What Marketing Materials Should You Include on Your Restaurant’s Tables?

The promotional literature you place on your diner or café's tables can significantly influence how much each patron or party of patrons spends during each visit. An unadorned table may appear chic but can frequently decrease the average patron's total check size, placing your restaurant at an economic drawback relative to a more cluttered table with various promotional materials.

One of the top methods to escalate the revenue your café generates per patron is to incorporate a broad array of promotional materials on each table, offering each patron a wide selection of food and dining possibilities.

From cocktail menus and food menus to more unconventional suggestions like a list of the daily features, continue reading to discover the five promotional materials you should incorporate on your café or diner's tables.

Dining Menu

It's a no-brainer, and it's crucial. Ensure that your food menu is perpetually present at each table so patrons have a full understanding of what meals are available to them in your establishment.

If your goal is to bolster your earnings-per-patron, keep the menu in close proximity to the table - ideally in a menu stand on the table - allowing patrons to peruse other meals and suggestive selling while they dine.

The more chances patrons get to go through your menu, the higher the likelihood of them ordering an additional course or selecting an add-on from the menu while indulging in their current dish.

Drinks Menu

If your establishment serves a broad range of drinks or doubles up as a bar post dinner, providing a drinks menu listing all the beverages on offer at your establishment is a fantastic strategy to increase your earnings-per-patron.

Several establishments underutilize a truncated beverage menu, listing only a few standard drinks. Patrons are consequently obligated to place off-menu drink orders by conveying their preferences to the staff.

When your drink menu is expansive and exhaustive, people feel like they have more choices. Offer a thorough and detailed drink menu to enhance the chances of patrons ordering drinks with their meals.

Daily/Weekly Features

Does your café or diner offer daily or weekly features? While displaying specials on a chalkboard might be the traditional method, it’s not nearly as successful as cataloging them on a menu that patrons can refer to effortlessly.

Develop a daily or weekly special menu - it doesn't need to be as comprehensive as your main menu - that can reside in each table’s menu holder. This empowers patrons to check the daily or weekly features without having to scan the entire establishment.

Many individuals order specialty entrees impulsively because they differentiate themselves from regular menu items. Make your features menu easy to locate and even simpler to read to maximize the number of patrons ordering specialty dishes.

Desserts and Add-ons

If your establishment offers add-ons like desserts or after-dinner drinks, it’s beneficial to catalog these on a separate menu. This offers your waitstaff additional opportunities to present the menu to diners and inquire if they’re interested.

Incorporating several different menus maximizes your staff's engagement with clients, increasing patrons' awareness of the food offerings and subsequently increasing the average number of patrons that order add-ons.

Listing your most sought-after add-ons, like desserts and after-dinner cocktails, on an independent menu is an effective tactic to increase order sizes and create further suggestive selling opportunities for your staff.

Lunch or Dinner Sets

If your establishment caters to a large crowd during lunch or dinner, one of the most effective ways to simplify your kitchen's workload and elevate the average revenue per patron is by selling a variety of lunch or dinner sets.

Preset menus are simpler to prepare compared to a vast range of à la carte dishes, and offer another option for patrons. There's no need to exclusively offer a preset menu; it can complement your regular range of lunch or dinner dishes.

By offering lunch and dinner sets, your restaurant introduces an additional means to promote its cuisine to patrons. Adding a preset menu to each table simplifies the ordering process and presents more of your dining options to each patron.