Culinary Foundations: Menu Writing 101

I have a love/hate relationship with menu writing.  I love writing menus for all the obvious reasons such as the creative outlet the act of writing an interesting menu provides.  Ironically, I hat writing menues for the very same reason...sometimes, I just dont feel very creative. 

At this point in my career, I dont write every menu that one of my kitchens prepares.  Most of my managers are capable of writing a perfectly acceptable menu and my catering operation has a portfolio of menus and combinations that I wrote to choose from without my constant involvement.  If a menu project hits my desk, there are usually outside reasons;  the client has special requests, we need to really pull out the big guns to impress or, all too frequently, we have a menu that is distressed in some way and needs to be repaired. 
I write or review many different styles of menus daily.  While each style of menu (a cycle menu for a cafeteria, ala carte menu, catering banquet menu, etc...) carries a different set of parameters for success, they all carry similar general rules.  A few of these rules are:

• A menu must be balanced in all ways.
• A menu must be seasonally appropriate. 
• A menu must incorporate as many different cooking styles and preparation methods.
• A menu must fit into the financial parameters of the system.

I take particular joy in writing hors d'oeuvres menus.  I enjoy the challenge of balancing the different textures and preparation methods required of a good menu.  For me, writing a menu that is 'fork optional' is also a fun component.  When writing an hors d'oeuvre menu, it is often easier to write a menu with themed stations.  This allows you to mentally seperate some of the dishes and not worry so much about each and every item being perfectly in sync with the other since there will be actual physical seperation of the stations.

Here is a menu I wrote for an upcoming event.  Starting tomorrow, I will be helping to prepare this menu and I'm sure I will have some pictures to post along the way.  For now, take a look at the menu and tell me what you think. 

Eastern Seaboard

Goat Cheese and Fire Roast Tomato Ravioli
Simmered in a Lightly Smoked Tomato-Vodka Cream Sauce

Vermont White Cheddar and New York Baby Swiss Display
with Fresh Raspberries and Spiced Pecans, Served with Sliced Artisan Breads

Traditional Fresh Lobster Roll with Fresh Tarragon
Served on Soft Buttercrust Roll

Canape of Fresh Lump Crab and Spring Tomato Salad
with Fresh Chives

Midwest Bounty

Kansas City Style Smoked Beef Brisket, Carved to Order
Molasses BBQ, Petite Rolls and Hand Cut Slaw

Crispy Pork Belly Canape
Served with Maytag Blue Cheese

Fresh Corn Cake with Spring Onion Jam and Fresh Asparagus
Spring Baby Vegetable Display
with Grilled Pepper Dip

Pacific Coast

Cedar Smoked Salmon Display

Pickled Red Onions, Sesame Flatbreads and Grain Mustard Aioli

Fresh Artisanal Brie Drizzled with Napa Valley Pinot Reduction

Crisp Sesame Flatbreads

Orrechiette Pasta Tossed Tableside with Farmers Market Vegetables
and Fresh Herb Pistou

Bruschetta of Roasted Fig, Sweet Pepper,
Fresh Mozzarella and Baby Greens
Served with San Francisco Sourdough Crostini

Sweet Endings

Premium Dessert ‘Shots’
Custom Made Chocolate Shot Glasses Filled with Assorted Cremes,
Fruit Purees and Mousse

Assorted Truffle Lolipops

Salted Caramel with Dark Chocolate, Champagne with Dark Chocolate

Key Lime with White Chocolate, Toasted Coconut with Milk Chocolate



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