Hospitality Operations: Food Production Systems and Menu Pricing

This document discusses the food production systems and food and beverage service systems in Double Tree hotel. It also explores the roles and responsibilities of a restaurant manager, factors influencing menu pricing, and constraints of menu planning within food and beverage operations.

Hospitality
Operations

Contents
INTRODUCTION...........................................................................................................................1
1) Food production systems along with Food and Beverage Service systems.......................1
2) Roles and Responsibility of Restaurant Manager of Double Tree.....................................5
3) Factors influencing menu pricing in Double Tree.............................................................6
4) Analysis of constraints of menu planning within operations of Food and Beverage.........7
CONCLUSION..............................................................................................................................10
REFERENCES..............................................................................................................................11

INTRODUCTION
Hospitality operations can be deciphered as the measures adopted by an organisation
pertaining to concerned industry for meeting the demands and expectations of customers (Ogle
and et. al., 2018). Hospitality sector is largely focussed upon establishment of healthy relations
between guests and the host company. This is a wide sector which encompasses segments of
services such as reception of guests, accommodation, entertainment, resort, convention,
conferences, banquets, meetings, travelling, recreation etc. One of the most emerging sub sectors
within hospitality is hotel which provides lodging services on a short term and long term basis in
return of money consideration.
The present project covers the analysis of hospitality operations within Double Tree. It is
an international hotel chain of Hilton that functions across the globe to serve a large number of
guests on a daily basis. Most of the Double Tree Hotels are owned and managed by independent
franchisees and some of them are managed by Hilton itself. This entity is best renowned for its
chocolate chip cookies. The project explores Food production and Food & Beverage Services
systems along with roles and responsibilities of Restaurant Manager. Besides this, it includes
factors affecting menu pricing and menu planning considerations & constraints within the Food
& Beverage Operations.
1) Food production systems along with Food and Beverage Service systems
Food production is defined as the process of transformation of raw materials into
finished items. For this purpose, food and beverage outlets across the globe apply a wide range
of systems. In this relation, it is identified that the restaurant unit within the confines of Double
Tree makes use of Cook Chill and Cook Freeze systems for producing food items belonging to
different cuisines.
Cook Chill system: This is referred to as a production system in which food items are stored in
highly chilled refrigerators for the purpose of conserving them for a long period of time. These
food items undergo heating to make them ready for consumption by the guests at the time of
demand (Manning, L., 2018). The concerned restaurant applies this food production system with
the aim of preparing food in a rapid manner at the time of demand.
Cook Freeze system: This food manufacturing system aims at preparation as well as storage of
food in deep freezer so that they can be sustained for a long period of time. This system becomes
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handy while dealing with mass orders from clients. Such heavy demands are usually encountered
at the time of events such as private party, convention, conference, meeting etc. This is an
effective system of food production which provides edge to the restaurant within Double Tree in
catering to the needs and demands of guests and serving them in the best possible manner.
Food and Beverage service is defined as the way of exhibiting the products and services
of an organisation in front of guests to leave an impeccable impression upon them. When the
restaurant is able to present its offerings to customers in an astounding manner, it is able to
appeal to people strongly and retain them for a long time period (Kasim and et. al., 2018). Below
mentioned are the various types of food and beverage services that are adopted by Double Tree
to cater to the demands of customers in a timely manner:-
Buffet service:
This is a self service food and beverage system whereby the guests serve themselves
upon their own. The different types of dishes ranging from snacks, main course to desserts are
together made available on a long table in a corner of the restaurant unit whereby the diners can
visit infinite number of times to refill their servings. The restaurant within the confines of Double
Tree provides buffet service so that guests can have access to unlimited food as per their paid
food and beverage package.
Figure 1: Buffet Service
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Silver Plate:
This is a serving technique whereby silverware is put to use to appeal to customers in an
impeccable manner. This service system is available just in speciality and fine dining outlets.
The primary reason behind its low availability is the high cost of its maintenance and
implementation within the premise of hotel. In this regard, the restaurant of Double Tree
provides silver plate service so that elite section of society can be attracted towards the entity for
its lavish serving style.
Room Service:
This is a food and beverage service arrangement wherein the items are made available to
guests who have prior booked their stay in the hotel, within their respective rooms. The order is
made by guests via the telephone from where the receptionist passes on the order to restaurant
unit. This service is leveraged by Double Tree to provide ease and convenience to customers. It
is then that the order is served to guests in their rooms as per their preference.
Figure 2: Room Service
Table service:
This is a service system in which guests are made to sit on the table and they give orders
as per their choices after scanning the menu. Every table is assigned one attendant who attends to
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the guests in a timely manner and enquires if they are in need of something. Double Tree
restaurant renders this facility to guests so that they can order as per their convenience and have
access to delicious food right at their tables. The concerned food and beverage outlet seeks to
offer high quality offerings to appeal to clientele in an effective manner.
