Seasonal Menu Tips: How EPoS Makes Planning Easier
The festive season is one of the busiest and most profitable times of the year for UK hospitality. Whether you’re running a restaurant, café, bar, or hotel, your seasonal menu can make or break your December revenue.
But between rising costs, unpredictable footfall and pressure on staff, planning a Christmas or winter menu isn’t simple.
That’s where a smart EPoS system can make the entire process faster, clearer, and far more efficient.
Here’s how SPARK EPoS helps hospitality teams build, deliver and optimise their seasonal menus with ease.
Understanding Seasonal Customer Behaviour
The holiday season brings unique patterns that smart restaurant owners can plan for:
Office Parties & Group Bookings Surge
The end-of-year period is dominated by corporate lunches, team celebrations, and family gatherings. This means:
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Larger tables
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Set menus are becoming more popular
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Higher spend per head
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A need for smoother table management
Restaurants that prepare early capture the majority of these bookings. An integrated EPoS system could help you plan your festive menu and manage bookings effectively.
Weekend Peaks & Earlier Bookings
Customers tend to plan ahead in winter, particularly for Christmas meals. Fridays and Saturdays fill up quickly, and many venues experience earlier dining times as people work around winter travel and weather.
1. Plan Seasonal Menus Using Real-Time Sales Data
Before adding festive dishes, it’s important to understand what already works.
A comprehensive EPoS system should give you instant access to:
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Bestsellers and underperforming dishes
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Hourly sales patterns
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Profit margin insights per item
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Historic holiday-season performance
2. Add and Update Seasonal Dishes in Seconds
An integrated EPoS system enables changes to sync across tills, mobile ordering and QR ordering. So guests always see the correct version of your menu.
You can:
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Add new seasonal items instantly
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Create Christmas bundles and set menus
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Add modifiers, portion sizes and upsells
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Assign allergens and nutritional tagging automatically
3. Keep Stock Levels Under Control
Seasonal ingredients often have shorter shelf lives and higher costs. A smart EPoS ensures you have the right ingredients, avoid waste, and eliminate the risk of “sorry, we’re out of that dish” during peak season.
It helps you stay on top of your stock with:
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Livestock deductions per order
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Automatic low-stock alerts
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Recipe-level stock tracking
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Purchase ordering tools
4. Sync Everything with Your Kitchen Team
A smooth kitchen is essential when festive tables are fully booked.
SPARK’s Kitchen Display System (KDS) ensures:
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Orders arrive instantly and clearly
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Modifiers and allergen notes are always visible
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Multi-course Christmas meals are paced properly
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Less waiting and fewer mistakes during service
5. Deliver a Simpler, Faster Guest Experience
Studies show that customers spend more when the ordering process feels seamless.
SPARK supports multiple ordering channels that help reduce queues and speed up table turnover:
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QR code ordering for busy festive services
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Online ordering for click & collect Christmas items
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Handheld mobile EPoS for faster staff service
6. Run Festive Promotions Easily
December is full of opportunities to increase sales.
With SPARK, you can create:
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Happy hour deals
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Gift voucher promotions
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Set menu pricing
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Loyalty rewards
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Christmas upsell prompts
Black Friday: Get SPARK EPoS for the Best Price of the Year
Seasonal menu planning doesn’t have to be stressful. With SPARK EPoS, you can make smart decisions, deliver consistent service, control your stock, and maximise profits during the busiest weeks of the year.
Our Black Friday EPoS Deal is live this month only. It includes systems, support, onboarding, and additional tools at a huge saving.
