Running an effective menu training program doesn’t have to be complicated, but it does need to be consistent. Managers or head chefs often take on the task, but with their busy schedules, it can easily be forgotten. That’s why appointing one or two enthusiastic staff members is crucial to keep the training on track and happening regularly. Everyone is up to speed on new dishes, ingredients, and upselling techniques – let’s call them your Staff Training Champions.
A well-structured menu training program boosts staff confidence, drives better customer service, and increases sales – it will also put you far ahead of your competition! Let’s get started…
1. Bite-Sized Training Sessions
Designing short, focused sessions that fit into daily routines is key to effective menu training. These should be quick to run and easily repeatable:
– 10-minute sessions: Run these with small groups before or after shifts. For example, covering one dish or ingredient in detail rather than tackling the whole menu simultaneously. – YouTube videos: Start sessions with a quick video about a cooking technique or a specific ingredient – there are hundreds available, and it is easy to track them down with a quick AI search using Perplexity or ChatGPT Search, eg use this Prompt…
Prompt:[Find me 20 YouTube videos no longer than 5 minutes that can be used for training restaurant waiters about food ingredients, eg cheeses, meats, vegetables, fruits, dessert making and sauces. Do not include beverages. Videos to be in English]
– Practical exercises: Set a timer to challenge staff on tasks like identifying ingredients, putting them in alphabetical order, dicing vegetables, or making cocktails. Include cheering and prizes to keep it fun.
2. Incorporating Visual Aids
Using visual elements is an effective way to boost retention and engagement:
– Infographics and flashcards: Create quick-reference cards highlighting key ingredients, flavour profiles, and dietary information. Use a flashcard system, like StudyBlue, Cram, or Quizlet, to create and test them, similar to those used in schools. Ask a school teacher for recommendations or your local hospitality teacher at a high school. – Interactive Maps: Use Google Maps to show the origins of wines or other regional dishes – winery listings will usually have a lot of photos. – Ingredient books: Show staff unfamiliar ingredients like celeriac or okra using photos or actual samples during tastings. It’s surprising how many big food and wine books can be found in secondhand shops or online at sites like AbeBooks.
3. Tasting for First-Hand Knowledge
Nothing beats first-hand experience when it comes to understanding flavours:
– Chef-led tastings: Ask chefs to run quick tasting sessions, explaining the preparation process and key ingredients. For example, have the chef demonstrate how to make a sauce or dessert with two staff observing and tasting. Care needed: many chefs feel they are ‘too busy for this’, but their input is important – work with them to find a good time and show them the benefits for the kitchen. – Ingredient comparisons: Run simple tastings like a “lettuce tasting” or a “berry flavour test” to train staff on distinguishing subtle flavour differences. There’s also value in comparing high-quality and low-quality ingredients, eg comparison of cheap chocolate with different quality brands and cocoa percentages, – Supplier collaborations: Invite friendly suppliers to run tasting sessions, such as comparing different cuts of meat or canned goods or exploring a specific wine variety side by side. Sales reps are usually very happy to facilitate these, and it’s often expected by their managers.
4. Gamifying Menu Knowledge
Turn menu learning into engaging activities to make it more enjoyable for staff:
– Menu quizzes: Create and run quick quizzes about your own menu or others like ‘20 facts about Lebanese cuisine’ or ‘20 difficult customer scenarios’. Encourage staff to invent and run their own quizzes. To create a quiz on your own menu, try using this prompt with ChatGPT or another AI service:
Prompt:[Act as an experienced chef and staff trainer. Write a staff training Quiz on the menu attached. Write 20 questions with 4 multiple choices for each, and include the correct answer after each question. Do not ask questions about prices. Use simple English.]
Prompt:[Give me a list of 20 topics for short, focused menu training activities for restaurant staff at our [Italian] Restaurant. These should be quick sessions (10-15 minutes each) that can help improve staff knowledge of the menu, ingredients, and sales techniques. Include topics that include ingredient identification and understanding, selling techniques, flavour profiles, how to describe dishes to customers, matching food with wine or beer, dietary requirements, seasonal menu changes, handling customer requests, using online review feedback and role-play scenarios. Use simple English]
– Menu bingo & scavenger hunts: Create a ‘Menu Explorer’ game to help staff connect items with their descriptions. In ‘Menu Explorer’ staff receive a series of clues, each hinting at a specific dish or menu item. By deciphering these clues, staff members navigate through the menu to identify the correct items. You can ask ChatGPT or an AI service to create these games with varying levels of difficulty. – Upselling challenges: Implement a points system where staff earn rewards for successful upselling of featured dishes.
