Thanksgiving dinner, office parties, and other holiday get-togethers won’t look the same this year. Several restaurants have been bracing for canceled gatherings.
But that doesn’t mean celebrations will be completely off the table. Families, friends, and coworkers will likely find ways to gather safely, opening up opportunities for foodservice operators to cash in.
Keep the holiday spirit alive through restaurant innovation. While nobody knows exactly what’s in store for the next couple months, these tips are a good place for foodservice businesses to start planning how to manage operations and provide special offerings.
Operations
Learn From the Past: Mother's Day saw consumers experiencing long waits for their pick-up and delivery orders. Though the winter holidays don’t see as much traffic, it’s still wise to modify processes, test online ordering platforms, and prepare staff for a potential surge in traffic.
Stock Up: Make sure enough packaging and portion control products are on hand, in case there’s an influx of off-premises orders. Packaging should also be large and sturdy enough to hold family portions.
Speed Up Prep: Fully-prepared and speed-scratch products will help to maintain efficiency and minimize labor requirements when holiday business picks up.
Rethink Catering: About two-thirds of operators suspended catering programs early in the pandemic. But with more people returning to work, kids returning to class, and people looking to cure their COVID-19 fatigue, catering might bounce back a little. For safe catering, stock up on cleaning supplies and replace the buffet with labelled, individually-packaged meals.
Head Outdoors: According to the National Restaurant Association, restaurants with outdoor areas have derived 44 percent of their revenue from outdoor dining. Restaurants can’t afford to close off their patios when the temperature drops. Start exploring heaters, tents, and other equipment and strategies for outdoor dining.
Take Orders Early: There’s nothing unusual about early reservations for special restaurant events and meals, but considering our current environment, it’s also wise to take early orders for delivery and take-out. This will help restaurants plan ahead and avoid a mad rush of orders.
Special Offerings
Make the Season Special: This year’s Mother’s Day and Easter to-go brunches taught us that off-premises offerings can still be special. Transform Christmas buffets, Thanksgiving dinners, and other festive meals of years past into large to-go menus. Serve drink specials, LTOs, and other offerings to mark the occasion.
Stick to the Classics: Comfort food cravings have persisted throughout the pandemic, and they will stick around until the year’s end. Traditional meals like ham, turkey, stuffing, and pie will whet consumers’ appetites.
Keep Offering Family Take-Out: Families and friends will likely celebrate in small gatherings. That means family-size take-out meals will be of even greater importance in the next couple months.
Pay It Forward: The holidays are a time for giving back. Give consumers the option to donate to a charity at checkout or purchase a meal to deliver to frontline workers.
Provide Tasty Gifts: Help consumers with their holiday shopping by selling gift cards and signature food products.
Go Virtual: Everyone has moved to Zoom—including restaurants. Chefs can host virtual events, from couples tastings to office cooking tutorials. They can also create a special to-go package with the ingredients and beverages needed to participate.
Deliver Family Fun: Take-and-bake kits have been a hit over the pandemic, particularly for kids. Think of providing to-go gingerbread house kits or sugar cookies to decorate for family fun.
Celebrate the End of 2020: Aren’t we all ready for this year to be over? Come up with fun, clever promotions to celebrate the end of a hard year.
Your Sourcing Solution
Bringing in holiday revenue will take more creativity this year, but Dot Foods is here to help. We have the food and supplies restaurants need to wrap up 2020 with some extra revenue.