Menu Planning and Product Development Analysis for Gusto

This report examines menu planning and product development, focusing on the Italian restaurant Gusto. It explores the principles of recipe development, assessing factors influencing menu planning decisions such as customer preferences, budget, and seasonal availability. The report also discusses various service methods, including buffet, table service, and counter service, evaluating their advantages and disadvantages. Furthermore, it delves into the stages of menu product development planning, emphasizing the influences on the development process, such as customer types, season, and cost. The analysis highlights the importance of creativity, cookery style, and understanding customer needs to create an attractive and effective menu. The report concludes that effective menu planning can significantly improve sales and profitability by providing details and specializations of food items.

Menu planning and product
development

Table of Contents
INTRODUCTION................................................................................................................................3
TASK A – Written report......................................................................................................................3
1.1 Discuss the principles of recipe development............................................................................3
1.2 Assess factors that influence menu planning decisions.............................................................3
1.3 Discuss factors that influence service methods.........................................................................4
2.1 Discuss the stages of menu product development planning......................................................5
2.2 Evaluate influences on the development process......................................................................5
TASK B – Group Presentation.............................................................................................................6
Covered in PPT................................................................................................................................6
CONCLUSION....................................................................................................................................6
REFERENCES.....................................................................................................................................7

INTRODUCTION
Menu planning refers to picking the items from menu in order to create an event. Designing,
styling along with selecting dishes, desserts, sides dishes and other are considered as the process of
menu planning. In food industry, for gaining the attraction of customers, it is very important for for
a restaurant to have a stylish and a complete menu along with some healthy and tasty food. Gusto is
the chosen organisation of this report (Brindley and Oxborrow, 2014). It is an Italian restaurant,
which provide their food items in UK as well as in different corners of world. It was founded in
2012 by Timo Boldt and James Carter and have headquarter in Shepherds Bush, London. In this
report, a study will take place on the principles of recipe development, along with factors which can
influence servicing methods.
TASK A – Written report
1.1 Discuss the principles of recipe development.
For every chef in a restaurant, it is very important to identify the change in requirement and
change in trend, so that they can make change in their recipe for attracting customers ( Cotter and
Fritzsche, 2014, March). A set principles is designed by Gusto which their chefs have to follow
developing a new food item,. These principles are as follow :-
1. Creativity : Creativity is a factor which help an organisation in making some changes which
are unique in market, as the modern trend says that people love to have something unique.
Along with this, it is important for Gusto to make their products healthy, as people of 21st
century are very much health conscious.
2. Cookery style : As Gusto is an Italic restaurant and for attracting ample number of
customers, they follow both Mexican as well as Italian approach of cooking food. This help
them in attracting customers of different culture.
1.2 Assess factors that influence menu planning decisions.
Menu is a list of products which are offered by organisation for serving their guest, it also
show the products which are available at that time. As making and designing a menu is not easy, but
it is very much essential for an organisation like Gusto ( David, David and David, 2017). Menu
must cover all the products which are available in organisation for fulfilling the needs of customers
so that they can get satisfied. While designing a menu, it is very important for hotel and restaurant
to keep some points like, budget, quantity, time available etc. in their. This will help them in making
an effective and attractive menu for restaurant. Some of these factors are as follow :-
1. As the need for diet is different and this depends on age groups, therefore, they have to
make menu according to their age group like, children, teenagers, and elders. The basic on

which nutritional diets get differ are age, gender, habits of lifestyle, occupation and health
consciousness.
2. Restaurant must have to think about the design of menu while designing it, as it use to
attract customers ( Fettermann and Echeveste, 2014). Along with this, they can use different
methods for garnishing their food item.
3. Time factor is very important for any organisation, as any dish take very much time in
getting ready, then it is required by Gusto to manage it accordingly.
4. Budget is very important for any organisation, Gusto also have to make their busgert for
daily basis, this will help them in maintaining a proper flow of fund in making dishes.
5. Seasonal food, is one of the latest trend in the world of restaurant, as every restaurant
provide some thing special in their daily menu, which help them in attracting customers at
huge amount.
1.3 Discuss factors that influence service methods.
Menu planning includes servicing after preparation of food ( Fuller, 2016). It is very
important for Gusto to manage and make their service good, so that their customers do not face any
problem. Some basic service provided by Gusto are as follow :-
1. Buffet or self service : It is a type of serving own by own-self. In this, the food is typically
placed on a table and and people use to walk in a buffet line for having the food. This lead to
quickly access of food. Gusto is a one of the self service restaurant of UK, here customers
can take what they want and like to have from all the placed food.
Advantage Disadvantage
 No need to serve people, therefore less
employees are required.
 Ample number of customers get served
in very less time.
 This increases the quantity of waste in
food.
 Not easy to maintain at low cost, as it
consume huge amount of money.
2. Table Service : It is just opposite to buffet system, in this customers use to sit on table and
then order from the menu ( Grudin, 2017). Then waiter serve them food and then customer
enjoy their food on table.
Advantages Disadvantage
 Provide chance to get relaxed and sit
with friends and family.
 Food get served in proper manner by
 Slow in service can cold the food while
serving.

