High food costs are forcing operators to raise menu prices, but restaurant check creep is having a negative impact on traffic.
Across the menu, entrée prices have gone up the most, said Richard Berry of the National Fisheries Institute. He served as moderator of the panel “Sidestep the Sticker Shock: How to Keep Menus Affordable Amidst Higher Food Costs and Labor Pressure,” during the National Restaurant Association Show earlier this month.
The high cost of center-of-the-plate seafood, beef and other proteins is responsible for check creep. According to Berry’s data, steak entrees are up 4%; shellfish, 3%; fish, 5%; and beef, 2%. Even plates with less expensive ingredients are escalating. Menu prices for chicken, pork and burger items have each risen 4%.
“I’ve never before seen the convergence of these forces in the industry,” said Matt McMillin, chief culinary officer of Cooper’s Hawk Winery & Restaurants. Checks at the wine-centric casual-dining chain are $5 to $10 more.
Cooper’s Hawk still has guests who will order items in the top price tiers, like beef tenderloin, but they may not then buy an appetizer or dessert, he added. “And you can only raise prices so much before consumers get pissed off.” When scallops became prohibitive, he simply took them off the menu.
Although the restaurant’s popular wine club and robust wine sales help offset food costs, “we need to price more items for guests who used to come in twice a month, but now come in once a month,” said McMillin. To keep customers happy and margins healthy, he has come up with some creative menu strategies.
Fabricate a dish in a different way. When Cooper’s Hawk was able to get a better contract on scallops, they came back on the menu. But to make the still-pricey seafood more affordable to guests, he may combine the scallops with shrimp in a risotto, positioning one or two whole scallops on top for a classy presentation.
Design an LTO promotion around trial. To boost lunch traffic, McMillin created a $29 special, pairing an 8-ounce Wagyu burger with a glass of a great, high-end wine, in this case, Cakebread Cellars Cabernet. The LTO ran from Monday through Thursday for four weeks and got people in the door on slower days. Plus, it sparked interest in the Cooper's Hawk wine program—a differentiator in the casual-dining segment.
Create a chef-driven appetizer from surplus ingredients. Roasted vegetables are a favorite side on Cooper’s Hawk menu, but the kitchen couldn’t use up all the Brussels sprouts that went into the recipe. So McMillin developed a shareable appetizer of Crispy Brussels sprouts with Asian flavors and cashews, priced at $18.99. The affordable starter became a best seller.
Get nimble at sourcing. To get the best prices on commodities and food products, look at a mix of suppliers and don’t hesitate to change. McMillin does regular business reviews of vendors to keep up to speed.
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