The struggle to keep the menu of the day alive: “Either you raise the prices or eliminate dishes, there are no more options”

The rise in the price of food and energy has triggered the cost of the daily menu Its price has increased by 9% in recent months and threatens to continue growing Trying to work without intermediaries or eliminating dishes from the menu are some of the options that the hoteliers are resortingIt is a classic of the Spanish restoration: the menu of the day. But rising food and energy prices are putting it in jeopardy. Its formula has been working for decades because, according to hoteliers, “it offers excellent value for money”. A balance, they warn, is increasingly difficult to maintain. They explain it to NIUS from the Hermanos Míguez restaurant in Madrid. “We have been serving menus for 49 years and it has never cost us as much as it does now to design one at a reasonable price,” says its owner, Arturo Jiménez. Even so, they can boast of keeping it at a very affordable cost. “We had it at 10 euros and we have raised it to 11, but we are considering putting it at 12 because we hardly have any profit,” he laments. “And that the place is owned, that we do not pay rent or mortgage, otherwise it would be impossible.” “The problem is that everything is through the roof,” adds Luis, from the Mediterrae restaurant, in the capital. One of the few that has not raised the price of its menu of the day. “We keep it at 11.50 euros, but juggling. We are not going to be able to put up with it much longer,” he stresses. “The doubt is how much you raise it. A euro? In reality that does not compensate for the prices of electricity or products, but you cannot put something crazy either because you lose the client. We are tied hand and foot,” he complains. Understanding customers “We have increased it by one euro and I assure you that we are not making a profit,” corroborates Eliana, manager of the Picholeiros restaurant in Madrid. “Being a Galician, the menu of the day has products of origin that have to be brought from Galicia and the rise in fuel has caused suppliers to shoot up bills. This has hurt us a lot,” she says. Until the price of diesel and gasoline stabilizes, which is what drives the logistics of all products, prices will have to continue to be adjusted. The least we can, but there will be no other choice. In our case we have made only one increase throughout the year. From 12 to 13 euros, but we have already talked about increasing it another 50 cents or 1 euro. We would continue with hardly any benefits, but we work with offices, we have customers who come every day, and we don’t want to harm them either,” he says. Currently, in Spain the average price of the daily menu in restaurants is 12.8 euros. The highest in its history. A rise of 9% that, according to hoteliers, has not yet produced an impact on the consumption of this product. “The truth is that the regulars keep coming, some growl, but people in general understand the situation, they also pay more for electricity and the shopping basket in their homes,” they argue. A single dish is gaining ground as a tool to spend less money, also when eating away from home. Three-course agapes (starter, main course and dessert) are down. “Inflation has had some effects on consumer behavior consumer”, they detail in Kantar, such as “the simplification of menus” in homes, “increasing the number of meals with a single dish”. These already reach 52.4% of the total, the highest figure since 2020, as explained by the consultant in its report. In other words, out of every hundred meals, 52 are made with a single dish. Most of the restaurants we have talked to maintain the classic menu: first and second, dessert, drink and coffee, but some have begun to look for strategies to lower the price the price. This is the case of the Madrid restaurant Piri Piri Frango. “Our menu includes half a roast chicken and we have four companions to choose from, with a drink,” advances Sergio, the manager. “At first it included dessert, but we had to remove it because the price skyrocketed,” he adds. “Now what we do are discounts if you take it with the menu. For example, if loose coffee costs 1.70, then we charge it at 0.80 on the menu. If the cake costs 3 euros, we charge it at 1.50 within the menu. It’s like an aid, to compensate”, he highlights. “Even so, a month ago we had to raise the menu by one euro, from 11.50 to 12.50 euros.” “It’s that all costs have risen, raw materials, food, electricity, gas, gasoline, transport,” laments Sergio. “Either you raise prices or eliminate dishes, or both. There are not many options to survive,” he argues. “Now they even require a minimum order so as not to charge me postage, that forces me to buy more, merchandise that I don’t need, and at the end of the month, when I close accounts, I have money here in products that I don’t know how I’m going to be able to get out,” he explains. “What we are trying to do is work with few intermediaries so that the products come out with less increase,” adds Luis, from the Mediterrae restaurant, where they offer more than 100 menus a day. “We don’t lose money, because we work hard, but we aren’t earning enough either. The goal is to do what is necessary to keep the business afloat.” more premium”. “Our strategy is to offer a more elaborate menu, which can draw attention to pay that extra price,” admits its manager, Carmine. “That whoever takes the menu feels as if he were eating from the menu,” he adds. “We have raised it from 14.90 to 15.90, and, although it seems high, I assure you that it is a fairly relative increase because all prices have skyrocketed. They have us up to our necks in water.” wondering if when all this is over we’ll go back down the menu,” says Carmine. “We tell them that if prices go down, we’ll be delighted, but unfortunately it doesn’t seem like the trend. Also, from life experience I would tell you that once prices go up, going back is complicated,” he concludes.