Property, design & sourcing
Starting a Food Business with Local Produce: A Practical Blueprint
A local-produce food business starts with the harvest, not the menu. How to choose a format, plan and price around seasons, and work with growers.
Posts about menus
14 posts.
Places & perspectives
The Origins of Iconic Dishes: What the Record Actually Shows
Pizza Margherita, the croissant, Caesar salad, tiramisu, butter chicken and chicken tikka masala: what is claimed about each, what the evidence shows, and what it teaches restaurants.
Marketing & guest experience
Food Photography for Restaurants: Honest Photos That Sell the Plate
A restaurant food photo is a promise about a plate. How to light, frame and edit honest images, which platforms matter first, and where AI fits.
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
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
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
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
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.
Technology & AI
Dynamic Pricing for Restaurants: Does It Work and Is It Fair?
Restaurant dynamic pricing works best as a discount for quiet hours, not a surcharge for busy ones. The evidence on fairness explains why, and how to test it safely.