their waiters.
3. Counter service : This is a service, where customer use to order their food on counter and
take it from their only, when their token number or name is called.
Advantages Disadvantage
 This allow guest so that they can see the
food before purchase.
 Can very easy to make alteration in food
before getting served.
 Consume huge time.
 Moving cart need huge space.
2.1 Discuss the stages of menu product development planning
Menu of product is a list which have the items that are offered by organisation for sale and
serving the customers. There are many factors that affect the menu planning decisions, which are as
follow :-
Types of customers : It is considered as one of the most important factor that affect the
decision making over menu of restaurant. As an organisation like Gusto, have customers of different
nature and different age group and religion ( Hansen, 2014). Therefore, for attracting each type of
customer, it is very important for Gusto to keep every section of society in mind while taking
decisions over menu.
Season of availability : Food industry is most of the most seasonal industry in the world.
Therefore, while designing menu, it is very important for Gusto, to keep in about the availability of
raw material in different seasons, so that they can provide food items accordingly to their
customers.
Cost of the menu : It is very important in food industry to take care about the pricing of
their products. Gusto have to put selling price of their product in a way that it can attract customers
from every group and sector of society.
2.2 Evaluate influences on the development process.
As for an organisation dealing in food sector, it is very important to make a menu that can
attract customers ( Jeong, Yoon and Lee, 2017). As menu help in improving the sales and enhancing
the profitability of organisation. Therefore, for this process, it is crucial to focus on some major
elements which includes- customer preferences, cost, material, unique identity of business and
more. For making improvements and evaluating the menu card, it is very essential for manager of
Gusto to study and analyze their various aspects.
These factors include, volume of sale, difference between expected and actual sales volume,

capabilities and skills of their staff members ( Jugend and da Silva, 2014). Along with this, through
idea screening and concept testing, managers can also measure feasibility of ideas for developing
the process. This would also aid to make comparison between forecasted and actual quantities sold.
Through this process, necessary actions can be taken for developing effective pricing strategies.
TASK B – Group Presentation
Covered in PPT
CONCLUSION
From the above report, it has been concluded that, menu planning is a process which come
under the method of services offered in a restaurant. A menu plan can help an organisation by
increasing their sales and profitability, as it use to provide details and specializations of food items.
Menu planning include process of recipe development, developing new food item, making healthy
and tasty food.

REFERENCES
Books and Journals
Brindley, C. and Oxborrow, L., 2014. Aligning the sustainable supply chain to green marketing
needs: A case study. Industrial Marketing Management. 43(1). pp.45-55.
Cotter, R. V. and Fritzsche, D. J., 2014, March. The business policy game. In Developments in
Business Simulation and Experiential Learning: Proceedings of the Annual ABSEL
conference (Vol. 21).
David, M. E., David, F. R. and David, F. R., 2017. The quantitative strategic planning matrix: a new
marketing tool. Journal of Strategic Marketing. 25(4). pp.342-352.
Fettermann, D. D. C. and Echeveste, M. E. S., 2014. New product development for mass
customization: a systematic review. Production & Manufacturing Research. 2(1). pp.266-
290.
Fuller, G. W., 2016. New food product development: from concept to marketplace. CRC Press.
Grudin, J., 2017. Obstacles to participatory design in large product development organizations. In
Participatory Design(pp. 99-119). CRC Press.
Hansen, K. V., 2014. Development of SERVQUAL and DINESERV for measuring meal
experiences in eating establishments. Scandinavian Journal of Hospitality and Tourism.
14(2). pp.116-134.
Jeong, B., Yoon, J. and Lee, J. M., 2017. Social media mining for product planning: A product
opportunity mining approach based on topic modeling and sentiment analysis. International
Journal of Information Management.
Jugend, D. and da Silva, S. L., 2014. Product-portfolio management: A framework based on
Methods, Organization, and Strategy. Concurrent Engineering. 22(1). pp.17-28.