A New Menu for the New Year
With the New Year comes resolutions. You want to take this time to give people what they want – and this should include a new menu. While you may want to leave a lot the same, it can be a great time to introduce a new design, a new material, or even some new menu items. Below are a few things to think about.
New Menu Design
It may be time for a new menu design. Maybe the ones you have are laminated and you want to go with a more sophisticated design. Maybe the print is a little “old school” and you want to update with a new font. Whatever it is that you wish to update, make the first of the year the time to roll out the changes.
Daily Specials
Do you offer daily specials? If you do, now may be the time to change the way you introduce them, such as with a chalkboard on the wall or a small menu on the table. If you don’t, it may be a time to start offering specials so that your customers can see that they are always going to have access to some new and possibly seasonal items. Get creative, use ingredients that you have laying around to whip up something new, and give people a reason to visit you with greater frequency.
Out with the Old
Do you have a few items on your menu that don’t seem to sell? A lot of your food cost may be going out the window because you have to keep ingredients in for items and when they don’t sell, you’re ditching the food because it is spoiling. Remove those items off of the menu and replace them with some new items, possibly following some of the latest trends.
Customer Feedback
Customers have likely been providing feedback on your food all year long. Use the New Year as a chance to listen and respond. Maybe they have wanted a soup, flatbread, or other item. Put it on the menu. When your customers see that you have listened, they may be more inclined to choose your restaurant when they wish to eat out.
Take Out
Not everyone has the time or the ability to sit down and have breakfast, lunch or dinner within the dining room. You may want to start doing takeout. If you have always done it, promote it more, complete with a special takeout menu and some new takeout containers. You may even want to create a second hostess stand that is designated for handling takeout orders.
You can choose to ring in the New Year however you wish. However, it’s time to think about a new menu, in one way or another. It can be daily specials, takeout items, or simply listening to your customers. There’s no better time to do a rollout and it could be just what your restaurant needs to get more of the community coming in and eating at your place.