English Service:
This serving arrangement takes into account the use of large bowl and platter by waiters
for the purpose of serving the guests. This has an astounding impression on the people who visit
the restaurant to savour the different types of tastes. Double Tree leverages this food and
beverage service to gain the attention of large base of customers and capitalise upon word of
mouth publicity.
Snack Bar Service:
This is a service system wherein a tall counter is setup from where different types of
drinks and snacks are served to customers on a timely basis, in accordance with their needs and
demands. On the exact opposite of this counter, a number of tall chairs are placed whereby
guests can have a seat to cherish the items. Double Tree Restaurant provides this service to gain
high satisfaction from clientele and enhance the revenues as well as profits of the hotel.
Figure 3: Snack Bar Service
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Cart Service:
This is a food and beverage service system in which semi cooked food items are brought
into the service area on a cart. The cart has a portable heating unit on which complete cooking of
the dish takes place to make it readily available for consumption by guests. This service is quite
famous within Double Tree and is quite appreciated by the customers.
Figure 4: Cart Service
2) Roles and Responsibility of Restaurant Manager of Double Tree
Within the confines of a food and beverage outlet, Restaurant manager plays the most
imperative role. They are the ones who ensure that activities starting from the food production to
F&B serving are executed in a manner which is aligned with the organisational expectations and
requirements. They hold several roles and responsibilities in relation to handling of tasks within
the premise of eatery in Double Tree. These are explored in a detailed manner as underneath:-
Management of eatery operations: This is regarded to be the most crucial role of
restaurant manager whereby they are required to ensure that the operational activities of
restaurant take place in a manner that they can meet the expectations of guests. Hereby the
responsibility of restaurant manager is to provide adequate guidance and support to the
employees so that they can carry out their work in an effective manner. When the restaurant
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manager herein executes their role and responsibility effectually, Double Tree is able to appeal to
the customers and retain them for a long period of time in future.
Positively addressing customer queries and complaints: This is yet another important
role of restaurant manager whereby they need to undertake measures through which the queries
and complaints determined in customer feedbacks and surveys can be adequately addressed in a
timely manner. The responsibility of restaurant manager hereby is to make sure that the
customers do not stay aggrieved for a long period of time and are provided with required support
service. Thus, in this way, Double Tree takes due advantage of proper compliance with this role
and responsibility of restaurant manager to enhance its profits in due course of time.
Minimise wastage: Restaurant generates a lot of waste which is essential to be controlled.
This gives rise to the third crucial role of restaurant manager which is minimisation of wastage
by making use of latest equipments and technologies. Hereby, the responsibility of restaurant
manager within Double Tree is to make sure that employees are provided with timely training so
that their actions do not result into excessive wastage.
3) Factors influencing menu pricing in Double Tree
Various pricing policies are formulated by the organisation which covers the cost that the
organisation has incurred and the profit margin which they expect to earn. The income of the
restaurant depends upon the prices of the food that they are offering and there are various factors
that affect the prices of the menu (Food and Beverage Services – Operations. 2019). Some of
such factors that influence the menu prices of the Double tree are given below:
Competition in the industry: This is one of the most important factors that have influence
on the prices of the dishes which are offered. The prices of the products have to be decided by
the restaurants on the basis of what their competitors are charging. Double tree is a hotel chain
which is operating on large scale and at international level. This exerts pressure on them to
decide the prices as per the prices of the rivals. For being competitive it is important for them to
consider the competitive pricing strategies with which they can satisfy the customers as well can
take competitive edge (Van der Wagen and White, 2018).
Quality of items: The prices of the menu are mostly affected by this factor as this is one of
the most important factors which have to be considered in the hospitality industry for effectively
satisfying the customers. With the use of quality products the cost of the offerings increase, thus
it affects the pricing strategy. But if the quality is better the customers can pay even higher
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prices. This affects the pricing decisions of the Double Tree as they have to consider various cost
such as technological cost, cost of various natural ingredients etc. which has influence on their
overall pricing strategy.
Prices of the ingredients: The prices of the ingredients also affect the menu prices as they
are the base on the basis of which the prices of the final products are decided. As the Double tree
hotel aims to provide better quality product so they uses high quality ingredients and product due
to which the prices of their offerings are high. But this helps them to satisfy their customers’
requirements and needs (Melissen and Sauer, 2018).
Reputation of the Brand: The image of the brand has to be taken into consideration while
setting up the prices of the menu. This is because a restaurant or hotel cannot price their product
too low or too high, it must be exactly as per their serving. Such prices makes the customers feel
worth spending on the particular dish. For Double tree is becomes difficult to prices when this
factors has to consider, but their prices are premium as per their brand image and the level of
customers they serve.