5. Leveraging Technology for Training
Make use of digital tools to streamline the training process:
– Mobile apps and online quizzes: Platforms like Kahoot or AhaSlides are great for interactive quizzes. Use these to test staff on menu updates or new dishes in a lively and fun way. Most young staff are familiar with Kahoot from their school days and will be able to create these quizzes very easily. – Short video tutorials: Record chefs preparing dishes, highlighting key steps. Use these videos for quick, on-demand training sessions. There’s sure to be a kitchen staff member who can take good videos and do simple edits on their phone or laptop. Why not share these videos on Instagram Reels or TikTok to educate everyone? – Digital flashcards: Use restaurant training software like Yelli or Wisetail to create picture quizzes and automated flashcards for staff to study on their phones.
6. Peer-to-Peer Learning
Encourage a culture of knowledge-sharing among your team:
– Appoint menu champions: Choose experienced staff to lead short sessions on new menu items or upselling techniques. They will also play an important role in onboarding new team members. – Buddy system: Pair new hires with seasoned staff for quick on-the-job training and guidance. – Knowledge sharing in meetings: Encourage staff to share their favourite techniques for upselling or handling tricky customer questions. Different staff could do ‘ingredient of the week’ with a short explanation and possible tasting – add it to the weekly team agenda.
7. Measuring Training Impact
Assess the effectiveness of your training with practical evaluations:
– Tracking performance: Use sales data to identify if specific menu items are being upsold effectively – the numbers do not lie. If there are some new specials or menu items, how well have they been received? If the results have been less than expected, is it the price, the flavour, the descriptions, or that staff don’t know how to describe them? – Customer feedback: Monitor reviews on platforms like Google Reviews, Yelp, or TripAdvisor to see if customers mention staff knowledge and recommendations. Use Google Takeout to download all your reviews, and ask ChatGPT to analyse them for comments and sentiments about the food. Does this show a need for any particular type of menu training? – Regular quizzes and evaluations: Run quick tests or scenarios during pre-shift meetings to assess retention. How well does the team score over time? – Review analysis sessions: Regularly discuss recent reviews with staff, focusing on recurring themes related to menu items or services. – Role-plays based on reviews: Create scenarios based on actual customer comments to prepare staff for similar situations in the future. See: How to Build Restaurant Service Skills With Role-Play Training. – Celebrate positive reviews: Share positive customer feedback during meetings to reinforce successful service behaviours. To keep them constantly top-of-mind, reviews from Google Reviews can be automatically sent into a staff communication system like Slack by using Zapier.
8. Adapting to Dietary Requirements and Trends
Ensure your staff are well-equipped to handle dietary requests and trends:
– Role-playing scenarios: Simulate customer interactions where staff need to suggest alternatives for dietary needs. – Training on allergens: Use visual aids and quizzes to educate staff on common allergens and how to address them. See: Allergy Training for Restaurant Staff. – Current food trends: Keep staff updated on trends like plant-based options or gluten-free dishes, so they can confidently recommend menu items.
9. Continuous Feedback and Improvement
Regularly review and improve your training approach to keep it effective:
– Staff feedback sessions: Involve your team in reviewing training effectiveness and suggest areas for improvement. Update training materials: Ensure that menu updates are reflected in your training resources, such as digital guides or flashcards. You can easily create new quizzes for menu changes, using the AI methods described in Section 4 above. – Recognition of training success: Celebrate when staff achieve full marks on quizzes or do great work with customer interactions. Have fun certificates and titles ready for Menu Maestro, Dish Decoder, Flavour Guru, Culinary Champion and Gastro Guru 😀
10. Involve the Chefs in Menu Training
Chefs can play a crucial role in enhancing menu knowledge:
– Cooking demonstrations: Have chefs demonstrate key dishes and plating techniques, allowing staff to observe and ask questions. – Q&A sessions with chefs: Hold short sessions where staff can ask about ingredients, preparation methods, or special techniques. They can also discuss what was involved in their training, great people or places they’ve learned from, and their favourite foods when they’re off duty—these can be fun. – Front-of-house learning about the kitchen: Have waitstaff spend a few minutes observing food preparation to better explain dishes to customers. – Back-of-house understanding service flow: Allow kitchen staff to shadow servers during quieter times to understand customer interactions and how dishes are presented. – Job rotation: Occasionally rotate roles briefly, such as bartenders learning about food items and servers understanding cocktail preparation. – Joint training sessions: Bring together front and back-of-house staff for combined training on new menu items so everyone understands how to describe and sell dishes effectively.
A well-run menu training program improves staff knowledge and creates a more confident, motivated team ready to engage with customers. Making it a regular event and assigning it to dedicated staff members will keep the momentum going, even during busy times. Small but consistent efforts can make a big difference in how your team performs and how your customers experience your venue – make plans, keep it fun, and watch your sales grow!
