Menu Spring Bites

Training Never Ends

            While I attended college, pursuing my Master’s degree, I taught undergraduates in the hospitality program in primarily freshman and sophomore level courses.  Infrequently I had the opportunity to teach a management course where I would entertain feedback from the upper classmen who were rapidly becoming “experts” in their field.  During the give-and-take of these exchanges one student offered a statement regarding how they looked forward to graduation when they could go to the job and “never have to crack another book”, just work.

Creating Brand Success – by the Numbers?

             How do you measure success, bottom line, number of units or guest satisfaction scores?  The truth is many operators may consider all of these criteria and more as a measure of their progress and brand worth.  We are always curious to learn how industry observers determine new brand achievements and the criteria they use as their respective “measuring stick”.

            We took notice of a recent article (Breakout Brands 2016; NRN, 2/17/16) and the criteria used to measure the progress of ten emerging brands.  The authors used eight distinct factors by which to measure the significance of these new food service operators (article link is below).  Being inquisitive souls we took a deeper dive into what the criteria were telling us about how brands are perceived even if it’s only the perspective of industry observers.

Hey McDonald’s let’s see if this sticks to the wall!

            I continue to read articles and blogs about what McDonald’s needs to do to prop up their sagging sales and haven’t yet seen the answer that could be the simplest.  Recall the last quarter of 2002 when McDonald’s stock was trading a tad above $12 a share and many industry observers were talking about the “good old days” as it appeared the venerable burger giant was slipping backwards.

            Just as when a struggling sports franchise is faced with a losing season(s) and they fire their “head coach” there was a quick game of musical chairs in the boardroom.  Out was a CEO who was focused on a new cooking platform and “In” was a CEO who was focused on the fundamentals, or perhaps better execution of those fundamentals.

Prix-Fixe and Tasting Menus mean Action

            We recently saw an article on Tasting Menus and it reminded us of how these can be utilized by restaurant operators to leverage their core menu items and use as a platform to introduce new menu offerings.  All menus need some form of “refreshing” from time-to-time and the cycle used to be once every 6 to 12 months; however, with the demand put upon operators by the current dining public your menu may need more attention on a regular basis such as 90 to 180 days.

            First, let’s review some of the attributes of Prix-Fixe and Tasting Menus that allow Chefs and operators to stretch the boundaries of their core clientele’s comfort zone. 

Snacking of Your Dreams Come True

            Americans love to snack and if you need proof just stroll down the aisle of your local grocery store to observe how salty, savory snacks are positioned on one side of that aisle and then either cold beer or soft drinks are on the opposite side of the aisle, a match made in marketing / merchandising heaven.  This fact has not been lost on restaurant operators in their continuing efforts to capture additional non-traditional dining hour (daypart) meals.