Not particularly? Could do better? Well, don’t worry, you don’t have to start from scratch. There are simple ways you can accommodate people with alternative diets, such as offering dairy or gluten-free alternatives, clearly marking common allergens on your menu, and educating your staff about cross-contamination.
Below we explore how you can adapt your menus to meet dietary requirements.
The three main dietary requirements you need to be aware of include veganism, gluten-free diets, and allergies. Vegans do not consume animal products or by-products such as dairy, honey or eggs. Gluten-free diets exclude all forms of wheat, rye, barley and other grains containing gluten proteins. Finally, allergies can range from a mild intolerance to life-threatening anaphylactic reactions; therefore, you need to know about potential allergens in your kitchen.
Take a close look at each item on your menu and check what food elements are involved in its preparation. If dishes contain animal products or gluten proteins, consider offering a vegetarian/gluten-free/vegan option so that everyone can enjoy your food. As a restaurant, you must have a list of all the ingredients that go into each dish, so customers with allergies can check they are safe to consume.
Even if you offer vegan/vegetarian/gluten-free options, you must be aware of cross-contamination in the kitchen. Your restaurant's kitchen layout is important for this reason. Make sure all ingredients are stored separately and utensils or cooking surfaces are not shared by those containing different ingredients (such as meat and vegetables, dairy, nuts etc.). You must also provide training sessions, so your team understands the importance of accommodating people with different dietary requirements or restrictions, and the system you have to ensure certain goods don't come in contact with each other, from storage to food prep.
Take advantage of this opportunity to get creative! Think outside the box when creating dishes for those with dietary restrictions - you may even find some additional customers who appreciate having more options.
Promote any new gluten-free/allergen-excluding/vegan options on social media or via email newsletters so customers know they have extra options when visiting your restaurant. Also, invite customer feedback to continue improving and adapting your menu according to their needs!
With RATIONAL, you can handle many customer requests using just one piece of kitchen equipment. By using an intelligent cooking system such as the RATIONAL iCombi Pro , along with its built-in iProductionManager , you can eliminate the stress of cooking multiple dishes with different dietary requirements all at once. This makes mixed loading a breeze.
Simply tell the iCombi Pro which foods you want to prepare, and the iProductionManager will tell you which products can be cooked in which order or at the same time. The cooking system will alert you when it needs to be loaded or unloaded, and the rest is automatic.
With the iCombi Pro , you have control of production at all times with little to no monitoring, so any staff member can use it with minimal training and skills needed. Click below to learn more about how RATIONAL's intelligent cooking systems can help manage complex menus.
With many alternative diets out there, you must be aware of their unique dietary needs to provide an enjoyable dining experience for everyone who visits your restaurant! By taking steps such as reviewing and evolving menus, to ensuring the kitchen is equipped to perfectly cook and prepare allergen-free dishes, you can quickly adapt menus to deal with any and all dietary requirements!
Get in touch with the team at RATIONAL today to learn more about the iCombi Pro or the iProductionManager system.