MENU PLANNING

Introduction to the menu planning

Definition

Menu_ is a list of food and beverage to be served at any one meal

.Menu planning_is a process of planning what should be taken for each meal including ,starter, main
dish and dessert

A course_is a food served at any one time during a meal

A recipe_it is a document that shows instructions on how to prepare a dish together with the quantities
of the ingredients to be used .

OBJECTIVE OF MENU PLANNING

1. Meet nutritional needs

2. Plans meals within the food cost

3. Simplify purchase, preparation and storage of meal

4.Provide attractive and appetizing meal.

5. Minimize overhead expenditure eg fuel

6. Meet customer expectation

Menu planning here menu authorize production and when it is sent to the kitchen it
must state what is to be produced when and what recipe to be used .
Usually more than one person should participate in the planning of the menu.
The following should be helpful in the menu planning;

a.List of popular menus

b Ideas from magazine

c. Advertisement

d.Competitor menu

Some menus may features items while others are tradition for
 1 The season eg Easter and Christmas
2.Holidays eg madaraka day
3 Locality eg Swahili chapati or pilau. American burger.
4.Ethical and religious eg Muslims do not eat pork
5. Vegetarian eg strict or non strict

FACTORS TO CONSIDER WHEN PLANNING A MENU

1. The meal should be balanced

2. The money available
3. The skills of the people
4. The number of people being catered for.
5. Their occupation.
6 .Their age whether young teens or old,
7. The types of meal,breakfast,lunch or dinner.
8. The type of service.
9. Expected profit in relation to cost of materials
10. Food in seasons because of cost and availability.
11. Time available for preparation.
11. The weather,cold or hot food.

MENU COMPILATION

When compiling menu you need to know the following before you design a menu.

1.Type of menu eg alarcarte or table d hote.

2.Number of courses and how many needed.
3. Stationery available
4.The formart to use
5.Special requirements eg children and adults menus are different.

FACTORS TO CONSIDER WHEN DESIGNING A MENU:MENU COMPILATION

a. Menu formart or arrangement varies in different institutions.

b. A hospital formart may be printed on slips of papers so that patients can select items
within specified dietary regimes.the master menu consist of all types of menus for
example diabetics,ulcers,fats or salt free.
 c. A cafeteria may need to list items on a board near to the point of service.
d A child menus may be in a book form.

N/B. What is important is that a menu should be.

 Simple .
 Easy to read.
 Clearly prized.
 Easy to handle.
 It must be clean

TYPES OF MENU

1. Alarcarte menu

2.table d' horte menu

3. Children menu

4. Speciality menus

5. Banquet menu.

6. Menu for people at work

1.TABLE D'HORTE MENU the definition is covered by the following points.

Def: It is a menu forming meal of usually 2_3 courses at a set fixed price

Characteristics of table dhorte menu are

1.The menu has a fixed number of courses.

2. There is a limited choice within each course.
3. The selling price is fixed.
4. The dishes provided will be ready to serve.

2.A'LAR CARTE MENU( definition is covered by the following points)

Def: This is a menu with all the dishes individually priced customer therefore can compile
their own menu

1. It gives a full list of all the dishes that may be prepared by the establishment.
 2. Each dish is priced separately.
3. A certain waiting time had to be allowed for many dishes.
4. Some dishes are cooked to order

3. Function menu.

Def: this a menu for all different types of functions.eg birthday party, wedding

4. Ethnic or speciality menu

Def: This are menus consisting of specialised food in regards to religion, culture and vegetarian

5. Hospital menu.

Def: This are menus that takes a form of a menu card to the patient the day before service .His
or her preferred food can be ticked.

Structure of a menu

1 length

The number of dishes in a menu should offer a customer an interesting wide variety of choices.

It is better to offer a few dishes of good standard than a long list of poor or substant dishes.

2. Design

The design should compliment the image of the establishment.

3. Language

Accuracy in dish discription helps the customer to identify what they want to take.

4 presentation

Should be eye appealing and welcoming to the guests

Portion control

This is controlling the size or quantity of food and beverage to be served to each customer.
The amount of food allowed depends on the following consideration.

1. Type of customer or establishment

There will be a difference to the size of food served to different customers eg a secretary or a
farmer

A secretary will be served a smaller portions because his or her work does not require alot of
energy.

A farmer will be served a bigger portion because the work require alot of energy.

There will be also be a difference to the size of food served in different establishment.

