Meet the Experts...

Party Time

Darren Cheesman has been licensee at the Hit or Miss in Stamford, Lincolnshire for the past three years. A traditional community pub, with a customer base ranging between 18-80 years old, Darren aims to keep everything priced fairly to overcome the troubled economic times, with regular events such as pub games and live music drawing a crowd and giving customers a reason to keep visiting the pub.

Although the Hit or Miss specialises in delicious Bangers & Mash, they also offer a buffet menu during the festive season, to attract larger groups. Always looking for new opportunities to promote the pub, Darren was eager to trial the Party Time menu from Moy Park Foodservice. With the pub already a popular venue for parties with local businesses, Darren was keen to liven up his buffet offering to set the pub apart from the standard spread of sandwiches and pastry products. The Party Time menu is perfect for serving during the festive period as an exciting and sociable alternative to the traditional turkey dinner usually served at office Christmas lunches.

During the trial, customers could enjoy an array of delicious Moy Park Foodservice products, from platters of Battered Natural Onion Rings with tomato and BBQ sauces for dipping to Crispy Coated Baby Camembert and Brie Wedges served with a cranberry sauce accompaniment.

Darren explains, "The Party Time menu was really popular, we fed 192 people during six separate events, resulting in us receiving additional Christmas party bookings this year which is a great result. Feedback from the customers was very positive - everyone commented on the high quality of the food. The Crunchy Chick 'n' Mini Fillets were a firm favourite and will certainly be re-appearing on our menu in future! The kitchen found all of the Moy Park products really quick and easy to prepare and there's no waste, the chef absolutely loved them, he thinks they’re fantastic!"

Darren concludes, "Offering Moy Park Foodservice's Party Time menu is a definite profit making decision for any pub, the quality is very high and I'm sure it will increase anyone's sales. We've taken additional bookings from both existing and new customers drawn in by the Party Time menu, so I can highly recommend it as an incremental sales opportunity over the Christmas and New Year period."

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Darren's Top Tips for pubs wanting to promote parties or events during the festive season are:
Offer a wide variety of foods on the menu Give your menu a point of difference from the usual turkey dinner Promote your menu with appealing POS around your pub, and flyer drops in the local area