Barilla Classic Stuffed Shells Bolognese
Barilla | Photo Credit: Carlos Garcia

Pasta Performance: More Tips and Best Practices for Delivery and Takeout

Operators across the country are building on pasta as a versatile, food-cost friendly and popular option for delivery and takeout.

Pasta for Delivery and Takeout: Family meal bundles and smart BOH setups for delivery and takeout

Piada

Piada’s “Family Pasta” offering brings customization to the table. It includes pan of pasta, a side salad, and then guests choose their favorite protein, house-made sauces, and fresh toppings to build your own pasta bowls at home. - $35.99

As restaurants continue to adapt to local and state requirements for safe restaurant service, pasta in family meals have emerged as a successful strategy.  Here are a few chain restaurant operators who have released LTOs with pasta family meals, and are getting high marks from consumers according to Datassential.

Why it works: It’s convenient, guests recognize that pasta as a food for takeout or delivery “travels well,” and it makes for a meal that’s affordable for the family, but still profitable for the operator.

Setting up for success: When preparing pasta in a wide range of situations from ghost kitchens to takeout or a made-to-order station, efficiency is everything. You want to minimize waste and maximize speed of service. Here are the best practices we’ve learned:

Your goal should be to keep it simple and streamlined, while still providing choice, customization and differentiation. In our tests, a range of 5-8 pasta menu items was optimal. You’ll want a mix of short and long cuts – while short cuts like penne and rigatoni travel better, long cuts like spaghetti and linguine are customer favorites.

Nordstrom

Nordstrom “Meals to Go” - $54. Choice of Tomato Basil or Lobster Bisque, Little Gem Caesar Salad, Choice of Shrimp Chitarra Pasta or Penne Bolognese & Chicken Meatballs, and fresh baked cookies.

When building your menu, focus on SKU maximization and cross-utilization. With 4 base sauces: a meat sauce, a bechamel-based sauce, a tomato-based sauce, and a vegetable stock-velouté, you can offer a wide number of menu items and combinations. Mix that with 2-3 proteins, 3-5 seasonal veggies, and you'll have a lot of room for creativity and customization. Visit the Barilla blog for a sample menu and more takeout-friendly ideas.

Consumer insight highlights

62% of consumers are "sticking to the familiar" with their eating habits and menu choices, and expect to continue that into the future

Tamper-proof seals on packaging was the #1 "most crucial" safety measure consumers wanted on their takeout/delivery purchase.

(source: Datassential, June 2020)