Running an effective menu training program doesn’t have to be complicated, but it does need to be consistent. Managers or head chefs often take on the task, but with their busy schedules, it can easily be forgotten. That’s why appointing one or two enthusiastic staff members is crucial to keep the training on track and happening regularly. Everyone is up to speed on new dishes, ingredients, and upselling techniques – let’s call them your Staff Training Champions.
A well-structured menu training program boosts staff confidence, drives better customer service, and increases sales – it will also put you far ahead of your competition! Let’s get started…
1. Bite-Sized Training Sessions
Designing short, focused sessions that fit into daily routines is key to effective menu training. These should be quick to run and easily repeatable:
– 10-minute sessions: Run these with small groups before or after shifts. For example, covering one dish or ingredient in detail rather than tackling the whole menu simultaneously.
– YouTube videos: Start sessions with a quick video about a cooking technique or a specific ingredient – there are hundreds available, and it is easy to track them down with a quick AI search using Perplexity or ChatGPT Search, eg use this Prompt…
Prompt: [Find me 20 YouTube videos no longer than 5 minutes that can be used for training restaurant waiters about food ingredients, eg cheeses, meats, vegetables, fruits, dessert making and sauces. Do not include beverages. Videos to be in English]
– Practical exercises: Set a timer to challenge staff on tasks like identifying ingredients, putting them in alphabetical order, dicing vegetables, or making cocktails. Include cheering and prizes to keep it fun.
2. Incorporating Visual Aids
Using visual elements is an effective way to boost retention and engagement:
– Infographics and flashcards: Create quick-reference cards highlighting key ingredients, flavour profiles, and dietary information. Use a flashcard system, like StudyBlue, Cram, or Quizlet, to create and test them, similar to those used in schools. Ask a school teacher for recommendations or your local hospitality teacher at a high school.
– Interactive Maps: Use Google Maps to show the origins of wines or other regional dishes – winery listings will usually have a lot of photos.
– Ingredient books: Show staff unfamiliar ingredients like celeriac or okra using photos or actual samples during tastings. It’s surprising how many big food and wine books can be found in secondhand shops or online at sites like AbeBooks.
3. Tasting for First-Hand Knowledge
Nothing beats first-hand experience when it comes to understanding flavours:
– Chef-led tastings: Ask chefs to run quick tasting sessions, explaining the preparation process and key ingredients. For example, have the chef demonstrate how to make a sauce or dessert with two staff observing and tasting. Care needed: many chefs feel they are ‘too busy for this’, but their input is important – work with them to find a good time and show them the benefits for the kitchen.
– Ingredient comparisons: Run simple tastings like a “lettuce tasting” or a “berry flavour test” to train staff on distinguishing subtle flavour differences. There’s also value in comparing high-quality and low-quality ingredients, eg comparison of cheap chocolate with different quality brands and cocoa percentages,
– Supplier collaborations: Invite friendly suppliers to run tasting sessions, such as comparing different cuts of meat or canned goods or exploring a specific wine variety side by side. Sales reps are usually very happy to facilitate these, and it’s often expected by their managers.
4. Gamifying Menu Knowledge
Turn menu learning into engaging activities to make it more enjoyable for staff:
– Menu quizzes: Create and run quick quizzes about your own menu or others like ‘20 facts about Lebanese cuisine’ or ‘20 difficult customer scenarios’. Encourage staff to invent and run their own quizzes. To create a quiz on your own menu, try using this prompt with ChatGPT or another AI service:
Prompt: [Act as an experienced chef and staff trainer. Write a staff training Quiz on the menu attached. Write 20 questions with 4 multiple choices for each, and include the correct answer after each question. Do not ask questions about prices. Use simple English.]
Prompt: [Give me a list of 20 topics for short, focused menu training activities for restaurant staff at our [Italian] Restaurant. These should be quick sessions (10-15 minutes each) that can help improve staff knowledge of the menu, ingredients, and sales techniques. Include topics that include ingredient identification and understanding, selling techniques, flavour profiles, how to describe dishes to customers, matching food with wine or beer, dietary requirements, seasonal menu changes, handling customer requests, using online review feedback and role-play scenarios. Use simple English]
– Menu bingo & scavenger hunts: Create a ‘Menu Explorer’ game to help staff connect items with their descriptions. In ‘Menu Explorer’ staff receive a series of clues, each hinting at a specific dish or menu item. By deciphering these clues, staff members navigate through the menu to identify the correct items. You can ask ChatGPT or an AI service to create these games with varying levels of difficulty.
– Upselling challenges: Implement a points system where staff earn rewards for successful upselling of featured dishes.
5. Leveraging Technology for Training
Make use of digital tools to streamline the training process:
– Mobile apps and online quizzes: Platforms like Kahoot or AhaSlides are great for interactive quizzes. Use these to test staff on menu updates or new dishes in a lively and fun way. Most young staff are familiar with Kahoot from their school days and will be able to create these quizzes very easily.
