Many restaurants struggle with portion control. There is a thin line between keeping the kitchen profitable by avoiding food waste and overserving and ensuring customers are satisfied with their meal. As a result, a growing number of restaurants are focusing on food portions and thinking about how they can limit portions without leaving guests hungry.
Here are a few ways to limit portion sizes and embrace portion control:
Smaller Plates
Serving food on smaller plates allows you to decrease your portion sizes and food costs without upsetting your customers. It’s a great way to control portions without making your customers feel like they aren’t getting their money’s worth.
Limited Meat Portions
The recommended portion size for a piece of meat is three ounces. This means the cut of meat should be roughly the size of a fist. Portions two or three times this size have become normalised recently, and large food portions lead to overconsumption, food waste and lower profits. Increasing a side dish, grain, or vegetable while reducing meat portions will help balance a meal’s portions and help boost profits.
Presentation Over Portion Size
One way is a smaller plate to balance out smaller food portions, so does meal presentation add to the dining experience as well. If a customer sees the time, effort, and care put into assembling the meal, they are more likely to appreciate what is in front of them and take their time enjoying it.
The Right Tools and Equipment
Portion control tools and equipment save time and reduces food waste in the kitchen. Items like non-drip dispensers, fixed portion rings, sauce guns and other accessories ensure consistency, and will help your staff reduce waste.
For more information on solutions to help your business manage portion sizes, check out our FIFO and portion control products.