Taking customers back to a simpler time through bites on your menu can bring very up-to-date new dollars to your bottom line. Whether it is fallout from dealing with COVID for way too long, or Canadians generally longing for the times in our lives that felt easier and safer, a quick trip down memory lane is, increasingly, through our tastebuds. But rest assured, you don’t need to completely revamp your menu to add some retro flavour.
For some, it just takes a phrase – cruising the strip on Friday night. For others, just a word – fondue. A few music notes might be all it takes. Or it might even just be an ingredient – maraschino cherries. All evoke memories of simpler, less COVID times.
Give your customers a moment in time, their time. The demographic of your guests will determine which decade or decades your menu (and bar) additions could play in.
Add a little retro to your restaurant menu
When it comes to food, retro is not necessarily about the flavour or taste. Retro is about the feeling that menu item or ingredient or style of presentation evokes.
No need to fully commit. It doesn’t have to be the whole menu or even an entire meal.
Sprinkle some memories all over the menu – a devilled egg here, a jellied salad there, Tequila Sunrise at the bar, Black Forest Cake for dessert. It doesn’t take much to add retro chic to the vibe.
Sprinkle some memories all over the menu – a devilled egg here, a jellied salad there, Tequila Sunrise at the bar, Black Forest Cake for dessert. It doesn’t take much to add retro chic to the vibe.
If you can’t decide or have a smorgasbord of ideas you want to try out, retro options lend perfectly to LTOs. They are time offers, after all. So, take a spin through the decades until something clicks – with you and your diners.
“Make mine retro” is an approach that might appeal to guests who love customizing their meals. They still get to order their favourite dishes from your menu but can give them a retro spin with a selection of add-ons – devilled eggs, scalloped potatoes, layered jelly, vegetable croquette.
Share the memories
Sharables bring people together. Adding some menu items that start conversations about the good ole days will fill your customers’ cravings for delicious comradery.
Retro night – change the music, adjust the lighting, make a few menu additions and you are ready to go. Pick a decade and jump all in or cycle through the decades each week.
Involve your guests – costume contest, trivia, vote for favourites (song/music artist, movie, tv show, fashion). Everyone is yearning for events, involvement and new experiences.
Take the 1950s, a very evocative decade. Change your music selection to Elvis, Frankie, Dean, maybe even a little Johnny Cash. Brighten the lighting and give your waitstaff a bandana (hair, neck or back pocket).
1950’s Menu Ideas
- Cocktail Hour – Manhattans and Sidecars, Stuffed Celery and Shrimp Cocktail
- Salad – Jellied Salad and Three Bean Salad
- Main – Chicken a la King in Puff Pastry
- Dessert – Chiffon Cake or Pineapple Upside Down Cake
How about shareable options? Platters or even retro flights. Pick a decade or offer a selection of items spanning decades. A retro flight could be used to travel the decades one bite at a time – bar selections, appetizers and desserts are a great fit for a trip back in time.
Try retro-fitted upgrades in your restaurant menu
Bringing a recipe back from the past to meet current trends while pleasing the nostalgic palate is a smart approach.
Do you remember hoping your mom would order French onion soup when you were a kid? That drool-worthy soup would arrive at the table, with broiled cheese melting generously over the side of the ovenproof crock. Remember impatiently waiting for it to cool enough to get that first extra cheesy bite, even suffering through a piece of onion?
You likely aren’t the only person with fond memories of this starter.
Sure, you can keep it classic, if that suits your brand. But consider giving it an upgrade to make it yours – stand out from the crowd. It doesn’t take much.
How to adapt your restaurant menu:
| Current Trends | How to Adapt |
|---|---|
| Vegetarian | Swap beef broth with vegetable broth, swap traditional gruyere with a smoked cheddar for a deeper flavour profile |
| Plant-Based | Swap out beef broth, use a plant-based fat to caramelize onions, add mushrooms to increase the umami flavours |
| Gluten-Free | Swap out bread for gluten-free options – bread or buns, first toasted before adding to the soup will keep their shape |
| Dairy-Free | Swap out cheese for non-dairy cheese product that has good melting properties |
| Healthy | Cut the amount of fat used to caramelize the onions, add more vegetables, shredded carrots, and cabbage, even some crushed tomatoes; slice bread thinner and use shredded cheese to get more spread, using less product |
| Customizable | Offer customers a choice of cheese (old cheddar, gouda, swiss, gruyere or a blend), serving size, extra onions, double the croûte |
| Local | All the ingredients for this simple yet rich soup are available in Canada |
| Simplified Prep | Heat ready-to-use onion soup, toast bread slices, top with pre-shredded cheese broil and it’s ready |
Whether you call it retro or nostalgic, it all comes down to comfort and remembering a time when things felt happy and right… When we were all younger and lives seemed simpler, easier and safer. All it takes is one bite to bring back the flavour, fun and fondness. It might be so popular that old school becomes new school.
Big non-meat, plant-based alternatives are here to stay – and growing.
A recent study by Technomic reports “almost two-thirds of Canadian consumers (65%) consider vegetarian offerings to be slightly or much more healthy. And, a quarter express they are ordering more healthy items at foodservice now than two years ago.”
According to Technomic, “Gluten free is the top health claim across segments due to its popularity for both dietary and allergy reasons. Gluten-free claims also line up with many low carb diets like keto that are rising in popularity. Since these leading labels are on the top 200 restaurant menus, consumers may expect to see specialty options more widely available.”
