Ash Wednesday falls on March 1st this year, so Lent is just one calendar page away. It’s time to think about your restaurant’s Lent menu recipes and the best ways to cater to your guests. The 40-day observance is an opportunity to satisfy and impress customers now so that they look forward to your Lent menu options next year.
As you develop dishes and modify existing menu selections, remember that many people are still honoring their New Year’s resolutions. That often includes a pledge to eat healthier, so give them guilt-free enticements for dining out and enjoying Lent’s meatless traditions.
7 Delicious Ideas for Your Restaurant’s Lent Menu
Delicious Lent menu ideas revolve around seafood dishes and veggie-centric offerings. Both hold strong appeal to health-conscious consumers who want to see both choices on the menu. This is a great time of year to keep customers happy while expanding your kitchen’s culinary repertoire.
1. INCORPORATE TASTES FROM AROUND THE WORLD
People all around the world take part in Lent. Translate that international diversity into ethnic recipes that celebrate vegetables and seafood. Offer your guests authentic Asian, Mediterranean and Latin American dishes that let them enjoy meatless options and explore the flavors of different cuisines.
2. SERVE OUTSIDE TRADITIONAL BURGER BOUNDARIES
If customers consider your restaurant a favorite burger destination, accommodate their preferences and appetites during Lent. Work with ingredients that fit irresistibly between baby iceberg lettuce buns, and impress with new house specialties. White bean and spinach burgers, salmon patties and crab cakes are just a few burger boundary-busting ideas.
3. PREPARE HEALTHY FISH ENTREES WITH VEGGIE SIDES
Make sure customers have healthy fish selections on Fridays. Develop Lent menu recipes that go beyond broiling and frying. Bring out the best in salmon, tilapia and halibut by smoking, grilling and pan-searing filets. Complement new fish entrees with heart-friendly sides like citrusy Brussels sprouts.
4. MAKE LENT MENU IDEAS SPECIAL
Dress up your Friday seafood selections with very special dishes. This time of year brings a bounty of springtime catch to the menu. Guests can observe Lent traditions and still indulge in scallops, lobsters and oysters. Turn upscale entrees into memorable meals with signature sauces like a house salmoriglio or an original chipotle.
5. STAY INSPIRED WITH SEASONAL INGREDIENTS
Let the emphasis on springtime seafood inspire kitchen innovation. Go comfortably casual with a Friday afternoon crawfish boil, or offer veggie-seafood fusions like Dungeness crab nestled in mini iceberg lettuce bowls. These ideas can easily earn permanent seasonal slots on the menu as customer favorites.
6. SET RESTAURANT TABLES WITH HOME COOKING
This idea expands options for Lent menus and helps stretch tight food cost dollars. Let seafood star as comfort food with rice, pasta or soup. Showcase a cache of catch of the day in a rich cioppino. Warm hearts, satisfy appetites and honor family traditions with in-house versions of homemade classics like paella, gumbo and clam chowder.
7. ADD VEGGIE-CENTRIC CUISINE
Veggie-centric cuisine has transitioned from trend-setting to consumer-pleasing with offerings that range from Southwest veggie tamales to organic vegetarian pizzas. These guilt-free entrees serve up as healthy alternatives to protein-based dishes, and that makes them ideal additions to your menu during Lent.
Start Planning for Next Month Now
Customers appreciate having a variety of Lent menu options available at their favorite restaurants. You have 40 days to serve them different dining experiences that inspire repeat business. Start planning now so that you can reach out in advance to a market with tastes specific to the near future.
Let us help ensure the quality of dishes you prepare throughout the observance. As an established leader among California fresh produce companies, we grow and ship premium vegetables throughout the United States and Canada. You can always count on Hitchcock Farms to supply the finest produce for your food service operations year-round.
