How can you use menu engineering to identify which dishes to reprice?

1 What is menu engineering?

Menu engineering is a method of categorizing your menu items according to two criteria: contribution margin and sales volume. Contribution margin is the difference between the selling price and the food cost of a dish. It measures how much profit a dish generates for your business. Sales volume is the number of times a dish is sold in a given period. It measures how popular a dish is among your customers.

3 How to reprice your dishes based on menu engineering?

Once you have categorized your dishes based on the menu engineering matrix, you can use the following guidelines to reprice them, depending on your goals and market conditions. For star dishes, you can increase their prices slightly to remain competitive and attractive to customers, or keep them stable and focus on increasing their sales volume and contribution margin. Plowhorse dishes can be decreased slightly to increase sales volume and customer loyalty, or kept stable and focus on reducing food costs and increasing contribution margin. Puzzle dishes can be increased slightly to increase contribution margin and perceived value, or kept stable and focus on increasing sales volume and popularity through marketing. Lastly, dog dishes can be decreased slightly to increase sales volume and clear inventory, or eliminated from the menu altogether in favor of more profitable options.

4 How to monitor and adjust your menu engineering strategy?

Menu engineering is not a one-time exercise, but a continuous process that requires regular monitoring and adjustment. You should review your menu engineering matrix at least once a quarter, or more frequently if there are significant changes in your market, customer behavior, or cost structure. You should also track and measure the impact of your pricing and promotion decisions on your revenue, costs, and customer satisfaction. You should use feedback and data to fine-tune your menu engineering strategy, and keep your menu fresh and profitable.

5 How to learn more about menu engineering?

Menu engineering is a powerful and practical technique that can help you optimize your menu performance and profitability. If you want to learn more about menu engineering, you can check out some of the online courses, books, and articles that cover this topic in depth. You can also consult with a professional menu engineer or a culinary management consultant, who can help you design and implement a customized menu engineering plan for your business.

6 Here’s what else to consider

This is a space to share examples, stories, or insights that don’t fit into any of the previous sections. What else would you like to add?