A Menu for Every Diet Fad
March 19, 2007
by Kate Robb
Culinary Institutes Columnist
Back in the early '90s, when the low-fat food craze hit full swing, restaurants began marking certain items on their menus as "heart healthy" or "lite fare." While many customers enjoyed the ease this custom provided, the restaurant itself also enjoyed an image boost as it appeared more socially aware and interested in its clients' needs.
Straddling A Culinary Canyon
But these days, what's a chef to do? Anyone with any sort of interest in the culinary arts must be confounded by the wide variety of wildly contradictory diet fads. If you tried to please all the low-fat, low-carb, low-sugar, low-calorie, vegetarian, vegan folks at once you'd end up with a menu full of -- well, water, I guess. Or diet soda.
Smart Chefs Create a Secret Artillery of Options
So, obviously, one answer would be to design a menu around one of these diet programs, and many have done that successfully. But if you want your restaurant or catering business to remain available to a wider audience, you might think about changing the menu, rather than the actual food options. Add one extra line on the current menu that says: if you are interested in food or diet information, please request an alternative menu from our list of options. Then you only need to create a few extra menus noting which foods are low-carb, low-fat, etc.
Find Other Ways to Show Sensitivity
Of course, there are other ways to show sensitivity to your clientele, such as offering large print menu options, or offering diabetic calculations and food exchange information. A culinary school education will not only teach you how to design a menu that has food options for everyone, it will also teach you that good business can help promote good food. However you choose to do it, having a variety of menu options will help you express your interest in your clients' lives.
About the Author
Kate Robb is a foodie, cultural critic, and university professor.
|
|
|
