Seasonal promotions
Winter
Cold Days. Chili Nights.
Keep out the cold with a weekly Chili Night that features a filling buffet of chili with all the fixings. Each week showcase a new house specialty such as Chili with Smoked Turkey Sausage. Don’t forget the vegetarians. Try hearty Vegetarian Chili.
Take Home for the Holidays.
The holiday season starts in November and rushes along into January. Help your customers manage their crazy holiday schedules with this promotion that bundles family meals (such as turkey and mashed potatoes or ham and scalloped potatoes) in to-go combinations. See our Good To Go brochure for ideas.
Hot Food Bars.
Always popular, a Hot Food Bar can be a fun addition to your restaurant or café, and a profitable one. Mashed Potato Bars are trendy, especially if you create highly flavored mashed potatoes and put them in interesting containers. Get started with some great ideas from our Bold Inspirations brochure.
Spring
Spring Breakout.
Celebrate Spring Break by hanging beach balls from the ceiling and setting out sand pails, beach towels, and sunglasses. Have a drawing for a free pair of sunglasses or a weekend stay at a local hotel. Create a special menu that features dishes from the great beach resorts of the world. Here are some ideas to get you started: Caribbean Potato Corncakes, Jamaican Chicken Wraps, and Potato Shrimp Fritters.
Garden Party.
Increase your traffic and watch your customer loyalty grow by giving your customers fresh-cut flowers with their meals. Add color to your plated entrees with garnishes of edible flowers like pansies and calendula. And serve a colorful signature side like Provençal Potatoes, or Peppery Scalloped Potato & Spinach Casserole.
Graduation Celebration.
nvite graduating students to come in and celebrate their accomplishments. Enter graduates for a chance to win door prizes such as backpacks (for high school students going to college) and day planners (for graduating college students). You could even start a scholarship fund! Show them how they can take a culinary side trip with an international buffet. Serve traditional beef, chicken, pork, and fish entrees from places like Italy, Mexico, or the Mediterranean. Then add special side dishes like a Mediterranean Frittata or Fiesta Tortas Ole.
Summer
Sunshine Days.
Warm summer days make it irresistible to go outdoors. Offer “Picnic Packs” for customers who want to enjoy their meals outside. Light and flavorful Southwest Cobb Salad is easy to pack “to go.”
Keep it “Kool.”
Create a “Keep Kool” section on your menu. Offer cold meat, seafood, or vegetable salads and cold soups as specials. Vichyssoise is a delicious cold potato soup and is quick and easy to make. Or try our Creamy Potato Salad, a cold mashed potato salad that will have your customers asking for more.
Barbecue Specials.
Always popular during the summer months, add a barbecue section to your menu and change it daily. Feature a different barbecue main course such as chicken, pork, or fish, and add interesting sides such as Potato Tatin or Tennessee Skillet Potatoes.
Fall
High School Highlight.
Create a hometown atmosphere in your operation by hanging photos of your local high school organizations such as the band and athletic teams. On game days, show your school spirit by holding a “Pep Rally” buffet featuring hearty stick-to-the-ribs meat and potatoes recipes. All American Potato Bake is sure to please with its bacon, sour cream, and smoky cheddar cheese. Or try a Chicken & Mashed Potato Pot Pie or Country Potato Chowder.
Fall Color.
Let the colors of fall inspire your menu. Garnish your mashed or au gratin potatoes with colorful root vegetables—glazed baby carrots, yellow squash, or grilled red peppers. Add an Individual Autumn Garden Gratin or New England Potato Puree as a signature special.
Harvest Time.
Celebrate the harvest with a bountiful buffet of fall foods such as Creamy Pumpkin Soup and Homestyle Potato Bread. And help your customers “rediscover” some of their old favorites with classics such as Country Potato and Ham Soup.
Home Sweet Home.
College students long for the familiar cooking they get when they go home. Create a “There's no place like home” recipe contest that invites students to submit their favorite mashed, scalloped, or au gratin potato recipes from home. The winning recipes would be rotated into the menu cycle.