Herb Crusted Prime Rib with Trio® Au Jus
Get Ready for the Holidays!
Whether you dread the coming holidays or welcome them depends upon not only your type of operation—family restaurant, white tablecloth destination, neighborhood bar and grill--but also how ready you are for them. Here are some tips on how to gear up for the holidays and take advantage of seasonal sales opportunities.
Home is Where the Sales Are
Holidays have always been a time when people entertain more in their homes, and with the economy as it is, this year promises to represent even more of an opportunity for catering as well as take-out.
In fact, catering is looking to be a better bet. According to the 2010 National Restaurant Association forecast, so-called social catering is set to grow 4.5% this year, outpacing onsite sales and accounting for more improvement than any other commercial service. Meanwhile, Technomic has found that 40% of respondents surveyed said they would be entertaining at home more often in 2010 than in 2009, and another 53% reported plans to entertain the same amount\.
All of which makes for a great opportunity.
Catering needn’t be the whole thing from food to tent rental and flowers, either. Many restaurant operators have gotten into hybrid catering/takeout programs in which customers can pick up larger-volume amounts of some or all of their holiday meals, from a turkey or beef Wellington to hors ‘oeuvres, breads or rolls, side dishes, and desserts.
For example: At Brushmark restaurant in the Memphis Brooks Museum of Art customer any number of different holiday-ready items for pickup the day before Thanksgiving and/or Christmas. The same menu is available for both holidays, and emphasizes such local specialties as Oyster Andouille Sausage Dressing, and artisanal grits. In addition to a la carte offerings, there are two different levels of “packages.”
In addition to offering turkey and fixings for its Thanksgiving take-out menu, the owners of Kenny & Zeke’s Delicatessen in Portland, OR, are even teaching a “Thanksgiving for Two” cooking class at the local In Good Taste Cooking School, designed for empty nesters and others who want to cook a nice Thanksgiving dinner but don’t need to feed a crowd.
More Ideas for Building Your Catering and Takeout Business
- If local health department regulations permit it, allow customers to bring in their own casserole dishes or platters to receive your food—their guests will be none the wiser, and you don’t have to worry about washing and returns
- Sell paper goods like tablecloths and disposable plates along with food, as wither an at-cost convenience or with a profit-making markup
- If you have the resources, provide delivery of platters and other self-service items
- If appropriate, set up a “chef’s table” in or adjacent to your kitchen and create a special menu for families or small corporate groups to enjoy during the holiday season
- Offer fruit baskets, muffin trays, attractive boxes loaded with cookies or housemade truffles… customers are always looking for gift ideas or items to take to a hostess
- Make sure local papers and magazines know what you’ll be offering; most newspapers and city magazines do roundups of what’s going on around town
Embrace Time-Saving Measures
The holidays can be an especially busy time—if you’re lucky. Now is an excellent time to turn to high-quality prepared foods and speed-scratch methods to help you and your staff get through the crunch. This is especially true if you’re ramping up your services to include takeout, holiday parties or themed dinners.
The best speed-scratch items can be true signature starters: Simply add your own ingredients and presentation flourishes to create a unique offering.
Consider gravy, the workhorse of many holiday and cool-weather menus. Start with any Trio® gravy mix and take a creative approach:
- Substitute wine, cider, stock, spirits or another liquid for the water when preparing the mix
- Add fresh herbs or spices, sautéed mushrooms, caramelized onions or roasted garlic for more body and flavor
- Mix with another sauce, such as Stouffer’s® Marinara, to create a rich pasta sauce
A selection of gravies and sauces is particularly nice at a carving station on a buffet, in the servery or at catered events, offering patrons an opportunity to customize their meal.
Here’s another interesting idea for saving time and bringing in a little extra money: Host holiday cooking or baking lessons. Let’s say you want to make pannetone (an Italian Christmas bread) to feature as a dessert during September, or make a selection of winter-fruit chutneys to accompany cheese plates… anything that can and should be made in a batch. Schedule a session for a Sunday afternoon and merchandise it (via your website, mailing list or a special onsite card) as a cooking class that’s open to the public. Not only will you offer a service to your customers, you’ll also become better known for a specialty
Save Even More Time with These Tips
- Investigate using texting or email to help employees schedule and exchange shifts during this busy period
- Look to prepared foods like Stouffer’s® Lasagna with Meat & Sauce or Chef-Mate® Original Chili to make it easier to add variety to a menu during any busy time of year
- Use holiday-time special menus to product-test items for the rest of the cold-weather season; recipes that are big hits are or especially profitable or easy on the kitchen can become part of the regular menu
- Urge employees to stay well and help them with every possible resource: flu shots, safe work conditions, an opportunity to rotate shifts for time off. The last thing you need right now is a sick staff