Top tips for getting your menu Christmas ready
It’s that busy time of year again, Christmas is just around the corner and it is time to get your festive menu ready for those party-goers.
Sales in December are likely to spike as more people socialise and treat themselves to a few festive drinks, so it’s super important to make the most of this time and draw in the right crowd. The sooner you’re prepared the better, so here are our top tips for getting your menu ready for Christmas.
Get creative with your festive menu
What you really want is for word to spread of the unique and tasty delights on your festive menu. Putting together an exciting list of drinks for your venue can really make your business stand out against your competitors, so we recommend making sure that you have a real variety of drinks to choose from and definitely take advantage of the versatility of the cocktail! Be sure to display your menu where it’s easily visible – you’ll want everyone to catch a glimpse of your festive offering.
Also worth bearing in mind when creating your drinks list is that people are more likely to splash the cash on premium spirits, wines and cocktails at this time of year. It’s worthwhile tailoring your drinks and price ranges to suit your intended demographic, but as a general rule ensure you have something to suit a range of budgets. It can also be beneficial to cater to non-drinkers, so a good no and low offering of tasty alternatives will work wonders for making sure that everyone feels welcome.
Lastly, if you’re really looking to be creative, why not choose a theme for your Christmas drinks menu? A Christmas menu doesn’t have to be totally focused on candy canes and mistletoe, choosing a unique festive theme will ensure that you are a memorable place for your customers to visit - and they might even come back with more friends.
- Looking for Christmas drinks inspiration? Read ‘Christmas drinks: what to serve on your festive menu’
Market your menu effectively
Marketing your festive menu is the next step to making sure you have the right exposure and reach your target customers. If you are already active on social media, now is the time to ramp up your Christmas-themed content to showcase exactly what you have planned for the festive season, including what’s on your menu and any events you have lined up.
Instagram is a great platform to do this, giving you the opportunity to share photos and videos of the drinks on your menu, how they’re prepared and what ingredients are used to create them. To add a personal touch, we recommend involving your staff in your video content. Your bartenders are your greatest asset, so give them the chance to showcase their expertise, and your customers can see the skill and craftsmanship that goes on behind the scenes.
- Want to learn how to take Instagrammable pictures of your cocktails? Read ‘Five tips to take better cocktail photos’
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It’s all in the presentation – Christmas cocktail garnishes
Garnishes are essential to the identity of your cocktail and can really add visual appeal and flavour to your drink. If you want to ensure your festive cocktail menu is memorable for your visitors, we recommend getting creative with different Christmas cocktail garnishes to ensure your drinks have that wow factor.
Classic Christmas cocktail garnishes can include holly and berries, cinnamon sticks, apple slices, dried oranges, egg white foam, candy canes, gingerbread men and more. This is your opportunity to get creative and think outside the box.
Take the time to assess what went well
Once the busy season has died down and you have time to draw breath, it’s worthwhile sitting down with your team to get their feedback on what went well and any common issues that arose.
This is also a chance to reassess where you might want to put your budget next year, whether it’s having more hands on deck, improved systems for storing ingredients, better/easier recipes or a greater variety of one particular drink. Be sure to save your notes down somewhere safe – a year is a long time and you’ll want to remember all the important bits of feedback!
Let us know on social if you implement any of these ideas and be sure to tag us with even more top tips that you’ve learned over the years.
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