Heading into some of your best-selling months, there are some quick insights that can add more success to the season. Our research team took a deep dive for the latest intel to offer three quick facts that can help.

1. Getting The Most Out of Your Workhorse Sauces

If there is one thing the last year has taught us is to get the most out of the ingredients in your pantries. Prepared foods are best at reducing prep times and consistency with new staff in the kitchen.

Among sauces, prepared marinara, pizza and spaghetti sauces are workhorse ingredients that can be used in multiple applications. They are also universally loved by consumers. Nearly 50%* of restaurants menu a “red sauce”. That versatility in menu applications is apparent in the growth in the use by operators to menu a sandwich that includes marinara sauce.

Among the top five fastest-growing sandwich sauces is marinara, just behind aioli, chipotle, ranch, and guacamole.


From sandwiches to dips, pizza or pasta dishes, workhorse sauces in your kitchen can help drive customer demand and sales this year. Red Gold® offers a variety of fully prepared tomato sauces for your operation. Request your free samples now.

2. Hot Key Words for Your Menu This Summer

Technomic found that certain key words on menus, especially those of LTOs, scored more sales in 2021. The winners and some suggestions on how to use the insight can help.

28% had a brand mentioned in the menu description. For example, a mention of Red Gold’s Folds of Honor ketchup bottles for your tables, 1 oz. Ketchup Dipping Cups, or even Red Gold’s 7-gram ketchup packets, are an easy way to show customers your support of families of fallen military heroes. Red Gold also supports chains that serve its Folds of Honor Ketchup with everything from window decals to TV spots and billboards in selected U.S. markets. Contact your Red Gold representative for more information.

Other great ideas are that if you are using Nutella® (+30%* since 2018), Reese’s (+16%*), or Hershey’s (+16%*) chocolate in your shakes or desserts, call out the brands in your menu description.

3. Last-Minute Decisions on Where To Eat

Datassential finds that the consumer decision process on choosing on whether to eat in or dine out has shifted since the pandemic. In 2017, 26% of consumers “planned ahead” to dine out while today, that number has been cut by more than half at 12%! While the number of “last second” decisions are about the same, those who say they “briefly decided in advance” jumped from 39% in 2017 to 52%. The takeaway is to look at your advertising/social strategy is push digital and social messaging an hour or two before the next daypart.