Restaurants adding drinks in menu to draw diners: Avendus report

Raveena Singhmoneycontrol.comIt takes more than lip smacking food and efficient service to draw diners to restaurants. Perhaps that could be why more limited service restaurants are adding alcohol, especially beer and wine, and to some extent cocktails to their menu.That is one of the findings of a report on the restaurant industry, by Avendus Capital."Fast-casual chains have pushed the quality of food so high it seems fitting to pair beverages with it. Drinks are usually approachable and affordable," the report says.In addition, it improves customer experience, particularly among millennial diners. Avendus Vice President Amit Kadoo says there is a growing preference for the café bar concept over cafés offering only tea/coffee, particularly during evenings. He backs the argument by citing an example. Recently, popular coffee giant Starbucks extended its offering to wine and craft beer at its 70 US stores. Offering a relaxed and aromatic mood, Starbucks is trying to attract the drinking crowd in a safer-than-bar environment, the report said. With 'beverage on tap' evolving as a trend with restaurant operators all over, eating joints are reshaping their menus and adopting beer-food pairing programmes.According to the report, there are many other eateries that are going the alcohol way. "Apart from fast-causal chains, chains like Taco Bell (Taco Bell Cantina) and Burger King (Burger King’s Whopper Bar) are also experimenting with serving alcohol," says the report.Apart from this, there are events offered by many local joints in metropolitan cities, with the only aim to attract consumers, by offering either beer dinners or brewer’s weekends.The report draws home two points (Excerpts): Alcohol, a great profit centre at restaurantsMore than anything, even food, serving beer, wine and spirits is more profitable as their sales are generally incremental to the ordered food. By measuring sales and controlling inventory, restaurants can make the most out of alcohol sales.Managing costsStriking balance between the pour cost (how much it costs to make a drink) and the price becomes integral for breweries. The fact that selling unique cocktails gives better margins than beer and wine makes it critical to assure the management of a robust bar programme. The bar programme, relativey new term for many budding brands in India, should be reviewed to keep up with trend.