When we dream up a restaurant concept, we think of the foods we love, the flavors we love, the types of cuisine that speak to us on a deep level. That initial menu we write is often a disaster when we look at the realities of running a kitchen. Too many techniques. Too many ingredients. Too many items that must be constantly monitored. Instead, consider the prep. Look for a few items on your menu that share elements, like a sauce or a garnish or a simple component that will save time on each item that that ingredient is used in. This will also help eliminate unnecessary food waste and streamline your daily prep.
Balance should also be considered from a service perspective. New chefs often create menus where all dishes are ready at the same time and that need the same kind of pan or support at the same time. This can create some real problems if tickets come in at once. Think about how dishes move through your kitchen. Some dishes should be able to be finished quickly while others should be able to sit for a short amount of time without suffering. To hone this skill, try preparing three orders at once and work through the service mentally. If everything needs the same pan or side of the line at the same time then you need to rethink the menu.
That fine-tuning can happen over a few minutes with paper and pen at the table instead of in the kitchen. Group your dishes by ingredients that are common to them, and then see which items don’t overlap with others and add an element of risk or inefficiency. See if you can swap them out for something else that utilizes ingredients you are already planning on buying. From there, imagine getting each item from its storage location to the customer. If any part of the process is iffy, refine it. Doing so will teach you how to think operationally before a dime has been spent on ingredients.
It’s easy to fall into the trap of prioritizing creativity over communicability. While a particular pairing may look amazing on a plate, the kitchen and server could have a hard time explaining it. If a dish can’t be described in a single relaxed breath, it might be too complicated. Test out describing the dish out loud, as if you were describing it to a diner who has never heard of it. If it sounds confusing, there is probably too much going on. Take a dish apart to determine the primary component, and let the rest of the dish revolve around it. Guests often remember perfectly prepared simple dishes more than marginally prepared complex dishes.
As your concepts ripen, the number of options on your menu stops seeming like a mess and starts to feel intentional. Every offering has a purpose, and they all work together to facilitate a service system. You start to feel good about your menu not because there are so many options on it, but because you know that you can consistently make every option well, even when things get slammed. Restraint isn’t about killing creativity; it’s about giving your creativity some structural integrity, so it can hold up night in and night out.