Business boosters

Ideas for driving food sales at your pub

Sunday roast tasters

Where: the Plough, Badbury, near Swindon, Wiltshire

The idea: Sunday roast tasters. Not content to limit Sunday roast to the menu, licensee Mark Beales has also put it on his bar. Instead of the usual complimentary crisps and peanuts, Sunday drinkers at Arkell's pub, the Plough, are treated to bowls of roast potatoes and Yorkshire puddings. "When I took over as manager three years ago, we had no local trade; like every rural pub we can never be complacent about attracting customers. I wanted to encourage the locals to come back on a regular basis — I didn't want us to be just another food outlet, but somewhere that customers can come to relax and enjoy themselves," Mark explains.

How it works: Head chef Michael Sharpe and his team serve Sunday roasts all day at the Plough, so providing some extra Yorkshire puds, roast potatoes and jugs of gravy is easy. "We tend to bring them out during the latter part of the afternoon; it's become a real tradition, but you need to make sure you're here at the right time to get them as they don't hang around for long," Mark says.

Business benefit: Situated a couple of hundred yards from Junction 16 of the M4, the Plough has no problem attracting passing trade. However, it was the locals that Mark was keen to entice back by offering something that was not available elsewhere. "It has definitely encouraged a lot of local trade back into the pub — and people seem to be staying far longer; it's the local trade that keeps the pub busy and the atmosphere good, so it's important to keep them happy," says the entrepreneurial licensee. Mark's Sunday roast tasters have also proved great at encouraging customers to try the pub's food. The Plough is now really busy on a Sunday and serves anywhere between 80 and 150 covers.

Top tip on making the idea work: To keep costs down, stick to low-cost, but substantial items that are already on the menu.