Great Taste Magazine

by Tom Hope Nov/Dec 2008 Issue

Recession, depression, foreclosure, debt… these are words that have become regular topics in our daily conversations. A challenge we face in the restaurant industry is that people are staying in more and spending less when dining out. The fact that people are trading down dollars at restaurants has forced chefs to rethink menus, increasing creativity to create a value driven experience for our guests. How can we combat this trend in challenging times? Through creativity in menu writing, promotions, purchasing and execution, chefs can create value driven menus that will essentially deliver and encourage repeating business and word of mouth buzz.

As a culinary director for seafood restaurants, I am painfully aware of the increase in prices that the gas hike has caused in all food products; especially in the seafood department. Rising prices in turn, force chefs to raise menu prices in order to maintain food cost percentages. However, raising menu prices is not an option today. One of the many ways a chef can combat this cycle is to create menu promotions that make consumers feel that the deal is too good to pass up. We have had tremendous success with a prix fixe menu that gives a choice from eight appetizers, eight entrées and three desserts. Guests create their own three course dinner, and we throw in a smaller size of our award winning Cream Ale; all for $24.95. It isn’t the prix fixe menu itself that sells, but the menu items on it. The most popular entree on the special: Filet mignon & shrimp scampi.

So how do we do it and make money? Appetizer choices include seafood ceviche, shrimp cocktail, and New Orleans gumbo. These are all easy to produce and popular with guests. The beauty of this prix fixe menu is that we can run a 28% food cost while increasing guest frequency. Here’s some of our tips:

1. Clam chowder and gumbo are comfort food soups that are satisfying with a lower food cost and not easily prepared by the home chef.

2. Caesar salad is a signature item at many restaurants that cannot be duplicated at home with bottled dressings or boxed croutons.

3. We utilize high quality fresh fish trimmings to complement shrimp and scallops in our ceviche. A new stemless martini glass serves a smaller portion for this promotion but still gives the impression of a generous serving.

4. Three prawn shrimp cocktail adds value perception to the menu with a lower food cost by sourcing a peeled and deveined U-15 white Mexican shrimp. They are poached in court bouillon in our combi oven with minimum labor involved.

5. Filet medallion is a stockyards beef tenderloin non center cut that is made into four ounce medallions. Normal center cut filet is $21.00 a pound and these medallions come in at just over half that price. A four ounce medallion with three U-15 Mexican white shrimp for the filet and shrimp scampi dish create a luxe sounding and tasting dish, without the higher food cost of a larger portion of surf and turf. Guests may not take a doggy bag home, but it’s lighter on the figure and the pocketbook.

6. Half an herb roasted chicken from our exhibition rotisserie comes to the table golden brown, aromatic and juicy. Two and a half pounds of chicken is a plate cost under three dollars. Part of the generous portion goes home to be enjoyed later by the guest.

7. Jambalaya is a specialty dish with a large portion, good food cost and a super easy pick up.

8. Crab dynamite encrusted Tilapia. Tilapia filet is a lower cost fresh fish that can be dressed up with a high end perception by a crab dynamite crust on top.

Each dish is prepared to our meticulous standards, has great taste and outstanding plating. Guests rave, come back with friends and can’t believe the value. Check add-ons like a cocktail, glass of wine, or cappuccino bring up the check average, and brings them back for another event like a birthday or Sunday brunch. Through creative purchasing and menu development we’ve created a win-win for both us and our guests. The timing, simply put, couldn’t be better. Tom Hope is the director of culinary for TAPS Fish House & Brewery in Brea and Corona, along with the Catch restaurant in Anaheim (reopening early 2009).