A simple solution to streamline your back of house

Sponsored by Lamb Weston^®

When it comes to simple solutions for some of your most pressing problems, the answer may be waiting for you in your freezer. While frozen potatoes may not be the answer for everything you have on your plate, they can help in a lot of ways that may not be entirely obvious. With the labor shortage and profitability issues facing operators right now, anything that streamlines back-of-house operations, boosts margins and keeps customers coming back is not to be overlooked.

Guests love potatoes

For starters, your guests love French fries. Fries are the most popular food across generations and the #1 food purchased away from home¹. Also, 1 in 3 consumers are eating comfort food now more than before², and fries and potatoes satisfy this desire. Your customers will keep coming back for more potatoes, especially if your menu offers them in different and innovative ways.

Help increase profits

With the fries and potatoes on your menu, you will not only be keeping your customers happy, but you can be more profitable. That’s because fries are also one of the most profitable items on your menu¹. In fact, for every $2.00 you charge for a side of fries, approximately $1.60 of that contributes to your overall margin¹. To see how much fries can help boost your bottom line, try the Lamb Weston^® Recipe to Revenue Calculator.

Improve back-of-house efficiency

With the current labor shortages, focusing on the frozen fries and potatoes on your menu can also be a tremendous help in streamlining your back-of-house operations. Frozen fries, chips and mashed potatoes are easier to prep than almost any side. If you are still prepping fries from scratch, there is no comparison. Frozen fries do not require costly labor time to hand cut and prep like fresh fries do. Frozen mashed potatoes are easily boiled in the bag, eliminating waste and reducing labor, and frozen chips can be prepped in the morning for all day use. Reduced labor costs, waste and storage space all contribute to improved back-of-house operations and can help improve profits. And the extra time freed up in the kitchen by using frozen products could allow your staff to spend more valuable time helping out in other areas in the restaurant, like enhancing guest experiences.

Menu versatility

Adding fries, chips or mashed potatoes to unexpected dayparts can keep your menu fresh and add a profitable element to more orders, with an item you already have in inventory.

For example, loaded fries can make a great snack or appetizer item. And don’t forget about the opportunities within the breakfast daypart. Breakfast potatoes are ordered by more than a third of away-from-home breakfast buyers³, so take advantage by offering more breakfast menu items featuring fries and potatoes, including grab-and-go options.

When developing new and innovative menu items, make the most of ingredients you already have in your kitchen like cheese, bacon and trending sauces and seasonings such as aioli, Sriracha mayo, Nashville hot, gochujang and honey.

Made for delivery

With off-premise dining continuing to grow, delivery-optimized menu items are an important part of your menu strategy. Coated frozen fries, like Lamb Weston^® Crispy on Delivery ^TM fries, can help to maintain your quality standards and surprise and delight your guests. Coated frozen fries can hold their crispiness for up to thirty minutes in vented containers, so your customers can still get the quality fries they expect from you. For more takeout and delivery tips, check out the Lamb Weston^® Restaurant Takeout and Delivery Guide.

Overall, frozen potato products can help to lower labor costs, improve back-of-house efficiency, provide great plate coverage and reduce waste. They are also one of the most profitable items on the menu, and are so versatile they can be used in every daypart, and for takeout and delivery. Not to mention, your customers love them.

Finding the right options for your operation's unique needs is easy with Lamb Weston's robust portfolio of high-quality frozen potato products. From crispy on the outside, fluffy on the inside fries to creamy mashed potatoes, to crunchy chips and more, Lamb Weston^® has been dedicated to providing restaurants like yours with perfect potatoes for more than 70 years. To learn more, visit LambWeston.com.