Edible Education: Slicing up Inspiration for Your Menu and More!
recipes to make the menu POP. A pasta bar with the smells of garlic bread, basil and oregano will get the senses going before they hit the door. • Utilize suggestive selling. Yes, we may have to charge for our lunches again. Think about how you can continue to get students to patronize your program when they have to pay for it - involve them! SNAC committees and the power of peer pressure are great ways to create customer loyalty. • Set smart pricing strategies. Don’t compete with yourself….selling alacarte is a way to gain financial support for your program. However, sometimes you need to read the room. If you notice that your lunch lines are short, and snack lines long, strategize ways you can create convenience and healthy value in your line up. Try favorite quick grab-n-go options such as yogurt parfaits, bistro boxes, nacho average nacho kit! And more. As the spring season brings new growth, think about how you can grow choice and dominate your dining space. SPICE UP your cafeteria not only with spices that pair well with foods you are offering, but also seek out new opportunities for building meal customization.
Environmental Cues that Influence Eating Behavior
It is interesting to review the findings of how environmental factors can steer people’s decisions concerning what foods they choose and how much they consume. Here are some environmental cues that influence eating behavior. • Maximize containers. Shapes, colors and styles of containers can enhance or hinder the action of choosing a food. There are a variety of options in the market to choose from to enhance presentation. Simple cartons (think Chinese take out box), decorative paper liners, colorful bowls, and grab-n-go containers can make a meal more appealing. • Increase convenience. Take steps to avoid long lines with an eye to your cafeteria layout. Balance some grab-n-go options with service bars. • Improve visibility. Confused buyers don’t buy. Use wayfinding pictures and signage to provide students with cues to make quick decisions about their purchases. • Use the senses to enhance taste expectations. Students frequently can smell what’s for lunch before reaching the cafeteria and eat with their eyes. Add herbs and spices to
Pisanick Partners
Tina Hastings Maureen Pisanick, RDN-LDN &
SMART Ways to Incorporate Easy to Implement Bar Concepts Using Global Trends and Comfort Classics! Looking for a little inspiration to help boost your menu cycle into the new year? Welcome to our new column featuring bites of nutrition knowledge and insight for your team’s menu creation needs. Here you can digest four menu recipe categories to customize, create and expand your cycle for improved customer satisfaction. Throughout this year look forward to “Harvest of the Month”, “Simply Fresh”, “Global on Trend/Ethnically Diverse’’, and “Comfort Classic” recipes to fill your team’s idea baskets. These recipes are sure to help create dishes that students will love and can easily be created in your kitchens to increase participation in your menus.
27
Let’s get BACK to Basics of BARS and CHOICE!
When we think about the most popular restaurants among today’s youth they all seem to have a common theme - customized meals! There is usually an array of ingredients that can be selected to customize your sub, wrap, or bowl. Go to any college or university food court and find a world of “steal this idea” concepts and cuisines that have us asking ourselves - how can we make this work for our students? Whether you are new to school nutrition, or have been around the block a few times - the idea of behavioral economics is not one to ignore when upping your cafeteria bar menu game! For a quick introduction - we dusted off this oldie but goodie for your viewing pleasure! The COVID-19 pandemic has caused many school districts to scale back offerings and limit choices presented in the cafeteria. Additionally, in early childhood centers that may have been previously serving family style meals, the pandemic has halted some of those practices. Rather than offering food from serving dishes and passing the foods around the table for children to serve themselves, pre-plated
meals are frequently being used. As we emerge from the pandemic it is time to take advantage of offer-vs- serve and revisit smarter lunchroom principles. This provides students a spectrum of choices that promote healthful eating behaviors and sustainability while making the cafeteria an extension of the classroom. Often to create that crowd pleasing bar concept you need to look no further than pairing some comfort classics with some add-ons to create some customizable make-it-your-way entrees. Think macaroni and cheese being elevated with Tex-Mex or BBQ topping options. The options are really endless - waffle bar, tot bar , yogurt parfait bar, Mediterranean bar , nacho bar, pasta bar, baked potato bar, hot dog or burger bar, sub bar… The number of options don’t need to be overwhelming. Giving students three to five choices offers customization without putting a strain on your workflow. Take a tour and hear from the cook of this simple bar concept in action.
Pisanick Partners is a nutrition and operations based consulting firm with decades of experience in Child Nutrition. We have refined our approach through creation of cycle menus, training and development of staff, and implementing strategies that take on the task of not only attaining nutritional excellence, but also financial success in the K-12 environment. Our experience not only supports a school district in meeting all state and federal mandates for implementing the National School Lunch and Breakfast Programs, but also the menu creation with an eye for detail and meticulous organization. The objective is to quickly and accurately evaluate, analyze and organize a district’s nutritional program to insure compliance and easy on-going maintenance.
Powered by FlippingBook