Healthy Claims at Top 200 Limited-Service Restaurants
| Leading Claims | Fastest-Growing Claims | |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Gluten-free | Vegan |
| 2 | Vegetarian | Dairy-free |
| 3 | Diet | Diet |
| 4 | Vegan | |
Healthy Claims at Top 200 Full-Service Restaurants
| Leading Claims | Fastest-Growing Claims | |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Gluten-free | Vegan |
| 2 | Vegetarian | Diet |
| 3 | Diet | Dairy-free |
| 4 | Vegan | Keto |
As a result of this demand shift, restaurants are featuring plant-based proteins in a variety of applications. Optimism that the future is bright for plant-based protein has been fuelled by the reaction to the wave of products from Beyond Meat and others that have seemingly cracked the code and done the improbable – bridging the chasm between meat and meat-alternatives – by offering healthful and appetizing alternatives to beef and pork that replicate the taste and mouth feel consumers crave.
A&W introduced the Beyond Meat burger in Canada in 2018 and, thanks to unexpectedly high consumer trial, sold out beyond the ability of the supply chain to maintain inventory. A&W soon after introduced a Beyond Meat Breakfast Veggie-sausage sandwich that shocked consumers by the degree to which the product tasted like “real” sausage.
Large protein players like Tyson Foods and Maple Leaf are betting many millions that this trend has even longer legs. Maple Leaf announced plans in 2019 to build a US$300 million 230,000-sq.-ft. processing plant in Shelbyville, Indiana to more than double Maple Leaf’s investment in meat alternative offerings like its Lightlife Burger. Michael McCain has called plant-based protein “a billion dollar opportunity,” and recently told analysts that “it is on the cusp of becoming mainstream.”
In an interview with the Toronto Star, he said “in our plant-based business, we are confident that there’s a significant growth opportunity. Right now, most of our activity is around organic growth. We’re investing in new plant capacity, new innovation.”
Kids and plant-based restaurant menu alternatives
Even kids’ menus, traditionally boasting options like breaded chicken fingers and mac ‘n cheese, are going healthier.
According to a recent Technomic insights report: Over the past year, traditional kids menu offerings have declined, including kids grilled cheese (-16.5%), kids hamburger (-22.2%) and kids french fries (-36.4%), while lighter categories, such as kids salad, have seen an increase (+29.4%). “This demonstrates the swap of some heavier dishes for healthier choices that millennial parents most especially have been gravitating toward for their children.”
Fastest growing ingredients on kids’ menus
Savvy operators are taking note and adjusting their kids’ offerings to make them healthier and more mature.
Where do you play in the “healthy” sandbox?
A host of operators – including heavyweights like McDonald’s and Tim Hortons – emerging in all segments of foodservice have, in full or part, revamped their offerings to appeal to the broad constituency of health-seeking consumers (Exhibit 2). Sift your menu through this growing group to see how much ground you cover in the “healthy” sandbox.
One company, Montreal-based Copper Branch, billed as the largest vegan restaurant chain in the world, has ridden the plant-based wave to more than 30 locations including in the US.
Copper Branch has gone beyond vegetarian/vegan, and embraced the key elements of what “healthy” means to today’s consumer – fresh, natural (non-GMO, nothing added), free-from, unprocessed, sustainable, low carbs, nutraceutical, and more. Their menu items tick a lot of consumer boxes, from raw and organic naturally fermented Kombucha beverages, to sandwiches served on a choice of organic ancient grain kamut bun, gluten-free bun, collard green wrap or organic spelt wrap… and they let their customers know through bold menu design and social media.
Does your restaurant menu measure up?
It’s clear, if your menu is not speaking the language of current consumer health and wellness perceptions, you’re losing ground.
So, how do you make sure this key sales tool of your restaurant operation reflects your values if you want to communicate a shift to healthier options? The solutions are easier – and less expensive – than you might think:
- Speak the language. Copper Branch uses terms like “100% plant-based, gluten-free options, all-natural, many organic & non-GMO ingredients.” If you choose to make these claims, though, be prepared to back them up with what emerges from the kitchen.
- Use symbols in the form of a menu legend and place them next to menu items, much the way soome restaurants let diners know if dishes are mild, spicy or super-hot. WebstaurantStore blog recommends a menu legend like this one:
- Grill – A grill shows that chicken, sandwiches, patties, fish, and other foods can be grilled rather than sauteed, deep fried, or cooked in butter.
- Leaf – A leaf shows that pasta dishes, sandwiches, wraps, salads, and other foods can be made vegetarian.
- V – A “V” shows that vegetarian dishes can be made vegan.
- Grain – A grain shows that sandwiches, subs, and wraps can be made with whole grains instead of white flour.
- Zigzag – A zigzag symbol inside of an oven shows that crab cakes, seafood, meats, and poultry can be broiled rather than deep fried or sauteed in butter.
- Vegetable – A vegetable shows that certain meals can be made with organic ingredients.
- Sugar-Free – A sugar-free symbol shows that desserts or drinks can be made without real sugar.
- Offer sensible substitutions – and let your guests know. Use your menu to communicate that you can create healthier alternatives, such as grilled instead of breaded and fried, if diners reqest them.
- Try “healthy” promotions like a special “Meatless Monday” menu.
- Use social media to spread the word that you’re a “healthy” place to be.