Don't overdo it! Flowers would be expensive during these times but there are other ways to make a romantic setting. you may use candles, figurines, covered votives, rose petals (tell your florist to collect for you in advance), plants, pillows, music. Keep the heart shapes to invites, cake or dessert and flyers. Other than those, it just might get tacky.
Also, take it easy on the "red" color. Overdoing it might make others see red. Red is a great color but not to be overused on Valentines day.
One other thing is keep the good ambience going. Don't overpack your restaurant just because you want to optimize the day. Diners need some space.
So happy valentines day planning to you!
Thursday, January 8, 2009
Really knowing the industry is a must!
As I was doing my planning for 2009, it brought me thinking about the potential clients I will approach this year for my restaurant consultancy business.
Most of my potential clients, obviously, are those restaurants who are under some marketing or operational problem. One of the main reasons they are in their situations is the lack of know-how on properly and successfully running a restaurant. You see, the people who own restaurants and hotels in the city where I am from are wealthy people who are knowledgeable in other industries. The hotels and restaurants they put up are their "status symbols" or the outlet of their financial capacity. One other reason is that the people they hire to run their companies are just as inadequately unequipped to run the restaurants.
Most of them depend on the people they hire to make the restaurant succeed which is but normal since they are paying them for the said task. However, it is totally a futile effort since the owners don't know what is the right thing to do so how would they know if their employees are doing it right.
So part of my consultancy is owners with procedures and controls that will let them know if the restaurant is doing great or otherwise and whether their employees are doing their jobs or not.
However, it is totally dependent on owners to take seriously their very important role of knowing the restaurant or foodservice industry well. I would like to think that this the true sign of an owner's desire to make the company succeed and be profitable. When owners, who usually are wealthy and busy with other businesses show interest in knowing how to run a restaurant, no matter how small scale it may seem compared to their other businesses, it is a good start towards making good decisions for the restaurant.
Most of my potential clients, obviously, are those restaurants who are under some marketing or operational problem. One of the main reasons they are in their situations is the lack of know-how on properly and successfully running a restaurant. You see, the people who own restaurants and hotels in the city where I am from are wealthy people who are knowledgeable in other industries. The hotels and restaurants they put up are their "status symbols" or the outlet of their financial capacity. One other reason is that the people they hire to run their companies are just as inadequately unequipped to run the restaurants.
Most of them depend on the people they hire to make the restaurant succeed which is but normal since they are paying them for the said task. However, it is totally a futile effort since the owners don't know what is the right thing to do so how would they know if their employees are doing it right.
So part of my consultancy is owners with procedures and controls that will let them know if the restaurant is doing great or otherwise and whether their employees are doing their jobs or not.
However, it is totally dependent on owners to take seriously their very important role of knowing the restaurant or foodservice industry well. I would like to think that this the true sign of an owner's desire to make the company succeed and be profitable. When owners, who usually are wealthy and busy with other businesses show interest in knowing how to run a restaurant, no matter how small scale it may seem compared to their other businesses, it is a good start towards making good decisions for the restaurant.
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