​Autumn ushers in a period of several months when consumers are apt to crave restaurant food: Weekend sports bring people together and provide natural occasions for eating comfort foods, and upcoming holiday gatherings (and their associated flavors) are on people’s minds. It’s a great time to innovate your menu with new and interesting options — and increasingly, consumers are looking for those options to be plant-based, plant-forward, or simply lean alternatives to meat. As recent research from Technomic indicates, consumers continue to perceive plant-based foods (including plant-based alt proteins) as healthier and more sustainable. Further, at a time when consumers are wary of menu price increases, plant-based ingredients can help you use your inventory more efficiently and economically across your menu, so the prospect of spending on a restaurant meal is more palatable to cost-conscious guests. Even if you don’t want to trim the animal protein content on your menu, there may be opportunities for you to highlight the “health halo” of certain proteins — such as particular seafoods, according to Technomic — or elevating turkey and chicken as leaner, healthier alternatives to red meat. Looking at your menu, where might you offer customizable options that help guests enjoy the comfort foods of the season, but in more health-conscious ways?

The pandemic demonstrated how having multiple income streams is vital to surviving and thriving in a volatile industry. Catering is one of those income streams — and it has been gaining momentum. As a recent webcast from Savor indicates, the catering industry generated $73 billion last year and forecasts indicate the industry could reach $124 billion in sales by 2032. The return to the office has fueled that growth, along with the “evolving role of food in the workplace.” Is your business ready to ride that wave? Catering business veteran Tracy Avolio said in the webcast that success in the business requires making seven touches before expecting to close a sale — a combination of phone calls, emails and in-person visits with samples. In your own catering efforts, how much are you reaching out to clients to secure potential sales as opposed to reacting to inquiries about your offerings? In your in-house and takeout orders, do you find opportunities to share your catering menu or invite people to have you stop by their office with samples? Can you create a menu with customizable options for a wide range of tastes or specific nutritional needs? At a time when many employers are looking for ways to entice employees back to the office, restaurant food can be an effective draw, enhancing the quality of a work environment. You can be their partner in that effort with a strategic approach to sales. As with so many aspects of the foodservice industry right now, there are tech tools and consultancies emerging to help businesses manage catering functions more smoothly or even outsource them altogether — support for you to raise your game if you see potential in it for your business.