– Short video tutorials: Record chefs preparing dishes, highlighting key steps. Use these videos for quick, on-demand training sessions. There’s sure to be a kitchen staff member who can take good videos and do simple edits on their phone or laptop. Why not share these videos on Instagram Reels or TikTok to educate everyone?
– Digital flashcards: Use restaurant training software like Yelli or Wisetail to create picture quizzes and automated flashcards for staff to study on their phones.
6. Peer-to-Peer Learning
Encourage a culture of knowledge-sharing among your team:
– Appoint menu champions: Choose experienced staff to lead short sessions on new menu items or upselling techniques. They will also play an important role in onboarding new team members.
– Buddy system: Pair new hires with seasoned staff for quick on-the-job training and guidance.
– Knowledge sharing in meetings: Encourage staff to share their favourite techniques for upselling or handling tricky customer questions. Different staff could do ‘ingredient of the week’ with a short explanation and possible tasting – add it to the weekly team agenda.
7. Measuring Training Impact
Assess the effectiveness of your training with practical evaluations:
– Tracking performance: Use sales data to identify if specific menu items are being upsold effectively – the numbers do not lie. If there are some new specials or menu items, how well have they been received? If the results have been less than expected, is it the price, the flavour, the descriptions, or that staff don’t know how to describe them?
– Customer feedback: Monitor reviews on platforms like Google Reviews, Yelp, or TripAdvisor to see if customers mention staff knowledge and recommendations. Use Google Takeout to download all your reviews, and ask ChatGPT to analyse them for comments and sentiments about the food. Does this show a need for any particular type of menu training?
– Regular quizzes and evaluations: Run quick tests or scenarios during pre-shift meetings to assess retention. How well does the team score over time?
– Review analysis sessions: Regularly discuss recent reviews with staff, focusing on recurring themes related to menu items or services.
– Role-plays based on reviews: Create scenarios based on actual customer comments to prepare staff for similar situations in the future. See: How to Build Restaurant Service Skills With Role-Play Training.
– Celebrate positive reviews: Share positive customer feedback during meetings to reinforce successful service behaviours. To keep them constantly top-of-mind, reviews from Google Reviews can be automatically sent into a staff communication system like Slack by using Zapier.
8. Adapting to Dietary Requirements and Trends
Ensure your staff are well-equipped to handle dietary requests and trends:
– Role-playing scenarios: Simulate customer interactions where staff need to suggest alternatives for dietary needs.
– Training on allergens: Use visual aids and quizzes to educate staff on common allergens and how to address them. See: Allergy Training for Restaurant Staff.
– Current food trends: Keep staff updated on trends like plant-based options or gluten-free dishes, so they can confidently recommend menu items.
9. Continuous Feedback and Improvement
Regularly review and improve your training approach to keep it effective:
– Staff feedback sessions: Involve your team in reviewing training effectiveness and suggest areas for improvement.
Update training materials: Ensure that menu updates are reflected in your training resources, such as digital guides or flashcards. You can easily create new quizzes for menu changes, using the AI methods described in Section 4 above.
– Recognition of training success: Celebrate when staff achieve full marks on quizzes or do great work with customer interactions. Have fun certificates and titles ready for Menu Maestro, Dish Decoder, Flavour Guru, Culinary Champion and Gastro Guru 😀
10. Involve the Chefs in Menu Training
Chefs can play a crucial role in enhancing menu knowledge:
– Cooking demonstrations: Have chefs demonstrate key dishes and plating techniques, allowing staff to observe and ask questions.
– Q&A sessions with chefs: Hold short sessions where staff can ask about ingredients, preparation methods, or special techniques. They can also discuss what was involved in their training, great people or places they’ve learned from, and their favourite foods when they’re off duty—these can be fun.
– Front-of-house learning about the kitchen: Have waitstaff spend a few minutes observing food preparation to better explain dishes to customers.
– Back-of-house understanding service flow: Allow kitchen staff to shadow servers during quieter times to understand customer interactions and how dishes are presented.
– Job rotation: Occasionally rotate roles briefly, such as bartenders learning about food items and servers understanding cocktail preparation.
– Joint training sessions: Bring together front and back-of-house staff for combined training on new menu items so everyone understands how to describe and sell dishes effectively.
A well-run menu training program improves staff knowledge and creates a more confident, motivated team ready to engage with customers. Making it a regular event and assigning it to dedicated staff members will keep the momentum going, even during busy times. Small but consistent efforts can make a big difference in how your team performs and how your customers experience your venue – make plans, keep it fun, and watch your sales grow!
Check the other useful blog posts on the Foodie Coaches website…
Want to get some 1 on 1 help with your business? Talk to one of our coaches