Menu Engineering: What Is It About?

When we talk about menu engineering we are referring to a discipline that studies how to maximize the profits of a restaurant business through the menu. To the less informed in the sector it might seem like an unimportant activity. In reality it involves analyzing and using the menu as an essential tool to positively influence the customer. This strategy has been in vogue for about 40 years and promises excellent results. To be more specific, menu engineering allows customers to order what restaurateurs prefer them to order.

Engineering menu

For example, thanks to a carefully structured menu and thanks to the implementation of a few little tricks it is possible to get the customer to purchase exactly the dish they want. The aim is to earn more without customers paying too much for their lunches and dinners. This activity is put into practice by trying to promote the dish with the highest contribution margin. But not only that, thanks to the implementation of this activity it is also possible to alleviate the effort in the kitchen, promoting a dish that is easier to cook.

What is the engineering menu specifically for?

The restaurant business involves numerous difficulties and a lot of commitment, so being able to take advantage of some "tricks" to speed up certain activities could be very valuable.

We are talking about a carefully structured, almost engineered menu. With this terminology we mean offering customers a menu that provides all the information a customer may need.

For example, if a customer wants to know more information about the type of preparation behind a specific dish, he can satisfy his curiosity simply by reading the details on the menu. In this way, the work of the dining room staff will be lighter since the waiters will not have to carefully explain any details regarding the dish.

Furthermore, thanks to an engineered menu it is possible to offer certain dishes to customers at the forefront. In this way, restaurateurs will be able to offer specific dishes to their diners, leveraging some well-thought-out strategies.

How to structure an engineered menu

For a menu to be defined as engineered, it is necessary to carefully and carefully position every single element that makes it up.

A carefully planned and engineered design encompasses both form and function for the requirements of any given project to ensure consistency in terms of appearance while at the same time meeting specific objectives within the context that serves as an aesthetic reference point upon which guests will leave their impressions long after they have closed this building behind them.

The order in which the dishes are presented is fundamental but it is not the only thing to pay attention to. Thanks to some marketing techniques it is possible to ensure that customers' attention is mainly captured by one dish rather than another. The use of the right font, text size, adequate captions and possibly graphics and images are the elements that allow the creation of a good menu.

The strategy of a well-structured menu

Engineering menu

By adopting these perspectives it is possible to implement some strategies that promise a considerable margin of success for your restaurant.

Engineering menu

Thanks to the engineering menu it is possible:

• reduce food cost
• replace widely used products with less expensive products
• move the dishes so as to position them as you prefer within the menu

One piece of advice would be to provide the right emphasis to the starters. These are those dishes that allow customers to spend little, eat abundantly and at the same time make the restaurateur money. For this reason it is important to provide the right visibility to the dishes in question by keeping them in a very high position within the menu.

In short, if you want to direct your business as you prefer, you can use a strategy like this.

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