Menu Engineering for Restaurant Performance: Evidence from a Tourism-Oriented Café in Indonesia

M. Romi Okta Viano; Ratih Pitria Purnamasari; Budi Wibowo; Dodi Affandi

doi:10.35313/jtospolban.v6i2.217

Authors

M. Romi Okta Viano Food & Beverages Study Program, Faculty of Hospitality, Politeknik Pariwisata NHI Bandung, Bandung, Indonesia
Ratih Pitria Purnamasari Food & Beverages Study Program, Faculty of Hospitality, Politeknik Pariwisata NHI Bandung, Bandung, Indonesia
Budi Wibowo Food & Beverages Study Program, Faculty of Hospitality, Politeknik Pariwisata NHI Bandung, Bandung, Indonesia
Dodi Affandi Food & Beverages Study Program, Faculty of Hospitality, Politeknik Pariwisata NHI Bandung, Bandung, Indonesia

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.35313/jtospolban.v6i2.217

Keywords:

Menu Engineering, Menu Performance, Contribution Margin, Restaurant Profitability, Culinary Tourism

Abstract

Menu engineering is widely used in restaurant management to evaluate menu performance, yet its application in small tourism-oriented culinary businesses remains relatively underexplored, particularly in emerging destination contexts. This study evaluates menu performance at a tourism-oriented café in Indonesia by integrating menu popularity and contribution margin within the conventional menu engineering framework. A quantitative descriptive case-study design was employed using twelve months of operational sales data, covering May 2024 to April 2025. The analysis included 39 food items and utilized actual sales volume, selling prices, and cost of goods sold to calculate Menu Mix percentages and contribution margins before classifying items into the menu engineering matrix. The findings reveal a substantial concentration of Plowhorse items, with 16 menu items (41%) characterized by high popularity but comparatively low contribution margins. Five items were classified as Puzzles, indicating relatively high margins but insufficient sales volume. These patterns suggest that strong customer demand does not necessarily translate into optimal menu profitability. The study demonstrates the practical value of menu engineering as a data-driven diagnostic tool for identifying pricing, cost-control, promotion, and menu-portfolio priorities in small culinary businesses. The findings extend the application of menu engineering to a tourism-oriented café context and highlight how systematic menu-performance evaluation can support operational decision-making and strengthen the economic viability of culinary enterprises within tourism destinations.

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