CHAPTER 1

MENU
PLANNING
& DESIGN

MAP
Upon successful completion of this unit, the student will be
able to:
a. Explain the importance of menu in food industry
b. Describe how customer behavior and competition can
influence a restaurants menu listings.
c. Differentiate between the popularity of certain foods
among age groups, ethnic origins, education,
occupation, and income.
d. Explain the difference between fads and trends and how
to use them to advantage.
e. Recognize what considerations must be made when
changing the menu in an existing operation.
f. Explain the importance of product availability, selling
price, equipment availability, station capacities, flow,
skill level, and theme when making menu changes.
g. Describe how the new operation interrelates with and is
totally dependent on the menu.
h. Describe the various styles of menu covers and explain
their importance to the overall ambiance of the
restaurant.
i. Explain the proper layout techniques for the headings,
sub- headings, listing, and descriptive terminology for
food and alcoholic beverage listings.
j. Describe the basic principles of printing techniques and
terminology necessary to communicate with printing
professionals.
Menus must be planned for the
people eating the food
Everything starts
with the menu.
The menu
dictates much
about how your
operation will be
organized and
managed, the
extent to which it
meet its goals,
and even how the
building itself -
certainly the
interior - should
be designed and
constructed.
 List of dishes served or made available to be
served at a meal.
a detailed list of foods to be served at a meal or a
list of items offered by a facilitys foodservice
department.
1. Menu is a list of F & B items made available to
the Guests. (Lists items available for selection by
a customer)
2. Most important internal control of the food
service system.
3. Major determinant for the budget.
4. Gives customers a sense of who you are as an
operation.
5. Part of an organizations brand identity.
 The Process of Planning a Menu
never ends. The Final Menu is
never achieved.
Menu Planning is:
Ongoing Process
Dynamic Process
Expectations of the Guests
(Present / Potential).
 Storing Issuing

Receiving Preparing

Guest
Purchasing Cooking Satisfaction

Menu Serving
Holding
Planning
 Product Control Procedures:

The F&B Products must be

controlled. If the Operation needs
Shrimp to produce a Menu Item,
Shrimp will have to be Purchased /
Received / Stored / Issued /
Prepared / Cooked and finally
Served.
 Cost Control Procedures:

Careful Cost Control Procedures

must be followed as more
expensive products are served.
This is upon Guest Demand of an
operation, providing a Dining
Experience and not just a Meal.
 Production Requirements:

Food Items required by the Menu

must be Produced Consistently.
The following parameters are all
dictated by the Menu:
Product Quality
Staff Productivity
Skills
Timing and Scheduling
 Nutritional Content of Meals:

Food & Beverage Operations

(Commercial / Non Commercial)
are increasing concerned about the
Nutritional Content of the Food
served to the Guests / Clients. Menu
can have an impact on the health
and well being of those to whom it
is served.
 Equipment Needs:

All Equipment required to produce

the Menu must be available. The
Menu must be balanced such that
no one station in the Kitchen is
Pressurized or under utilized.
 Sanitation Management:

Since the Menu sets the stage for

the remaining control points, the
Management must consider the
Menu Items in light of possible
Sanitation Hazards. Once potential
Hazards are identified, risks can be
reduced.
 Layout and Space Requirements:

There must be adequate facilities for the

Staff and Equipment required to produce
items listed on the menu. The layout and
design facilities establish physical space
within which Food Production and
Service take place. Physical facilities must
be adequate for Purchasing / Receiving /
Storage / Issuing / Production and
Serving of Menu Items.
 Staffing Needs:

Employees must be able to

produce and serve all the items
required by the menu. The more
complex the menu, the greater
the demands placed on the
Production and Service Staff.
Staffing needs are influenced to a
great extent by the use of
Convenience Foods by the
operation.
 Service Requirements:

F&B Manager must carefully plan

how products will be served to the
guest. The Menu influences your
choice of Service Style. It
influences the Skill Levels required
by the Waiting Staff along with
Equipment & Inventory.
 Revenue Control Procedures:

A simple Fast Food Operation would not

have as much problems in Revenue
Control as a Specialty Restaurant.
In a Fast Food Operation, there would be
fewer Menu Items (comparatively lesser
Product Range), hence controlling
Revenue from the sale of these would be
far easier than controlling Revenue in a
Specialty Restaurant wherein the Product
Range is extensive, involving a large
Beverage List as well as a wide choice of
Food items.
 Table dhote: Literal meaning is Table of the host.
This is a fixed menu served at a fixed price.
Ala Carte: Literal meaning is From the card.
Dishes are priced separately and the Guest can make
his/her own choice.
Combination (combination of the table d'hte and a
la carte pricing styles)
Fixed menus: a single menus for several months
Cycle menus: designed to provide variety for guests
who eat at an operation frequently - or even daily
Chef Suggestion, Special Today,
 A properly planned menu
stimulates Revenue and increases
the Guest Check Average.