A restaurant offering a three course meal ,a table d 'horte menu there will be a different for ksh
250 the size of the portion will naturally be smaller than in a luxury restaurant offering an
alarcarte menu for ksh 500.

2. Quality of the food

Better quality food usually yields a good number of portions than poor quantity food.

Stewing beef ( beef stew) will often give you right portions per kg with more less time and
labour require of preparation will beef with bones will give you 6 portions per kg as it often
needs so much trimming and the time

3. Buying prices of the food.

This should correspond to the quality of the food.

If the price is high the amount of food allowed should be more and if the price is low the
amount of food will be less.

Portion control equipment

1. Fruit juices glass.

2. Soup plates.

3.soup bowls.

4. Scoops.

5.laddles for soup and saucers.

6. Milk dispenser.

7.tea measuring machine.

8. Individual pie dishes

9.pudding basins

10 . Coupes

MENU PLANNING

When doing menu planning you need to have the following.

Cover page

Table of contents.

Menu presentation

Food order list

Costing

Timed order of work

Equipment and materials requisition

Under cover page you should include the following details

1. Name: write your full Names

2.Index number: eg 40312555

3. Center name: Kips Technical College

4. Center code : 403169

5. Course code: 1802

6.unit code: ,eg 2802/104

7.Test.: eg Number: 1

8:Date: write the date that you are doing the menu planning
Table of contents

Sàmple

Menu _______________1

Food order list_________2

Costing of the meal_______3

Timed order of work________4

Equipment and materials requisition ______5

MENU PRESENTATION

Note: when there is hot starter the dessert should be cold

When there is a cold starter the dessert should be hot

EXAMPLE OF HOT STARTER INCLUDE

All soups such as :

Pumpkin soup

Peà soup

Creamed vegetables soups

Clear soup eg : consomes

Chicken soup

Tomato soup

Others hot stater include: maize on the cob, porridge

EXAMPLES OF COLD STARTER INCLUDE

Vegetable salad

Potato salad

Rice salad
Salsa salad

Coleslaw

Note when you indicate soup in your menu ensure you also indicate the accompaniment

ACCOMPANIMENT FOR SOUPS INCLUDE

Breadrol

Croutons

MAIN MEAL

The main meal should include the following ;

1.Protein

2.Starch

3.vegetables

EXAMPLES OF PROTEINS INCLUDE

Animals protein such às: Beef stew, Carbonnade beef,beef goulash,beef stroganoff, Vienna
steak or hamburger, mutton stew,roasted lamb,roasted beef, grilled pork,braised beef,

Poultry: chicken stew,roasted chicken, chicken curry, chicken in bread crumbs, scotched
eggs,poached eggs,poached chicken,egg curry,roasted turkey

Fish: fish in batter,fish in breadcrumbs,fish fingers,deep fried fish,pan fried fish

Plant protein such as: Green gramms stew, lentil curry,pea stew,bean guolash

Any dry meat should have a sauce or gravy to moisten such as : roast gravy,breadsauce,tarter
sauce,mint sauce
EXAMPLE OF STARCHES

French fries, potato wedges,pillaf rice, tropical rice, local polenta ,braised rice,, tumeric rice,
chapatis,creamed potatoes, parsley potatoes, spaghetti bolognese,macaroni,

EXAMPLES OF VEGETABLES

Fried spinach,fried kales, braised cabbage,buttered carrot, buttered peas,fried french

beans,fried traditional greens,steamed spinach,steamed cabbage, ratatouille

DESSERT

It includes both hot and cold dessert

EXAMPLES OF COLD DESSERT

Fruit salad

Mousses

Ice cream

Tropical fruit platter

HOT DESSERT

All cakes and sweet sauces

Pancakes

BEVERAGE

Commonly used is coffee

SAMPLE OF A MENU WHERE STARTER IS HOT

PUMPKIN SOUP WITH BREADROLLS

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CHICKEN CURRY

PILLAF RICE

FRIED SPINACH

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FRUIT SALAD

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COFFEE

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SAMPLE OF A MENU STARTING WITH A COLD STARTER

TOMATO AND CUCUMBER SALAD

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ROASTED BEEF with ROAST GRAVY

FRENCH FRIES

KACHUMBARI

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STRAWBERRY CAKE with STRAWBERRY SAUCE

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COFFEE

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A SAMPLE OF A VEGETARIAN MENU

PEA SOUP with CROUTONS

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LENTIL CURRY

TROPICAL RICE

RATATOUILLE

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TROPICAL FRUIT PLATTER

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COFFEE

@50/=