Menu, food & drink
What Is Curated Food? The Meaning Behind the Word and How to Do It Well
Curated food is a selection made with knowledge and care on the guest's behalf. The word is overused; the discipline is not. Here is how to curate well.
Menu, food & drink
13 guides from The Paxika Blog.
Menu, food & drink
What Is Food Design? A Guide for Chefs and Restaurateurs
Food design is the intentional shaping of food and everything around eating it. Here are its branches, its pioneers, the research behind it and how to use it.
Menu, food & drink
Culinary Trends in 2026: How Food Is Grown, Cooked, Served and Valued
The 2026 food forecasts point to one shift: food sourced closer to home, cooked more slowly, served with more care and judged harder on value. Here is what to change.
Menu, food & drink
Menu Engineering Explained: How to Design a Menu That Sells Itself
Menu engineering ranks each dish by how often it sells and how much cash it earns. Here is the method, a worked example, and why a low food cost percentage can point you the wrong way.
Menu, food & drink
Food Cost Percentage: Formula, Benchmarks and How to Lower It
Food cost percentage tells you how much of each sale goes on ingredients. The useful number is the gap between what it should be and what it is.
Menu, food & drink
How to Price a Menu: 6 Methods Beyond Multiplying Cost by Three
Cost times three gives you a number, not a price. Treat it as a floor, then add six methods that set prices guests accept and the business can live on.
Menu, food & drink
Bar Profit: Pour Costs, Par Levels and a Beverage Program That Pays
A bar's profit margin is set by three numbers: pour cost, par levels and variance. Here are the formulas, a worked example and a weekly routine that finds the leaks.
Menu, food & drink
Wine Lists That Sell: Curating for Margin and Memory
A good wine list earns on cheap bottles and wins loyalty on memorable ones. Here is how to price the ladder, what the research supports and how to build a list guests remember.
Menu, food & drink
Zero-Proof Hospitality: Building a Non-Alcoholic Menu Guests Respect
Venues now commonly offer something alcohol-free. Few offer something worth ordering. Here is how to build a non-alcoholic drinks menu with the same care as the wine list.
Menu, food & drink
Coffee Shop Business Model: The Unit Economics of a Specialty Café
Coffee is cheap to make and expensive to serve. A coffee shop business plan should model the barista's minutes, not the beans. Here is the arithmetic behind a specialty café.
Menu, food & drink
Seasonal Menus: A Calm System for Changing Dishes Without Chaos
Seasonal menus fail when everything changes at once. A slot-based system lets ingredients rotate while stations, prep and costs stay steady.
Menu, food & drink
10 Menu Design Mistakes and What Smart Restaurateurs Do Instead
Much menu advice is folklore. Here are ten real menu design mistakes, with the evidence for each and what to do instead.
Menu, food & drink
How to Develop a Signature Dish: A Chef's Process from Idea to Menu
The idea is the easy part. A signature dish is the one a guest can describe to a friend and your kitchen can cook the same way a thousand times. Here is the process.