subject: Portion Control Eateries [print this page] Do you own a tavern, restaurant or fast food restaurant? If so, you know what it takes to be successful when you operate a kitchen, big or small. All your food items must be portion control food items. Portion control hamburgers can be third of a pound, half a pound or a quarter of a pound. McDonalds didn't become successful if they did not portion control their food.
Next time you're in McDonalds, watch how the employees put fries into that little fry container they give you. The scoop they use is made so that only a proportionate amount of French fries fills the scoop, no more and no less. Of course, you cannot see their whole operation by standing at the order counter, probably because they designed it that way so the customer cannot eyeball every employee. Their hamburgers are portion control burgers because their ad says "famous quarter pounder," right?
Portion control food items are a necessity to your bottom line. After all, isn't that the reason why you went into the food business? Of course. Other food items like portion control ham can be portion control. You might say, how can ham be portioned control? It's the way you slice it. In my experience running a restaurant, the best way to slice your ham is thin. I'm not saying that if the ham slice is thick, it will not taste good. After all, it's the same piece of ham. When the slices are thin, your presentation of your sandwich is more appealing to your customer. It presents itself as more tasty. The way you fold the ham can make your sandwich look good or bad. You can use an ounce and a half of ham, two ounces or three. It doesn't matter as long as you price it right. You will need a good meat slicer like a Hobart and a decent scale to weigh your meat. You can add lettuce and tomato if you like. Some food establishments charge extra for that. I didn't because I wanted to put more value into my food items to keep my customers coming back.
Your preparation can be the same for portion control hot dogs. How dogs can come in 10 to a pound, 8 to a pound, 5 to a pound or whatever your supplier has. Hot dogs are a no brainer to prepare because you don't have to make them, like making a ham sandwich. You can do the same thing with a tuna fish sandwich. All you need is an ice cream scoop. You pick the size you want and voila. Scoop the tuna into your scoop; make sure the tuna does not exceed the scoop edges, place the tuna on your bread and you're done. You can garnish with lettuce and tomato if you like.
You can portion control other sandwich food items such as corned beef, roast beef, turkey, etc. It's all about slicing the meat correctly and in the presentation of your sandwiches and your pricing that will contribute to your bottom line and your food cost.
In closing, I believe you have a pretty good understanding of what portion control food items can mean to a restauranteur. It doesn't matter if you own a tavern, restaurant or fast food business. The above techniques in making a sandwich are a necessity if you have a kitchen or fast food operation.
