Page 38 - MENU Magazine - March/April 2018

BEHIND THE BAR
Canadians, all types of tea are created equal. It’s a natural, healthy, calorie-free drink that everyone can enjoy.”
TEA AND FOOD PAIRING
Tea avours and fragrances pair beautiful- ly with all kinds of foods and beverages, with sweets, savoury and bitter avours. Think infusion in cocktails, reductions to add avours and colours to dishes, teas are also phenomenal for adding avour and colour to broths.
Matcha ice cream, bergamot baked goods, green tea hot pot, herbal tea cocktails and non-alcoholic mixes that are as beautiful as they are tasty. Successfully pairing tea with foods starts with building creative menu o erings instead of listing tea as an afterthought.
Boost the eater cheque with tea. Adding 100 or 200 cups of tea per day, adds real dollars to the end of the day revenue. Taking tea for granted means foodservice operators are leaving around $30,000 per year on the table.
PRESENTATION AND SALES AT THE TABLE
Tea and co ee are too often relegated to the back of the menu. An afterthought instead of an experience. Tea can be both a menu booster and an occasion. Tea is steeped in culture, history and mystery.
It’s all about presentation and training. Be creative, tackle tea with hearts and minds. Get tea on the menu in exciting ways and brag about it! Talk about the bene ts (no calories, full of antioxidants, it’s relaxing and herbal teas are caf- feine-free for nighttime consumption).
AS WE CONTINUE
TO WELCOME NEW CANA- DIANS IN INCREASING NUMBERS, THE INFLUENCE OF TEA CULTURE AND TEA TRADITIONS IN OUR SOCIETY WILL ONLY CONTINUE TO GROW AND UNITE US.
Tea is perceived as exotic, cosmopolitan in its versatility. It pairs beautifully with foods and serves as an exciting ingredient added to food and beverage o erings.
Food operators, increase your tea oppor- tunities by raising the pro le of teas in your establishment. Serve curry with chai tea, or cheesecake with a green tea and highlight these pairings on the menu.
There is a tea that can be paired with al- most everything. Chocolate and Earl Grey, for example, creates a food experience. Tea and mixology can be a “matcha made in heaven.” Diners, young, old and in-be- tween are embracing tea for all kinds of reasons today, tea consumption is on the rise, don’t miss the boat. m
RTDPREPARED TEAS READY-TO-DRINK
Five years ago we barely heard about green tea; now it’s an every- day o ering. RTD teas and teas paired with other health drinks like kombucha are leading the category. People are getting healthy, and today’s consumers are more value-driven than ever before. Teas and infusions are refreshing, can be very healthy and fresh, and tea is the original fair-trade product the world over. Tea is trustworthy.
38 MENU MARCH / APRIL 2018