A lot is changing in the restaurant world and these days the changes seem to be led by the fast food chains.
A&W sat quietly in the background of all the big fast food guys for years, just doing their thing, not much noise, not much advertising. It almost seemed as though they were happy with what they were doing, the size of the company, and the revenues generated.
Then, all of a sudden, they woke up one day and said “let’s make fast food healthy”. So, the fast food burger joint bucked the trend of what everyone else was doing and launched a “Beyond Meat Burger.”
It appears that when the other guys were making all their menu options with double and triple burger patties, increasing the calorie count and bulking up their menus, the little guy was working on a much healthier option.
A&W took their new creation on the road, providing Canadians with some good information via an entertaining ad campaign, and receiving rave reviews about their new product.
Statistically the “Beyond Meat” patty, compared to their 1/4lb beef patty, is higher in protein and iron and contains less saturated fats and cholesterol. It also provides you with 25 per cent of the recommended daily intake of iron. Sounds good, but how does it taste, you ask?
Apparently, quite good. So good that within weeks of the A&W launch of the “Beyond Meat Burger” they had to announce they were temporarily sold out.
A&W didn’t stop there. They created the “Beyond Meat Sausage & Egger” taking on another facet of the fast food world, the express breakfast, creating the latest big trend in fast food chain competition.
It seems as though this is all we are hearing about and we are now starting to see more and more of the other large chains following suit with similar types of menu items.
Tim Hortons’ plant-based breakfast sausage biscuit and wraps, The Works, has two new plant-based burgers, Pizza Pizza offers cauliflower crust pizza with plant-based pepperoni and chorizo crumble, and lastly, Lone Star with its Beyond Meat fajitas.
These are not small companies and you know they’ve done their research.
It is safe to say trends such as these influence consumers, even if they are not searching for these items because of dietary needs. They are often driven to make selections based on information received through advertising.
We deal with new trends constantly, and providing new information to our guests is how we remain current, keep them interested, and most importantly, keep them coming back. With that being said, many trends find a spot on our menus, but few warrant an entire section. This latest trend might be that exception.
The interesting thing about the popularity of the meatless meal dishes is that the vast majority of the people ordering them are not vegetarian; they are just people looking to eat healthier. Recent surveys show that half of all Canadians are trying to eat less meat in an effort to eat healthier.
So, when you look at a golf club, and specifically a private golf club with members that are at the club regularly, and who often will eat at the club several times a week, it becomes even more important that we offer items that support both current trends, and healthy options, that will assist them in making choices that are not only enjoyable, but good for them.
Now, before you start thinking that it sounds like a huge undertaking, and you don’t know the first thing about producing products such as these, I’m going to tell you that you can start off small and test the waters.
Grocery stores such as Sobeys, Loblaws, and Metro now carry these products, so you can pick up a small amount and test them out. Maybe look at running some “Beyond Meat” specials at different meal periods. If it takes off and you need to be purchasing more volume, then GFS and Sysco have got your back and you can expand your offerings.
Now, let’s get down to how we can integrate some of these items into a club’s daily offerings.
The obvious breakfast sandwich or wrap, along with perhaps a breakfast plate that includes eggs and some Beyond Meat sausage, would get the day off to a healthy but tasty start.
Hand food is a big part of what we deal with on a daily basis at a golf course, so how about one of Beyond Meat’s new offerings? Either a Hot Italian or the original Brat sausage? Hot dogs and sausages are a staple at most golf clubs, as they are easy to cook, easy to eat, and they can be kept warm for a long time so they can be served quickly.
Let’s not forget the burger-dog as well, made famous by the Olympic Club in California. This easy to eat non-messy version of a hamburger is a no brainer for most clubs. Now you can do it as a veggie burger by using the Beyond Meat Burger patty, simply cutting the patty in half after it is cooked and stuffing it into a hotdog bun with all the toppings and voilà.
Fajitas, nachos and “meat balls” can all be adapted to adhere to a vegetarian diet with these new plant-based proteins. Not to mention that there are pork and chicken alternatives being offered for your chefs to work with.
On the horizon is a faux fish plant-based product which includes a chick pea based “tuna” and a smoked carrot “salmon”. These are all items that can be purchased as you would any other protein that would be featured on your menu.
But let us not forget the talented chefs we employ who, if given the direction to focus on, they will rise to the occasion, developing tasty dishes which include protein alternatives, and offer our guests an experience that may have them seeing the “meat” of their meal in a different light.
We have come a long way from the “sawdust” veggie burger of the past. Today’s innovations are offering an opportunity for our chefs to provide some amazing dishes, and the products being offered continue to evolve.
Just shy of 10 per cent of Canadians consider themselves vegetarian or vegan. To think that this is just a fad or passing trend is probably unrealistic. It is more apt to be the beginning of what is going to become a staple on all menus in the not so distant future.
