Most restaurants create their menu according to theme, demographics and functional abilities. This year the industry is facing external challenges unequaled in near term history. Many think we are either in a recession or close to one with spiraling inflation that has hit food costs harder than other business segments and less discretionary cash available to consumers that has reduced their restaurant visits.

It’s time for a menu makeover that includes more than just raising prices.

When uncertain financial times sweep across the country, several things, both consciously and unconsciously, alters the average person’s thought processes. Conserving disposable income becomes a forethought rather than an afterthought. While studies show that people may spend more time at the local pub, they also tend to change their eating habits to varying degrees. Upscale white tablecloth eateries will probably be hit the hardest, but all types of restaurants will feel the crunch.

Menu’s will be scrutinized more carefully than normal. People will look for perceived bargains and items they can’t possibly reproduce at home. At the same time, they will revert to feel good items - like comfort food.

To adapt your menu to uncertain financial conditions, here are a few tips;

• Bargains in the guest’s mind make take the form of smaller portions, a sirloin instead of filet mignon, a sandwich instead of a full meal or even split plates of larger portioned dinners.
• Comfort food may include classics from their childhood and foods they wouldn’t normally eat do to health concerns. There will be the tendency to be less adventuresome in their dining habits.
• Hard to find ingredients that cannot be purchased economically by the average customer may tempt the guest frequently. Examples include fruits like fresh red cherries and green tomatoes , vegetables like red peppers and Vidalia onions and meats like fresh turkey and pork tenderloin.

In every cloud there is a bit of silver lining. There are opportunities for the restaurateur to increase margins while catering to the guest’s whims in a difficult economy. Comfort food can offer great latitude for interpretation. Smaller portions need not mean lower margins and selective purchasing can offer unique specials that may not sell in other circumstances.

Get creative and add your flair and theme to old classics. When was the last time you saw hamloaf on a menu? How about potatoes au gratin? A green bean casserole doesn’t have to be served just around the holidays. If there is anyone who didn’t have some type of beans and cornbread while growing up, they missed part of their childhood! Who can forget the apple crisps and strawberry short cakes before fake sponge cake? Have you thought about mixing old favorites like spaghetti and pork chops? And, of course, there about a thousand ways to be creative with meatloaf. I can’t think of anything more comforting that corned beef hash with a poached egg on top. Macaroni and cheese has become a mainstream menu item that includes everything from truffles to tea leaves.

Now if you read the paragraph above and your mouth isn’t watering just a little bit, you need to move along to another site. The comfort food and ageless classics may be an opportunity waiting to happen for your restaurant trying to meet the customer’s expectations. Do you need to change your entire menu? Absolutely not. You only need a few creative items that gives the customer an alternative - nothing more.

Part two to Restaurant Menu Strategies will deal with a new way to look at profitability and pricing for this economy.

Larry Edger, Author

The Restaurant Ebook 

Quick Service Restaurants (the politically correct words for fast food joints) have been a thorn in the side for many independent restaurateurs. They can decimate a lunch trade when two or three open up within a few blocks of your establishment. You can fight them or use them to build a better trade and niche.

Chains like Burger King, McDonald’s, Pizza Hut and Subway spend millions of dollars on research. They study food trends, marketing techniques, workflow, cost controls, equipment uses and even the colors that motivate people. The QSR’s have hundreds of employees working in various departments producing consumer information on just about any subject you can imagine.

How can you utilize this information? Try a few of these ideas.

• When researching new menu items, look at new products released by the chains. If they think smoked Gouda and pears are a hot combination, you can bet they spent tens of thousands of dollars to test the flavor combinations. You can use the flavor profiles they may develop to create an entirely new dish of your own.
• If you want to find the best brands and newest equipment technology, just look at the QSR’s. A few years ago Dunkin Donuts got into the lunch business with hot sandwiches. Most of their facilities and franchisees couldn’t retrofit their kitchens with traditional cooking equipment, so they went to the “Turbo” ovens that could turn out crisp hot sandwiches in seconds. The oven needed no hood, no vent and was affordable. Now these quick ovens are being utilized in a growing number of fast casual and upscale restaurants.
• Want to control costs? No one does portion control better than QSR’s. That is the only way they can produce a profit and maintain consistency. Watch what they control and how they do it, right down to the napkins.
• Watch economic trends by watching the fast service restaurant’s emphasis. This year, as some say we may be moving toward a recession, watch the advertising of more “dollar” meal values. They will cater to the consumer’s pocketbook. You may want to do the same thing.
• Want to redecorate your restaurant? Just look at colors used in QSR’s and DON’T use them. Fast food locations want to move people in and out. They have researched color combinations to the point where they know what colors and seating will keep the customer from being a fixture. They want to get them out the door!

How do you find out what the QSR’s are researching, marketing and releasing? Just check out their websites. There is a wealth of information you can use. Test markets for food, new consumer nutrition data, trends for cooking and even supplier data.

Remember, QSR’s don’t have a niche. They merely want to serve the customer quick with a value. You can find their weaknesses as well as their strengths. Use the weaknesses to build your competitive brand. Note what you don’t see such as fresh vegetables that spoil easily such as avocados, meats that take long cooking times and care like brisket, breads that have a short shelf life and quality desserts.

Studying the QSR’s can make their research and develop department a a part of your strategy.

Larry Edger, Author

The Restaurant Ebook

On a recent trip to Naples, Florida, I was again reminded that location is everything - well almost everything. It is clear that great food can’t cover up a bad location, but why doesn’t good food make it in a great location?

One of my favorite restaurants and watering holes in Naples is the Riverwalk Restaurant. The location is next to the somewhat famous Tin City and along a busy waterfront. Immediately next to the Riverwalk was another restaurant called Pier 41. The Riverwalk was always extremely busy; Pier 41 struggled for many years. They were within 20 feet of each other. Pier 41 was clean, had a reasonable menu and even had better access than Riverwalk. They never could quite be as popular.

On this trip I was pleased to see that a new restaurant with a completely re-juvenated concept had replaced Pier 41. Not only had I noticed, but it was clear from the wait at the door and full tables, the population of Naples had embraced this new concept. It was also apparent that the restaurant didn’t go through any extensive changes to the facility. Why did this new seafood concept work and the old seafood menu fail? I was determined to find out.

Before visiting the new restaurant called Pinchers, I talked with some of the long-term staff at Riverwalk to get their opinions and then ventured a few feet out of the Riverwalk and entered Pinchers. After a few minutes the differences were clear.

• The new restaurant had a more casual feel with staff in polo shirts and shorts. No more white shirts.
• The menu was pricey, but not unlike similar Naples waterfront restaurants. What the menu did have was an abundance of seafood items that neither the Riverwalk or the old concept had. They found a niche of local fresh items that tourists and locals would enjoy.
• The staff was well chosen and more outgoing. The old restaurant had a feel of competence, but lacked that enthusiasm of the new one.
• It was clear that Pinchers understood the demographics of their customer base than the old concept. Many customers went back and forth between the Riverwalk and Pinchers just during my time at the locations. The customers were portable and interchangeable!

The new restaurant had to go no further that 20 or 30 feet to figure out how to become successful. Look at the strengths a long time community favorite, the Riverwalk, capitalized on and re-invent them at Pinchers while offering menu alternatives. The old concept had a slightly more upscale approach to both atmosphere and menu. Apparently, people wanted less formality in a waterfront location. It was clear that atmosphere, menu and customer service will combine to make this new venture a success.

Location is critical, but you can’t forget the customer’s expectations - you have to meet them or exceed them in a robust competitive location.

Larry Edger, Author

The Restaurant Ebook