Du Jour Menu Items Make Food Prep Simpler
A hotel kitchen is often hectic and fraught with complex challenges. Serving a large number of guests in a timely fashion, without wasting resources or ingredients, is often a requirement of a creative chef. By creating "du jour" items, a French term meaning "of the day," chefs and hotel managers can cut down on the time required to prepare menu items; the cost of ingredients; and the confusion that may be generated by hosting a large number of diners.
The Benefits of Du Jour Menu Items
A du jour item is a special menu item that is offered on a specific day of the week. This special menu item is often featured at a reduced price, making it more appealing to hotel guests. Because a large number of guests will be expected to order the du jour special, this menu item can be made in large quantities, cutting down on the overall preparation costs for this dish. Du jour menu items, such as soups and entrees, can be prepared in advance, and cooked during slow dining hours and assembled when the customer orders the daily special.
Soup Du Jour
Soup is one of the most common du jour items featured on a hotel lunch or dinner menu. Because soups often take a long time to prepare, having one or two daily soup choices is a great way to provide customers with a comforting soup without the hassle and cost associated with cooking soups that are made to order.
Entrees Du Jour
It is also possible to have du jour entrees, such as specialty chicken, fish, or beef entrees, which can be customized using a selection of side items. Customers will often select the du jour entrée because they expect it to be fresh and served quickly.
Creating Desserts of the Day
At a hotel, guests often like to indulge in menu items that they would not normally order elsewhere. For this reason, it is important for a hotel kitchen to offer several delectable dessert options for their hotel guests. However, creating and preparing a huge selection of desserts can be complicated and wasteful. If you offer a score of dessert choices from a menu, you will be required to invest a great deal of time and energy into cooking desserts, many of which may go untouched. This will result in wasted time and ingredients. Instead, consider creating three special desserts to complement the choices featured on your hotel dinner menu.
When you have only a few dessert options, you can place the available selections on a tray and show them to customers after they have finished dining. When customers are physically able to look at the amazing desserts you have created, they will be more enticed to purchase and enjoy a dessert. This will increase the profits generated by your hotel kitchen.
Running an efficient hotel kitchen is a challenging and exciting undertaking. Many customers dine at different times during the day and night, and creating options for a wide variety of guests can be quite demanding. However, by creating a selection of du jour options, such as soups, entrees, and desserts of the day, you can provide a continual variety for your guests without wasting ingredients, time, and resources.