In prior publication, we talked about the great importance that Delivery and Take-Out Food have acquired as a “new” way of relating to many Restaurants with their Customers and means of subsistence, especially in the scenario of global pandemic. And these are the reasons for which we decided to write these Blogs, providing some recommendations to the best of our knowledge and good practices to follow, to achieve success in the implementation or development of this business model.
The Delivery and Take-Away business model,
a business model itself for today's food service providers or as an extension
of existing business, is an extremely broad subject with multiple edges not
always applicable the same throughout all food service operator’s broad
spectrum.
So, it is worth addressing each one
separately, with its own peculiarities, as we go deeper in each one of the main
individual aspects of such an interesting, and massive roll out of this
business model in the Food service industry and its new modality: Food away
from home, at home.
The Menu: Definition and Selection for Delivery Service
In this section we will address a
crucial issue: The Menu and the most important aspects to take into account
when defining and selecting the proper dishes, and later on, designing and
publishing the Menu for Delivery or Take away Food. We will try to offer you a
guide that helps answer questions such as: What to offer? Should I continue
with the same dishes from my traditional Menu? Is it necessary to create a new
one?, -among others-.
Please, keep in mind that when we
refer to the "Menu", we do so referring to both the physical or
digital document that we offer to show the customers the sequence or list of
options available to them to taste, as well as the combined plate -or
combination of dishes- that constitute the gastronomic offer of a particular
Restaurant, Cafe or any Food Service operation.
Preparation of a Special Menu for Delivery Service
Implementing a Delivery service
involves much more than preparing the usual food, buying some containers, and
setting up a telephone line or WhatsApp.
One of the dilemmas that arise is
whether or not to continue with the preparation of the same Menu that we
normally offer for Dine-In in our food service operation. As we will see, the
answer to this and other concerns will depend on various factors and they are
precisely those that we want to help you consider for your analysis and subsequent
conscious decision-making.
The Menu you offer in digital media
does not have to be exactly the same as the one you serve for your Dine-In
experience. On the contrary, you must choose very well what you are going to
offer considering such important variables as: sales, shock test, decaying
products or ingredients, etc. Remember that you are competing with all kinds of
restaurants and food service operators. You must be careful with the number of
options you offer. On this occasion, "Less is more." The menu should
be short, easy to read, and eye-catching. The "simpler" it is for the
customer, the better! Keep in mind the circumstances in which your customers
will be under; They are no longer sitting in your Restaurant with your Menu in
front of them; now they are in front of a screen with infinite options that can
be simultaneously reached within the time of just a few "clicks". A
click into your menu or a click away from your business. It is that click
simple.
For all the above, to make the correct
selection of your ideal takeaway menu, you must think a lot and do it very
well. Next, we will mention some topics or aspects and we will give examples
that may be useful for your analysis:
1.
Give prominence to your "Best-Sellers'': Above, we mentioned that the Menu for Delivery may
-and perhaps should be- different from that of your Restaurant. Nevertheless, you
must always keep your essence and identity -this will also be a topic to be
discussed later- For this, at the time of preparing a Menu for the Delivery Service
- either directly or through Food ordering and Delivery platforms - as a rule
of thumb, you must include what you sell the most. Perhaps your
"favorite" product is not the favorite of your customers ... However,
theirs is the one that counts! What do you sell the most? What is that
"best-seller" dish that everyone asks about when they arrive at your
business?... Perhaps the one for which you have become known ...That emblematic
dish cannot be missing from your options at Delivery! You must find a way to
solve any inconvenience that may arise or make the corresponding adaptations so
that this "favorite" is there.
2.
Menu Decay: Reviewing
the ingredients that you would use in your takeout menu is essential. The time
it will take to go from your kitchen to your customer table is way longer (not
less than 30 min) than the time it usually takes from your kitchen to the
customer who is dining-in your business. So, be honest, run some tests holding
your food preparations for about 30 minutes and ask yourself “Would it be
necessary to make any changes?
In this business,
we all know that food textures are just as relevant as its color, taste and
temperature: soft should stay soft, crispy should stay crispy, fresh should
keep fresh, and so on…
3.
Products or dishes suitable for Delivery: There are foods that, although we try with all our
heart and leave our soul in the attempt, do not work well for delivery. Ex:
French fries. It doesn't matter who or how you prepare them, how you reserve
them or how you move them from one place to another. 7 minutes later they never
look, taste, or smell the same as when they were freshly made! When preparing
your Takeaway Menu, it is essential to also consider the following, to
assertively choose the options to offer:
a.
Preparation time:
both your Customers and the delivery service people will be waiting. You want
them both to be happy with your performance and service.
b. Complexity of the operation: you need agility and
processes as simple as possible. In this business model, every
minute matters!
c.
Time that your
product can remain prepared and stable before being discarded or losing its
properties (shelf life). You need products whose "lifespan" is not
too short and gives you the windows of time and cost savings due to losses that
you need in your operation.
d.
There are some
solutions; products and ingredients that are specially designed for the
grab-n-go, which in a way is a business model whose characteristics resemble
the Take Out / Delivery Services. There you might find some answers for the
changes you need to make into your preparation to boost its performance.
4.
Passing the "Shake Test" is another important factor to consider when selecting
the options to include in the Menu that it deserves a separate mention. You
must think who is going to transport the order? how will they do it? What will
be the trajectory and time from when your food leaves the kitchen until it
reaches your customer? It's one thing to ride on a plate that will be carried
from the kitchen to the table by someone on your team through a few tables.
Another very different one, to send it with a transport service, inside a
thermal bag with other orders, using a motorcycle or car, who has to deliver
not only the meal you prepare but so many others in different places and on a very
tight schedule, whatever the company hired for this. This is what is known as
the "Shake Test" ... will your products pass it? When the customer
opens the package you sent ... What will they find inside? Will it be eye catching?
Will it be the same way you prepared it in your kitchen? If it does not, then
it is highly likely your customer is going to start their experience with the
wrong foot. And you do not want that to happen, because it will be not only a
dissatisfied customer but also it potentially becomes free, viral and damaging
auto inflicting damage you are calling upon yourself in social media platforms,
which does matter, considering that this very same business was nurtured in the
Web.
So, is it
convenient to include that specific meal you had in mind in the Menu? Do you
need to incorporate something different? Will you make your most iconic dishes
pass the Shake Taste? If you are convinced that the product has to be included,
even though it does not pass this critical test, then perhaps the solution is
in the Packaging, but that will be the subject of a future discussion.
Now that you have reviewed all these
items and have answered all these questions, your Menu options are ready. Then,
it is time to communicate them!! Please
leave us your comments, we would like to share our community experiences
designing their menu for the Take-out/Delivery Service.