Chain Leader

Lane Cardwell

I Won't Drink to That
June 4, 2008

Norman Brinker used to tell us during our menu development sessions that if it wasn't on the menu, it wouldn't sell well. He was half joking and half serious. He was referring to our constant struggles of how to properly test a new menu item without including it on a menu. After all of these years I would add the following caution: if it's on the menu without a price it won't sell as well as with a price. What is it about restaurants that have alcoholic beverages on their main menu that don't believe a price is necessary?

I have heard all of the excuses, so let me save you the time by repeating them in case you haven't heard them all.

1. We operate in many states and the liquor taxes are different in each of them so pricing on the menu is impossible.
2. We need the flexibility to respond to food cost increases by being able to raise our alcohol pricing without reprinting our menus.
3. We don't want the customer to know that we charge so much for a specialty cocktail.
4. The customer really doesn't care what we charge. If they want a peach margarita, they are going to order a peach margarita.
5. If the customer cares about the price they can always ask before they order.

I am not referring to the expensive drink menu that sits on the table with lots of glossy pictures and glowing descriptions of a specialty drink. I am referring to the menu that is handed to a customer that represents what the restaurant has to sell, and how much they charge for it.  Many restaurants with bars do not put any specialty drinks on their menus, leaving it to the customer to request their favorite drinks at whatever the prevailing price might be. I have no problem with that. What I have trouble second guessing is why a restaurant would go to the trouble of developing a selection of specialty cocktails, martinis, and margaritas, put them on the menu, and not price them for the customer's benefit.

Liquor taxes do make menu pricing for drinks a complicated affair. It does not seem to be an insurmountable issue. Many national chains put the prices on their menus. Amazingly, even chains with all of their locations in one state often won't include pricing. Wine is almost always priced. Experience has taught restaurateurs that if they want to sell wine, they need to include a price for it. Beer is hit or miss. It is sometimes priced, sometimes not. This has also puzzled me since the tax structure for beer is a lot simpler to deal with.

I don't know about the rest of the customers out there, but I use pricing as a decision-making tool. With specialty drinks, seeing the prices will almost always lead me to buy a more expensive drink, than a less expensive drink if the pricing is rational as the quality improves. I can order with confidence that I am spending $3 more than a base drink and getting a much better drink. When I don't know the range that I am dealing with, I usually assume the worst, and opt out of ordering any of them.

I have had enough surprises to last me a lifetime in ordering a drink without knowing the pricing. My favorite Mexican restaurant charges $8 for a regular margarita and $14 for a top shelf. I learned that the hard way. I am probably not typical when it comes to ordering from a menu, but for me, no price means no order. I just won't drink to that.

Posted by Lane Cardwell on June 4, 2008 | Comments (4)