FOOD AND BEVERAGE
By Gary Ciniello
hether you’re considering a startup food operation in your center or revamping the menu in your existing eatery, these seven foundational elements will get you moving toward higher customer satisfaction and more food revenue.
Know who you are and who you serve. For the most part, bowling centers are casual, recreational, sports venues. It doesn’t make any sense to offer spaghetti and meatballs or chicken cordon bleu. As an example, several years ago, I tried something different and created a menu in an FEC featuring rack of lamb, seafood Fra Diavolo, and Long Island duck. Guess what happened; nobody ordered these items. For the most part, in bowling centers, our guests prefer quality burgers, tasty pizza, juicy wings, and some other goodies. This is good news because we know what our customers want, we don’t have to guess, which is a huge bonus. My advice is to be interesting, but not too fancy. Stay true to your concept while offering new, hot items. Remember, you are not just competing with other bowling centers and FECs. Your real competition is every restaurant and lounge within a 5-mile radius.
14
IBI
May 2021
I encourage everyone to track menu items’ sales through a sound POS system and adjust the menu at least twice each year. If you don’t have a good POS system, definitely look into them. There are many good ones out there. Offering monthly specials is an ideal way to try out a new food item and see how it resonates with your customers. If it sells well, add it to your regular menu. More than fancy, your customers are looking for quality, consistent, casual food at reasonable prices.
