Menu Makeover

TOP TIPS FOR A MENU MAKEOVER

Your menu is one of your main forms of representation: It should say exactly who you are and what you hope to convey personality-wise. It should also create enough of an impression that it stays with your customers long after the wait staff have walked off with it.

Agood restaurant menu design is key to any restaurant’s marketing plan. When you design a menu, it should express your eatery’s personality. To create the best design possible, you’ll need to perform some menu analysis.

You should put some time and effort into analysing the way your menu functions and performs. Menu analysis involves identifying each menu item’s profitability and popularity, as well as forming a strategy to enhance and improve the overall success and sales of your restaurant. The process doesn’t have to be difficult, but it should be ongoing.

There will always be shifts in trends, with design styles and the food itself. When you pay attention to the way these evolve over time, you can adapt your menu to fit. Your consumer base should help shape the menu as well. The more you cater your menu to your customers’ preferences, the more they’ll want to come back.

As with most visual endeavours, there is some psychology when it comes to menu design and some tricks can be taken straight from the world of fine art.

THE GOLDEN TRIANGLE

Look at your restaurant menu and take note of where your eyes move first. For most people, their eyes look at the middle, then they travel to the top right corner and finally to the top left corner – the golden triangle.

Put your best-selling items in this triangle, monitor how well different dishes do depending on their place on the menu.

COLOUR MANIPULATION

Colours evoke certain feelings, and you can use this to your advantage. For example, when your customers see the colour green, it makes them think of fresh food, just picked from the garden.

When customers see orange, it stimulates their appetite. Orange is a fun, light colour with delicious qualities. Plus, the colour stimulates the brain by increasing its oxygen supply. Orange is also associated with healthy food.

Yellow makes people happy, and you can use it on your menu to grab the reader’s attention. Yellow can also stimulate a diner’s appetite.

If you use red on your menu, it’s an attention-grabber. It makes people stand up and take notice. You can use red to guide people to the dishes you really want them to order.

A successfully engineered menu will sell the dishes you want, increase spend across starters, mains and desserts, and pair dishes to drinks which will drive sales, and make the decision making process easy and enjoyable for your customer.

Here are some top tips for creating a tip top menu:

Cover Design – An intriguing heading and striking image printed with a tactile finish makes people want to touch, pick up and flick through a menu, even if they’re not hungry. Inside the Box - Draw attention to certain choices by putting them in a box, whether its because they’re new, local or high margin. Dollar Signs – Removing currency symbols helps guests focus on the food rather than the cost, it also gives a more modern and clean design. Delicious Descriptions – Consider a limited menu of a few dishes that are named and described superbly. Keep the Kids Happy – If you’re catering to families, a big part of the decision-making process will be customers looking for a menu that looks child-friendly and accommodating. Tell Your Story – Whether you grow your own fruit and vegetables or use your great-grandmother’s famous recipe, cook up a tale that will get customers salivating.

AN EASY WAY TO MAKE MENU MAGIC

Does your stale, old menu need an upgrade to make it instantly Insta-worthy? Perhaps you’d like to create seasonal menus that reflect a specific time of year? Or maybe you’re just starting out and menu design is still on your ‘to do’ list.

Don’t fret or spend money on expensive designers, you can easily create your own stylish menu using design software programme Canva and its special Menu Hub.

You can build a stunning menu for your restaurant, catering business, or special event with bespoke designs by personalising Canva’s mouth-watering templates with your own brand and style. Whether it’s breakfast or lunch, BBQ or pizza, casual drinks, or a catered wedding—there’s a fully customisable template for you.

Canva was made for the nondesigner, and these professionally designed templates help to do the design heavy lifting. Simply pick one out and start editing. A few drags, drops, and clicks later, and you’ll have an eye-catching menu to promote your business.

Check out Canva’s Menu Hub at www.canva.com/menus

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CREATING A MEMORABLE Wine List

As part of their Inaugural International Wine Competition, Gilmours, with the help of their expert wine judges, Emma Jenkins, Sam Kin, Simon Nunns, and Jo Gear have put together a guide of tips and tricks when it comes to making a memorable wine list.