Whenever the Menu is Presented

to a Guest a SALES
TRANSACTION begins.
 Know your guest Know your
- Food preference operation
(Restaurant)
- Price
- Theme or cuisine
- Age
- Equipment
- Personnel
- Quality standards
- Budget
 Priority Concerns of menu Planner

Wants and needs Guest

Concept of Value Quality of Item Flavour

Item Price Cost Consistency

Object of Property Visit Availability Texture/Form/Shape

Socio-Economic Factors Peak Volume Production Nutritional Content

and Operating Concerns
Demographic Concerns Visual Appeal
Sanitation Concerns
Ethnic Factors
Aromatic Appeal
Layout Concerns

Temperature
Religious Factors Equipment Concerns
FS EXAMPLE
 FACTORS THAT AFFECTING
MENU PLANNING
Type of Guest / Customer
Type of establishment
Location
Kind of Occasion
Meal time (Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner, Tea etc.)
Availability of raw material.
Availability of space and equipments.
manpower available for production and service.
 FACTORS THAT AFFECTING
MENU PLANNING
Climatic conditions
Religious ceremonies and sentiments.
Age group.
Spending power of the Guest / Customer.
 PRINCIPLES OF MENU
PLANNING
Repetition of Ingredients should not be there.
Repetition of color should be avoided.
Repetition of words should be avoided.
Texture of the dishes within the Menu should be
changed.
Always use correct garnishes.
Menu should be balanced.
 PRINCIPLES OF MENU
PLANNING
Menu Language:

Menu should be printed in one language only.

Language used should be correct.
If the menu is in French or some other foreign
language, use English translations
Spelling mistakes should not be there.
Veg / Non-Veg. Items should be separate and
spicy items should be marked.
 MUST SATISFY GUEST
EXPECTATIONS

Reflect your guests tastes

Reflect your guests food preferences
Ascertain your guests needs
 Locations
Times
Prices
Quality
Specific food items
 Quality standards:
flavor, texture, color, shape, flair,
consistency, palatability, visual
appeal,
aromatic apparel, temperature
Nutritional concerns:
low-fat, high-fiber diets,
vegetarian
 Commercial
financial restraints
profit objectives
Institutional
minimizing costs
operational budget
 Truth-in-menu laws exist in some
localities, cannot mislabel a product
butter must use butter not margarine
fresh must be fresh, not fresh frozen
homemade not purchased ready-to-
heat
 MENU SEQUENCE

Hors doeuvres (Appetizers/Starter)

Potage (Soup/Starter)
Oeufs (Egg)
Farineaux (Rice & Pasta)
Poisson (Fish/Starter)
Entre (First Meat course)
Sorbet (Flavored Ice) Rest course
Relve (Main Meat course)
Rti (Roast)
 MENU SEQUENCE

Legumes (Vegetables)
Salades (Salad)
Buffet froid (Cold buffet)
Entremets (Sweets)
Savoureaux (Savoury)
Fromage (Cheese)
Dessert (Fruit & Nuts)
Beverages (Tea / Coffee)
 Sequence:
Appetizers, soups, entrees, desserts
Depends on the operation (side orders,
salads, sandwiches, beverages)
Depends on popularity and profitability
Placement:
artworks; space; boxes; clip-on; etc.
 Format:
Menus size
General makeup
Typeface:
Printed letters
Font size
Type face
Artwork:
Drawings, photographs,
decorative patterns,
borders
Paper:
Texture
Cover:
Color
Texture
 Menu is too small
Type is too small
No descriptive copy
Every item treated the same
Some of the operations food and
beverages are not listed
Clip-on problems
Basic information about the property
and its policies are not included
Blank pages
 Grading (foods are graded by size,
quality, in line with official standards)
Freshness (cannot be canned, frozen
or fresh-frozen)
Geographical origin (cannot make false
claims about the origin of a product)
Preparation (if the menu says baked, it
cannot be fried instead)
Dietary or nutrition claims (supportable
by scientific data)
1. Russian Salad, Egg Mayonnaise, Caviar, Smoked
Salmon, Canapes, Prawn Cocktail.
2. Consommes, Minestrone, Cabbage Chowder,
Mulligatwany, Hot & Sour.
3. Oeufs Florentine, Oeufs Farcis, Oeufs Coccote.
4. Spaghetti Napolitaine, Canneloni, Ravioli, Fettucinni,
Macaroni.
5. Poisson grille tartare, Poisson Duglere, Poisson Colbert,
Poisson Meuniere.
6. Poulet saute chasseur, Supreme de Vollaile, Steak diane.
7. Flavoured ice with Champagne, Cigars, Russian
Cigarettes.
8. Gigot dagneau rti, Cuissot de porc rti.
9. Chicken , Duck, Turkey with sauce or gravy
10. Choufleur mornay, Puree de pommes, Epinard ala
crme.
11. Vert, Francaise
12. Jambon, Galantine de volaille, Poulet Roti
13. Souffles, crpes, Coupes.
14. Welsh rarebit, Canape diane
15. Cheddar, Edam, Brie, Gorgonzola.
16. Fresh fruits and Nuts
17. Tea, Coffee