DOMAIN IV: FOOD AND NUTRITION SYSTEMS



DOMAIN IV: FOOD AND NUTRITION SYSTEMS

TOPIC A: Menu Planning

1. Types of menus – static, cycle, single use.

Menu – the primary control of a food service operation; a detailed list of foods to be served at a meal or, in a broader sense, a total list of items offered by a food service.

Static menu – same menu items are offered every day

Cycle – series of menus offering different items each day on a weekly, biweekly, or some other basis

Single use – planned for service on a particular day.

a. Patient/resident – Hospital and nursing home care; many hospitals are using restaurant-type/static menus these days (fig 7.2). Additionally, modified menus are used in hospital/resident surroundings designing the menu to the particular disease state. Nursing home menus may be of the cyclical type style, depending on volume and specialties.

- most noncommercial operations use a three meal a day plan, with cycle menus used ranging from 1-3 weeks. Cycles may change according to season of the year.

- Average length of stay is an important consideration in determining cycle menu length. 1-2 week cycles have been used in hospitals with 4-5 day patient stay periods, while larger hospitals use the restaurant style static

Menu.

- In long term care facilities, a 3-4 week cycle menu is common.

b. Commercial – Menus that are catered to restaurants or business, based on the type of business. These menus are static (the predominant type) in traditional restaurants and may be cycle or single use in specialty restaurants or food service businesses that cater to individual themes or guest preferences. For instance, a Bed and Breakfast may benefit from a cycle menu, while a caterer may benefit through use of a single use menu.

- merchandising is the primary consideration; because of varied operations, the menu may take many forms.

- Gray (1986) developed the following procedures for menu planning

• conduct a market study

• perform a competitive analysis

• interview restaurant critics

• attend food shows

• develop a unified theme

• include current trends

• analyze nutritional content

• ensure variety and balance

• price the menu accurately

• check on food availability

• match the menu to employee food skills

• control labor costs

• increase sales through merchandising appetizers and desserts

• test recipes and make adjustments

• standardize recipes (to serve a common group number)

• conduct taste testing

• establish garnish, plating and portion standards

2. Menu Development

a. Master menu

1) Concepts and Development – team efforts in planning and development are very important. For example, in a health care setting, the clinical dietitian should be included on the menu planning team to ensure that patients’ needs and food preferences are given appropriate consideration.

Considerations

- computer – assisted menu planning is not widely used because of difficulties in menu planning (flavor, color, and texture) Computers are more often used for cost and nutrient composition analyses.

- the main purpose of menu planning is to prepare and serve acceptable food at a cost consistent with the objectives of the operation.

- The menu planning must be far in advance of actual production to allow delivery of food and supplies and permit for labor scheduling.

- Menus from commercial and noncommercial operations should be designed to inform the customer/patient of what items are available and cost.

- Simple descriptions of menu items should be used. Avoid confusing, overstated terms.

- Planners should remember the more variety needs to be incorporated into noncommercial menus than commercial menus.

2) Use – manual and automated systems

Computer technology

- electronic data interchange (EDI) allows information to be electronically sent by computer directly from purchaser to supplier, eliminating face to face interaction

- CBORD has been the leading supplier of software to the food service industry for more than 23 years and has developed successful partnerships with many food service organizations from colleges and universities to correctional facilities. CBORD was the earliest to develop the menu management system through computer interaction.

- These menu management systems save labor, reduce food waste, controls cost, and provides menu planning in addition to sales and cost analysis.

Manual - face to face interaction of menu development

b. Guidelines and Parameters

1) Aesthetics

-flavor, texture, color, shape, and method of preparation. Also temperature and repetition of food items are considered when looking at aesthetics.

-a balance should be maintained among flavors such as tart, sweet, mild and highly seasoned, light and heavy.

-texture refers to the structure of foods and is detected by the feel of foods in the mouth.

-consistency of foods is the degree of firmness, density, or viscosity

-color refers to the variety of such on the plate or tray

-shape of food creates interest through a variety of forms

-combinations of food suggests the use of different preparation methods which can add to the variety of a menu.

2) Nutritional adequacy

- Nutritional needs must be a major guideline when planning a menu. Adequacy may be a special concern when living conditions constrain persons to eat most of their meals in one place.

- In healthcare facilities, colleges and universities, and schools, most of the nutritional needs of the customer are provided by the food service.

- Using the Dietary Guidelines for Americans, Food Guide Pyramid, and Daily Value provide excellent guides in planning menus that provide nutritional adequacy.

3) Cost – factors

Food cost is the cost of food as purchased.

The factor pricing method or markup method is the difference between cost and selling price. This value varies among foodservice operations. The raw food cost must be divided by a pricing factor, resulting in a menu sales price:

Raw food cost X pricing factor = menu sales price as used with prime cost.

If the operator chooses a 40% food cost, the pricing factor would be 100/40 = 2.5. For a raw food cost of $2.00, the selling price would be 2.00 X 2.5 = $5.00

Prime cost – consists of raw food cost and direct labor cost of those employees involved in preparation of a food item. Does not include service, sanitation, or administrative costs. To make this cost method practical, some assumptions must be made regarding the percentage of prime cost attributable to raw food, direct labor, and operating margin.

