Chapter 5 : Menu

Assalamualaikum. hai everybody. today I would like to share what I was learned in my catering class.. 

INTRODUCTION :

In foodservice industry, menu is the most important because it tell the customer what foods are sold and sometimes it can describe the concept of certain restaurant such as " Nasi Ayam ".

MENU PLANNING

Several factors to consider when planning a menu :

Organizational

- the menu must reflect the organization's stated purpose as defined in the mission statement.

The Customer

we need to focus on...

i.  Demographics ( age, gender, race, family size, education) because they vary among population groups and change frequently.

ii. Sociocultural Influences ( maritul status, lifestyle, ethnic background, values:family values, money values) greatly impact menu planning.

iii. Nutritional Requirements

- nutritional requirements vary depending on the type of foodservice and population served.

iv. Dietary Reference Intakes (DRI)

- nutrient recommendations that address the needs of specific groups and individuals.

Production and Service Capabilities

Budget Guidelines

- in retail operations, the amount to be budgeted is based on projected income from the sale of food.

- this income must generate adequate revenue to cover raw food cost, labor, operating expenses, and allow for desired profit.

Equipment and Physical Facilities

- every menu that we have, it must have enough equipment and available work space to make the food.

Personnel

- the employees should have skill and knowledge are factors to consider in determining the complexity of the menu.

Extent of Selection

i. Selective Menu : 2 or more food choices in each menu category such as appetizers, entrees, vegetables, salads and desserts.

ii. Semiselective Menu :a menu that includes one or more food choices in at least one menu category.

iii. Nonselective Menu: a menu that offers no choice of food items

iv. Cycle Menu : a carefully planned set of menus that is rotated at definite time intervals such as buffet. 

the example of du jour menu : menu of the day

the example of table d'hote menu

the example of a la carte menu

MENU WRITING

i. Timetable for planning, development, and implementation.

- menu should be planned depends on the type of menu, extent of selections, and size and complexity of the foodservice operation.

ii. Steps in Menu Development

note : entrees in France is as appetizer and US is as main dish.

soups and sandwiches

salads

desserts

beverages

checklist for menu evaluation 

- the menu should be evaluated prior to use, and on an ongoing basis.

writing menus for modified diets

- the foodservice department is responsible to prepare healthier foods which is can eat by diets people.

menus as documents

- printed master menus for both general and modified diets are excellent documents for department evaluation and budget planning.

THE PRINTED MENU

i. menu design and format

- the menu should easy to read and interesting to look.

ii. descriptive wording

- the menu will be more interesting if we put the picture of food that available and it will make customer want to try the food. 

iii. spoken menus

- this is the communicating by reading the menu to customer. 

the waiter explain the menu to the customer

CUSTOMER SATISFACTION

i. Surveys and Comment Cards

- we need to prepare surveys and comment cards and give it to customer to know about our service, food and improvement to our restaurant. So, we can upgrade our service and try apply any suggestion from customer which is it is suitable with our restaurant.

the example of comment card

ii. Frequency ratings or popularity indexes

- customers are asked to rate or rank menu items according to preference. 

iii. Sales data

- sales data that is tracked by modern registers can be used to revise an existing menu or plan a new one.

SUMMARY 

- in planning a menu, many factors must be considered.

- the menu can take different forms, any style and can give information directly to customer.

Alhamdulilah, done for Chapter 5 !