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Menu Place
July • 2010
April Specials

In This Issue:

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Kids' Menus

A Healthier APPROACH


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Nuggets and toys are yesterday, pizza is now.

Make sure your kid's menu features the new favorite food.

Once upon a time, the sure-fire ingredient for attracting young diners was a little plastic toy and some nuggets. Times have changed.

Sales of meals featuring little toys and freebies are showing significant declines these days according to NPD Consumer Reports (CREST®).

What's appealing to kids today are value meals with more choices and more sophistication. Knowing what works for kids is important since the economy has reduced traffic of parties with kids and kids are big influencers in deciding where a family dines out or purchases take-home fare.

Children under the age of 13 accounted for 8 billion restaurant visits in 2008. With those kinds of numbers, shouldn't every restaurant have a kids menu? They may be small, but kids remember where they get food their way. Mintel Menu Insights recently found the same foods have dominated kid's menus since 2005.

That's because kid-appeal is universal. A recent Gallop Poll indicates that for kids 3-11, pizza is the preferred food for both lunch and dinner…preferred over nuggets, hot dogs, mac & cheese and hamburgers.

Pizza allows kids to create just what they want, so a list of available toppings should include everything from popular meats to fruits and vegetables. "Build your own" options are also fun for kids. They can add as much sauce as they like and make a smiley face with the toppings! "Build your own" also lets kids mix and match and try new combinations. Additional activities around pizza like a kids pizza recipe contest or a coloring book where they can draw in their favorite toppings can bring additional excitement and interest to the menu.

Adding pizza to a menu does not have to be complicated. Most pizza ingredients have lots of flexibility. Feature topping flavors and ingredients that are on the main menu or special board to avoid carrying a lot of extra ingredient items. Create an appetizer or salad that uses shredded pizza cheeses to increase perishable turns. Use crust as a base for appetizers, in the bread basket or even for pressed sandwiches.

For the crust with the most menu applications and most authentic flavor use Rich Products line of pre-sheeted FRESH 'N READY Oven Rising Sheeted Dough. Fresh 'N Ready® delivers the simplicity of ovenrising with the authenticity of a scratch crust. Straight from the freezer or staged at room temperature Fresh 'N Ready® pizza dough will bake-up light and crisp.

They come in a variety of popular sizes including the kid-friendly 7-inch, available in white or new whole wheat, all the way up to a 16-inch crust that satisfies a family of four. You can find more enticing pizza ideas on Rich's website: www.richsfoodservice.com.


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