Creating a good wine list is a bit like making wine, somewhere between an art and a science. Keeping the big picture in mind is crucial, as you want a list that reflects your philosophy and style.

Know Your Food and Your Customers

The wine needs to complement your food style, as wine is made to be enjoyed with food and good choices will enhance both. Similarly, you can make a nod towards current trends but keep your core offering solid, with enduring quality and personality.

It’s All About the Mix

You need a core of familiar wines that people know and recognise, those that deliver good value and that you can make a good margin on but keep your margins sensible as this is more likely to deliver repeat customers.

Also include a scattering of unusual wines so that you can tempt those who want something a bit different as well as cater to wine lovers looking for a bit of excitement from the list.

Your List Doesn’t Have to Be Long

It should simply be carefully planned and thoughtfully chosen. Have a clear layout on your list – there are lots of different ways to do this: by variety, by region or by style, and then sort by price. Make life easy for your customers by having a clear layout for them to navigate.

Properly Train Your Staff

Alongside the practical aspects of table service. It’s vital to introduce staff to the wines on the list and how they work with your menu. Give your staff the opportunity to taste the wines and offer regular staff training tastings with the help of suppliers or a knowledgeable wine person.

It’s a great way to engage and upskill your staff, which in turn enhances your overall customer service levels and will pay dividends in sales.

Steak for Cabernet Sauvignon

FABULOUS FOOD

Wine Pairings

Gilmours has shared food and wine matching tips as part of the celebration of its International Wine Competition. Adding wine pairing suggestions to your menu can lift it to the next level while making it easy for staff to up-sell a glass or bottle of wine.

Curry for Riesling

Pasta for Pinot Gris Rich meat for Malbec

Spicy Seafood for Dry Rosé

Thoughtful food and wine pairings will also turn your customers’ night out into a memorable taste experience as the right match will elevate the flavours of both the food and the wine.

THINGS TO REMEMBER:

Red wine pairs well with red meat because it can soften the proteins in the eat and help enhance the flavour of the fat.

White wine pairs well with fish because the acids in the wine enhance the taste in the fish, making it fresher.

If the same adjective can be used to describe the food and wine, it is likely the pairing will work. For instance, sweet wines go great with sweet dishes.

Sometimes it can be tricky to pair wines with meats and fish that have a heavy sauce. The best way to approach this is to pair the wine with the sauce rather than the protein.

Pinot Grigio has hints of pears, lemons, melons, and sweet spice. It’s a great option for light seafood, pasta, grilled chicken, and dishes with fresh herbs. Try Botter Pinot Grigio Delle Venezie IGT Organic 2020.

Riesling has flavours of white peach, green apple, and lime. A delicious pairing for spicy dishes, shellfish, pork, ham, and salads with vinaigrettes. Try Jacob’s Creek Reserve Barossa Riesling 2017.

Viognier, think floral aromas like honeysuckle or jasmine. This is a full-bodied wine with stone fruit flavours, which works well with richer proteins like chicken, turkey, poached salmon or a roast vegetable salad. Try Yalumba ‘The YSeries’ Viognier 2020.

Prosecco is bright and fruity; it pairs well with nibbles and cheese. Try Da Luca Prosecco DOC.

Dry Rosé has hints of strawberries, cherries, citrus, and herbs. It complements almost any cheese, grilled chicken, and spicy seafood. Try Invivo X, Sarah Jessica Parker Sud de France Rosé 2020.

Cabernet Sauvignon is high in tannins. Its plum, black cherry and blackcurrant flavours perfectly complement steak or lamb chops. Try De Bortoli Woodfired Cabernet Sauvignon 2019.

Shiraz has a spicy flavour profile and pairs well with mildly spiced dishes, BBQ lamb and grilled meats. Try De Bortoli Woodfired Shiraz 2018.

Malbec has masses of rich dark fruit, plums and blueberries. Perfect with a beef steak and rich flavours like mushroom, pepper and blue cheese sauce. Try La Primer Bodeguita Mendoza Malbec Reserva 2019.