Your menu is the most important selling tool in your operation. Your goal is to plan and design your menu for maximum profitability.

From Food Cost 101, you know you must first breakdown all of your offerings to identify the ones you want to promote. Then select a format or analyze your current menu.

Most national chains laminate their menu. One of the reasons is to ensure that a location in California will offer the same items as one in New York. As an independent restaurant, you don’t have such restrictions. In fact, this can be an exciting advantage over your national competitors.

A simple paper menu is hard to keep clean and dry. You may want to avoid it, unless you’re changing your menu daily. Many experts suggest a plastic cover or backing in which interchangeable sheets can be inserted. These are easy to change and are easy to keep in prime condition.

The average customer spends less than 3 minutes reading a menu, so keep it simple. Menu analysis reveals that 70% of the average items sold from a menu are approximately the same 10 selections. DO WHAT YOU DO BEST. Avoid trying to offer everything. Don’t forget that menus with prolific offerings have to be supported with a large inventory, and this can be very costly. A reasonable number might be 40 to 50 items.

Beware of being too clever with your menu. Pick a font that is easy to read, not too pretty or too graphic. Keep the color of the paper and the size of the font in mind with your lighting conditions.

When writing your menu be sure to use mouth watering descriptions. The following are various descriptive techniques:

• Method of preparation
• Unusual or specialty ingredients or recipes
• The way an item is served
• Characteristics (ex. Freshness)
• Variety, name brand or local origin

Emphasize the important items on your menu. The following are various techniques to enhance your most profitable and popular items:

• Graphics
• Boxes
• Font Size
• Icons
• Shading
• Photos
• Illustrations
• Asymmetrical alignment
• Special placement
• Tell a story or the history
• Color

Be sure to review your menu on a regular basis. Menus should be changed a minimum of twice a year. IT IS IMPORTANT TO CONSTANTLY OFFER NEW ITEMS. The chain restaurants, from fast food to casual dining, are perfect examples of this.

Finally, be sure to work with your foodservice sales rep for profitable possibilities. They can help you create and market limited time offers, holiday specials, seasonal menus, special event menus, and much more. You can also capitalize on their market knowledge by asking what is selling and what isn’t. Their manufacturer reps can provide regional data on what the hottest flavors and menu trends are.