Boston’s Restaurant & Sports Bar has revamped the menu at its 37 casual-dining restaurants in the United States and Mexico.
The chain has streamlined its lineup from 90 items to 83; brought more cooking in-house; and returned to its roots of pizza, pasta, burgers and wings.
Tim Matousek, who joined Boston’s about a year ago as its vice president of operations for restaurants in the U.S. and Mexico, said the change came at the behest of franchisees.
“It became apparent that they wanted a new, enhanced menu,” Matousek said.
Boston’s cut items that weren’t selling well, including a Southwest ravioli, calamari, garlic twists and “cactus cuts” — a nachos-like appetizer made with potato chips instead of tortilla chips.
The chain replaced those appetizers with batter-fried pickles and peppers, served with ranch dressing, for around $7.79, depending on the location, and Pepperoni Stuffed Twist Bread, priced at $6.79, which is made with Boston’s signature pizza dough stuffed with diced pepperoni and Cheddar, mozzarella and Parmesan cheeses, twisted, baked and served with tomato sauce.
Also new to the appetizer section is a Pizza Flight, priced at $7.29, a choice of three miniature pizzas each cut into four bite-sized pieces.
Boston’s has also stopped purchasing premade salsa, queso and guacamole, opting instead to make them in-house. A trio of those dips is available with tortilla chips, for around $9.29.
The chain has nixed frozen, preformed hamburger patties and is now buying ground beef and shaping burgers in-house. It has introduced a new hamburger, the BBQ Bleu, for around $9.99. The burger is a beef patty topped with barbecue sauce, crispy onion straws, blue cheese and Baja slaw, served on a toasted bun.
Boston’s also introduced a new Buffalo chicken sandwich, for $9.79, made with a breaded fried chicken breast with hot sauce, a choice of ranch or blue cheese dressing, red onions, lettuce, pickles and tomatoes, served on a toasted bun.
Matousek said he considered eight factors when determining what to add to the menu:
1. Was it on-brand?
2. Did it resonate with the target demographic of men aged 24 to 55?
3. Was it operationally sound?
4. Was it on-trend?
5. Did it contribute to menu balance?
6. Did it drive profitability?
7. Could it be made well consistently?
8. Could the necessary ingredients be sourced easily?
He said he also sought to reinforce the brand’s reputation for great pizza dough, so along with the Pepperoni Twist he introduced three thin-crust pizzas that were already selling well at Boston Pizza, the chain’s sister brand in Canada, where it has more than 400 locations. They are:
• Caprese: Topped with tomatoes, sliced mozzarella, garlic, grated Parmesan, balsamic glaze and basil, $9.29
• Chicken Peppadew: Diced grilled chicken, melted Manchego cheese, peppadew peppers and green onions, on lemon butter and garlic sauce, topped with crushed red pepper, $10.29
• Pepperoni & Feta: Classic pepperoni pizza with crumbled feta, $9.29
Lighter pastas, desserts
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The chain also added four regular-crust pizzas to the menu, starting around $9.29 for individual pies and up to $23.69 for large pizzas:
• Chicken Teriyaki: Sweet Asian glaze topped with mozzarella, teriyaki chicken, red peppers and green onions
• Five Cheese: Combines feta, Fontina, Parmesan and a Cheddar-mozzarella blend
• Sausage & peppers: Spicy Italian sausage, peppadew, banana and poblano peppers, melted mozzarella and basil
• Veggie: Basil pesto and manchego cheese topped with marinated mushrooms, artichokes, red bell peppers, poblanos and feta
Matousek also added three lighter pastas made with olive oil-based sauces.
“We wanted to have some lighter sauces and yet attract someone who’s looking for a pasta dish,” Matousek said.
The lighter pastas are:
• Baked bucatini with meatballs in tomato sauce with fresh tomatoes, garlic and basil, baked with mozzarella and Cheddar cheeses, $13.59
• Garlic shrimp with red onions, diced tomatoes, Parmesan cheese and oregano, served over bucatini, $14.19
• Veggie Chicken: Grilled chicken with red and green bell peppers, diced tomatoes and penne pasta, tossed in olive oil and garlic and finished with cilantro, $12.99
Boston’s has also added sautéed spinach as a side dish for $1.99, and introduced chicken tenders and a fruit cup to its kids’ menu.
Two new desserts include:
• Chocolate Brownie Addiction: A brownie made with Ghirardelli chocolate, served with vanilla ice cream and Ghirardelli chocolate sauce, $6.99
• The Monster Cookie: A large chocolate chip cookie served hot with vanilla ice cream and Ghirardelli chocolate sauce, $5.99
Contact Bret Thorn at [email protected].
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