Catering to Vegetarian and Vegan Crowds

Once upon a time it was unusual for a vegetarian to ask for a special menu at a restaurant. Today special diets like veganism and vegetarianism are much more common. Any food service business can benefit from serving a vegetarian menu, but for schools, healthcare facilities, and full service restaurants having vegetarian options is a necessity. If you don’t have vegan and vegetarian menu options, here are 5 tips for appealing to customers with special diets.

How to Make a Vegetarian-Friendly Menu

  1. woman eating burger Know your terms. Neither vegetarians nor vegans consume meat or fish, but vegetarians typically eat dairy and eggs. Vegans avoid all animal byproducts including cooking oil, milk and eggs, and even honey.
  2. Know your menu. Respect your customers enough to know if that “vegan” meal has trace amounts of dairy, which can be found in anything from chocolate chips to the breading on fried chicken.
  3. Make a separate menu. The simplest way to serve vegan and vegetarian-friendly foods is to clearly mark each preferred meal option. Just don’t forget to define your terms at the bottom of the menu.
  4. Order vegetarian ovenable foods. Instead of scouring the ingredient list on every menu item, order ovenable foods from vegetarian food processors. Create a menu of organic french fries, veggie burgers, and other vegetarian-friendly food items.
  5. Get creative. Simply adding “grilled veggies” to the menu won’t inspire much confidence (or bring in new customers). Choose vegetarian and vegan options that your carnivore customers will enjoy, too. Not only will you gain a reputation amongst special diet customers, you’ll expand your normal clientele, too.

Have questions about serving vegetarian ovenable foods? Call Quik n’ Crispy to learn more about cooking healthy for any diet.

photo from FreeDigitalPhotos

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