Actual cost – used in operations that keep accurate cost records. The menu price using this pricing method involves variable costs. The menu pricing consists of actual food costs + actual labor cost + other variable costs + fixed cost + pricing.

Pricing psychology – considered by food service managers. These aspects of pricing affect customer perceptions, which influence the purchase decision. Includes odd cents pricing and pricing by the ounce

Odd-cents pricing – price ends in an odd number; price ends in a number other than zero; price is just below a zero (19.99). These magic numbers supposedly stimulate the customer to buy.

Pricing by the ounce – very common among noncommercial food service operations. Popular for salad and sandwich bars, as well as supermarket buffet style bars. Used as a tool to control customer complaints related to increased menu prices; customers pay for how much food they choose through the weight attained.

4) Regulations

Lunch menus: USDA National School Lunch Program; the USDA recommends that portions be adjusted by age/grade group to better meet the food and nutritional needs of children. Current regulations specify the secondary school students may decline two of the five components, defined as offer vs. serve. Offer vs. serve is permitted in elementary schools at the discretion of school administration.

USDA Schools Meals Initiative for Healthy Children (SMI) – guideline to ensure our national health responsibility to provide healthy school meals are consistent with the Recommended dietary Guidelines for Americans. This encompasses more than just meeting the Dietary Guidelines for Americans (Spears, p. 217).

The objective of USDA School Meals Initiative for healthy Children is:

• recommended dietary allowances (RDA)

1. ¼ RDA for breakfast

2. 1/3 RDA for lunch

• Caloric goals

1. age appropriate

• Dietary Guidelines for Americans

1. balanced nutrient content

c. Modifications

1. Diet/disease states – the primary purpose of any foodservice organization is to prepare and serve acceptable food at a cost consistent with the objectives of the operation. These objectives may include other considerations such as choices of food to be offered, dietary restrictions, and other facets that relate to disease and diet.

-health care facilities and other noncommercial (and commercial) food service operations must provide services adequate to the population in question.

2. Substitutions – menus may offer substitutions for main courses and sides offered on the main menu.

Degree of choice refers to the opposite of a no choice menu. If the total quality management (TQM) philosophy has been adopted by the organization, choices must be available to consumers and patients. Nursing homes had traditionally been no choice. Through the work of the Department of health and Human Services and the Health Care Financing Administration choices are made available.

3.Nutritional Adequacy. Nutritional needs of the consumer should be a major concern of the menu planning operations of food service operations.

-Spears p. 226-233. some info here, surveys of dining out patterns, FGP. Dietary guidelines, etc.

d. Clients

1. Age/life cycle stage – consideration of food habits and preferences among populations should be a major consideration. For example, senior citizens on a social security budget may want a more economical menu, whereas young newlyweds may want a little more upscale menu when dining out.

- also of consideration is the nutritional adequacy. Population groups vary in terms of nutrient DRI’s and these variations must be considered, depending on targeted populations.

2. Cultural/Religious influences – include the customs, mores, values, and demographic characteristics of a society in which the organization functions. These factors determine the products and services people desire. Customers have food preferences that influence the popularity of menu items.

3. Satisfaction measurement

a) Surveys – analysis of food habits and preferences should be conducted to provide data for future menu planning.

• small scale surveys, formal and informal interviews with customers, observations of plate waste, customer comment cards, and tallying menu selections are methods to measure.

• usually incorporate a hedonic scale where foods are rated from “like extremely” to “dislike extremely”. Smiley faces and frowns can be used for children. Also, scales relating to consumption (assess plate waste) may be used to gather data; self reported consumption.

b) sales data – can provide a historical perspective into menu choices and customer preferences. Also, purchasing records can be assessed to provide a tool to the habits and preferences of clients.

e. Operational influences

1. Equipment - the menu governs the layout and equipment to produce the specified items.

2. Labor – For the production employee, the menu indicates work to be done; to the wait staff, the foods to be served; and to the dish room staff, the number and types of dishes, glasses, and flatware requiring sanitizing and washing.

3. Budget – the menu controls each subsystem and is the major determinant for the budget. In most operations, food cost and labor cost are the primary costs to the operation. Therefore, the menu has influence over weekly, bi-weekly, monthly, and longer term budgets.

f. External influences

1. Menu trends

- as trends appear, others fade. For example, deep fried and blackened foods are being replaced by grilled and pan seared menu items.

- As Americans continue to travel and become more exposed to foods of different cultures and various regions of countries, they will continue to crave foods from these countries.

- Vegetables will be very popular in the 21st century. More entrees are meatless and different varieties of vegetables will be on the plate.

- Coffee will become mellower and tea will be rediscovered

- Computer food like wraps will continue to be consumed

- Focaccia and breads with herbs will live long lives

- Martinis will become static and boutique tequila will become “in”.

2. Seasonal

- Improvement in transporting food both nationally and internationally and in food preservation makes many foods that were once considered seasonal available during most of the year.

- During the growing season, local food products are of better quality than those shipped long distances. Also, less expensive.

- Food service managers in small communities need to consider frequency of delivery from various food distributors in planning menus.

3. Crisis

- can be related to lack of availability, lack of proper distributor chains (small communities), and poor seasonal crops which may be related to drought and other external influences.

- Food service managers must consider these improbabilities when planning their menus; and may have to temporarily shift their traditional menu accordingly.

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