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Unpopular opinion: I stopped doing daily specials at my cafe and sales went up 12%
When I ran the kitchen at a 40 seat spot in Portland, I did a new special every single day for almost two years. I was proud of it. Then my food cost hit 34% and I was working 70 hour weeks prepping stuff nobody ordered. Six months ago I switched to a fixed menu of 14 items with two seasonal swaps per quarter. Sales went up 12% and my food cost dropped to 28% because I could finally buy in bulk and stop guessing. Customers actually order more when they know the menu, not less. Everyone told me specials were the reason regulars came in, but the numbers say otherwise for my place. Has anyone else cut specials and seen the same thing, or did it backfire for you?
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joel88410d ago
Man, a 12% jump is nice but I wouldn't hang my hat on one spot's numbers like it proves some big rule. A 40 seat cafe in Portland is a tiny sample, and six months isn't really long enough to call it. The menu thing clearly worked for you, but that doesn't mean specials are dead for everyone.
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