TAUNTON, Mass. (November 17, 2010)—The week of Thanksgiving is typically a slow one for some types of restaurants because of obvious reasons. But that does not have to be the case if an operator gets a little creative with their offerings, hours and menus. AGAR’s Chef Jeffrey Merry has worked with and counseled hundreds of restaurants and chefs to build better menu items, implement different concepts and come up with creative ideas for increased business.
Chef Merry suggests the following to help a restaurant operator differentiate themselves during the Thanksgiving season:
Create side dishes for families to complement their holiday meals. What’s called home meal replacement items can help a busy family with items they may not have time to prepare and help a restaurant’s bottom line. Many restaurants boost sales by offering the entire Thanksgiving meal for take-out.
As many families travel to see other family members, offering family-style meals and specials around Thanksgiving is a great way to give a family a break and a change of scenery and build traffic into your restaurant that you might otherwise not see.
If your establishment does not normally open up for breakfast during Thanksgiving, this is a great way to offer customers an option before hometown football games and introduce them to your restaurant.
More tips from Chef Merry can be found at: http://www.agarblog.com/2010/11/17/thanksgiving-business-is-still-achievable including a video about how to gain more business during Thanksgiving.
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