Varied options in the menu: Another factor which is to be taken into consideration while
pricing the offerings is the variety in the menu. With more options in the menu affects the pricing
as it becomes difficult to price a variety of options because there is no common parameter on the
basis of which prices can be determined. For this Double Tree hotel has to take advice from the
experts who can guide them to decide the prices on the basis of the cost of ingredients used in a
particular dish. But this can lead to setting up of the higher prices as the allocation of the cost of
ingredients among various dishes is difficult for the food production managers and the experts
(Vong, 2017).
4) Analysis of constraints of menu planning within operations of Food and Beverage
The pricing of the menu is a procedure of management in which various factors plays
crucial role. Along with this the managers and responsible person who has to take decisions also
plays crucial role. In addition to the pricing various other planning need to be done by the food
and beverages businesses which can be related to materials, their quality etc. Some of the factors
that can be constraints while planning of the menu for Double Tree are given below:
Constraints
Ingredients Availability: A number of ingredients and raw material are used by the
restaurants for offering the products. Due to which dependency is so very high on these products
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and non availability of such products on time can adversely affect the operations. For dealing
with such situations the managers in Double Tree has to maintain a surplus stock so that they can
use such in case of non availability. Such planning is crucial to avoid adverse situations
(Hassanien and Dale, 2019).
Equipments Availability: While planning for the menu it is important for the hotels and
restaurant determine the equipments that will be required. This ensures the timely availability of
each and every equipment to be used in the process of offering. For Double Tree, it is important
to ensure availability of all the equipment so that they can offer all the dishes on time to the
customers when ordered.
Competent employees: The competence of the employees is another important constraint
as in a hospitality industry the employees play crucial role in dealing with the customers. The
employees need to have all the information about their products and the services so that they can
effectively respond to the customers. For ensuring all the skills and knowledge various trainings
are conducted by the Double tree with which they can comply with the hygiene regulations and
can provide assistance to their employees.
Considerations
Customers taste and preference: The taste and preference of the customers is one of the
important factors that need to be considered by the hotel and restaurant while planning for the
menu. For this constant research needs to be done by the managers of the Double tree so that
they can analyse the changes which are taking place. It can be done by way of conducting
various surveys in which the preferences of the customers can be asked. With the help of this the
organisation can decide about what they have to offer (Gursoy, 2018).
Seasonal offerings: Some of the fruits and ingredients are available in specific season
and such must be taken into consideration as the customers expect something different. Such
consideration on consistent basis will help the Double Tree in developing better impression on
the customers. These offerings are provided in separate section in the menu so that they can
easily be noticed by the customers.
Type of menu: The other consideration related with the planning of the menu is the type of
menu. Various type of menu is given below: Day Menu: This is the menu in which the specific dishes are included which are offered
on specific days of the week, bi-week or monthly etc. Double Tree has such menu weekly
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as they believe to make their customer feel delighted with some different dishes (Chan
and Hsu, 2016). Du Jour menu: This type of menu is prepared by the restaurant for some special dishes
that are offered on special occasions due to which they last only for few days. Such menu
is changed by the Double tree as per the availability of the dishes.
 À la carte: Such menu is developed by the restaurant for the customers who want to
select the dish on their own. They contain all the dishes which are offered by the
restaurant along with the prices. It is the customers discretion which product they want to
choose. Static Menu: This is the common menu which is commonly provided by the restaurant to
the customers throughout. Such menu of Double tree includes all the dishes which attract
the customers the most throughout. Dessert Menu: Such menu includes all the deserts which are offered by the restaurant to
the customers which help them cherish their meal. In includes all the desserts whether
generally or something special.
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 Wine and Beverage menu: In this menu all the drinks that are offered by the restaurant
are included. The Double tree has a separate bar area where they serve drinks containing
alcohol to the customers which makes them comfortable and others as well who do not
drink. Various other beverages are also part of the menu (Bharwani and Mathews, 2016).
CONCLUSION
On the basis of this report it can be concluded that it is important for the organisation in the
hospitality industry need to adopt various creativity with the aim of attracting the customers.
This can be done by consistent improvement in the services that they offer as per the need of the
consumers. Further it is analysed that the managers plays crucial role in managing the activities
related to the management of the outlet and the menu that they offer. Apart from this, they have
to consider various factors that can affect the pricing strategy of the menu and thus has influence
on various strategies. Besides this, various constraints and considerations are taken into
consideration that can affect the planning of the menu.
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REFERENCES
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Hospitality & Tourism Education. 29(3). pp.116-128.
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conditions on small and medium-size hospitality enterprises. Journal of Hospitality
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Online
Food and Beverage Services – Operations. 2019. [Online]. Available Through:
<https://www.tutorialspoint.com/food_and_beverage_services/food_and_beverage_serv
ices_operations.htm>.
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