Menu planning plays an integral part in restaurant development and success. Depending on the type of restaurant, some chefs say that the entire operation should revolve around the menu.

Restrictions and Freedoms

The first fact to consider when writing a menu is that ultimately the diners mandate what stays on the menu, regardless of restaurant type. The chef or team of chefs may have a particular penchant for certain types of foods, but if they do not adapt these foods to what their ultimate consumers demand, then the restaurant is soon out of business. This is why chefs like to change the menu seasonally or if they a have a dish on the menu which they simply cannot remove, that it is a signature dish.

That said, one of the joys of the hotel (especially in The Krug Room) is the ability and freedom to surprise our diners by giving them what they have never experienced before. This can often be a risk, but if the guest is amazed by what they see and taste then the gamble is well worth the hours we put into the design, creativity and implementation of that menu.

For example we have just finished the final stages of our ‘Fairy Tale Menu', which was challenging to say the least but some of the dishes were very unique for Hong Kong diners.

Fairy Tale Menu

One of the first courses was called ‘Princess and the Frog', a classic fairytale that we twisted to use French frog legs, sat on a large water lily leaf, which was resting on a chicken and cucumber jelly, with a sauce gribiche to finish the dish.

An example of a main course was entitled ‘Story Book'...on the plate this translated to the entire contents of the dish being served and eaten out of a Mandarin Oriental ‘book'. In the planning stages we felt it was a great idea, and when we finally saw the guest reaction we knew we were right to trust ourselves.

For a dessert on a grand scale we planned a dessert buffet, but we knew that this itself would be very ordinary, so we orchestrated the entire buffet around the ‘Hansel & Gretel' story. This meant constructing large, 100% edible gingerbread houses, importing trees to hang desserts on and even covering the floor with freshly dried leaves!

Ultimately, some dishes will work and others will not come together as they do when planning, but this is the magic of food, every dish or menu you start with nothing, and after taking the raw ingredients and some imagination and a little trail and error, we hopefully impress our guest and this is what keeps them coming back - each visit expecting more than the last.