10 Menu Items Every Cafe Should Include

The first and foremost thing on your mind as a cafe owner is to make your customers happy. Designing your space, hiring your staff, and purchasing your coffee supplies is all done with your satisfaction in mind. why not? If your coffee shop doesn’t offer your customers what they’re looking for, they won’t become the long-term customers you need to scale your business. Simply put, you need to meet customer satisfaction in every possible way to maintain and fulfill your dream of running a successful cafe.

But seeing as coffee shops cater to a wide range of people, keeping everyone happy is nothing short of a feat. while some of your customers will be happy with a shot of espresso, others may like a specific type of latte. Where some of your regulars go for iced coffee, some other loyal customers may prefer a piping hot cup of coffee. Ultimately, the more customers you serve, the more diverse their preferences will be. That’s why it’s so important that your coffee shop menu ideas take into account your most popular customer segments.

Reading: Cafe foods menu

Having a variety of cafeteria menu suggestions helps you meet the needs of your target market without rejecting a large part of it, which is the true goal of running a business in the service industry. It’s simple, really: the more customers you serve, the better income you generate. With a growing customer base, you can take your cafe off the ground and scale to the heights it deserves.

With that in mind, it’s also essential that you don’t go crazy designing your coffee shop menu ideas. The best thing you can do is keep it simple while still offering the most popular items that customers have come to expect from a budding coffee shop. If you offer a large number of menu items from the start, you may run into issues like inventory management, staff skill set, and customer satisfaction before your coffee shop even finds its footing. That’s why it’s essential that you stick to the most modern offerings at the beginning and build your menu from there.

It goes without saying that striking this balance between simplicity and variety can be difficult for a new coffee shop. Seeing this, we’ve put together a comprehensive list of cafe menu suggestions that will help you cover the basics while keeping your customers happy. you can easily name these 10 menu items as the “must haves” in your cafe, and see how your customers flock to them day after day.

1. express

What’s a coffee shop without this super basic but super crucial drink? A shot of espresso is not only essential for those who like a certain kick with their cup of coffee, but it’s also important to a variety of popular beverages. Americano, affogato, Romano, latte, you name it, and espresso serves as the base. That’s why it’s absolutely imperative that you keep this coffee at the heart of your coffee shop menu ideas.

adding espresso to your menu helps you cater to the widest range of coffee enthusiasts. You’ll need to invest in commercial-grade equipment to pour this coffee by the minute, but it’ll all be worth it when you see those numbers on your cash register. just remember to buy great quality coffee beans too so your customers will come back for a refreshing cup of coffee.

2. coffee with milk

You can’t mention espresso without also talking about lattes. As you may have learned from the explanation above, true milk drinks are made from an espresso base. latte also covers some of the world’s most popular coffee drinks, including but not limited to cappuccino, macchiato, and mocha. Since these drinks are also some of the best-selling options in any coffee shop, it’s essential that lattes be on your coffee shop’s menu suggestions.

Once again, you’ll need to invest in some commercial-grade equipment to serve milk drinks. but most of those machines will also allow you to prepare a wide variety of these drinks with the same equipment. Seeing this, invest in some varietal equipment to make a large number of drinks and keep your latte-loving customers happy through your offerings.

3. iced coffee

Cold beer is all the rage these days. but due to its simplicity, more and more customers are choosing to do it at home. what they don’t primarily make at home is an iced coffee, as it takes more than a mason jar to make this complex yet delicious beverage.

Making iced coffee will require just a few simple equipment on your part and basic skills from your barista, making it an obvious choice in terms of coffee menu ideas. You can also offer some variations within this drink to help differentiate your offerings from your competitors. Since its popularity is most apparent with younger crowds, you’ll also enjoy an expanding customer base that prefers to get their caffeine fix in a cafe rather than in your kitchen.

4. buns

Getting off the obvious coffee bandwagon, we’re now in the territory of snacks and foods that are coffee shop staples. what comes first in these cafeteria menu suggestions? the ubiquitous bagel – what else.

Although you can often find them as street food in the most popular cities in the us. In the US, bagels are also a popular pairing for those who take their morning coffee at a coffee shop. Simply set up your display case with a variety of bagels, and you’re ready to up-sell and cross-sell your customers during the busiest hours of the day.

What you’ll need is the right staff with the experience to make bagels from scratch or a third-party vendor who makes them fresh every morning. When you or your supplier make a bagel following your authentic recipes, it will not only sell at face value, it will also function as a repeat sale item.

5. donuts

For those of you who like sugary snacks, nothing can go wrong with a donut. The same notion applies when you are coming up with cafe menu ideas for her cafe. Not much can go wrong when choosing donuts as one of your main snacks.

With a variety of donuts to choose from and a very low cost to make them, you can be sure to strike the balance you need between variety and budget. The equipment you’ll need here won’t be that expensive, and could also come in handy when preparing other foods. just be sure to price your donuts right while offering a mix of classic and experimental flavors, and you’ll be able to make the most of this deal.

6. croissant

Think of some of the most popular snacks that people like to have with their coffee, and a croissant will spring to mind immediately. there are a few reasons why this particular butter cake is so popular. offers a unique texture and flavor you can’t find in other snacks. it is affordable and accessible. and it also contains a certain energy that most people need with their breakfast coffee.

once again, making croissants will need some skills from your staff. If you are baking your products at home, you will need to invest in the right equipment for it. But since croissants are one of the most popular items on a coffee shop menu, the investment is well worth it. You can also use your plain croissants to turn them into a variety of sandwiches, which is another way to increase revenue without investing too much in different cafe menu suggestions.

7. breakfast sandwich

Speaking of sandwiches, one of the classic options you can include in your cafeteria menu ideas is a breakfast sandwich. the possibilities are endless. You can use a variety of ingredients to make this breakfast sandwich a reality on your menu. but regardless of the variance, you’ll serve your customer base in a way that will have a significant impact on your sales.

In addition to the obvious topping options like eggs, bacon and toast, you can put your own spin on things and use a base like a croissant or even a donut, with toppings ranging from grilled chicken to eggplant for a option suitable for vegetarians. Having a breakfast sandwich on the menu will keep your income on an upward trend, while also establishing your reputation as more than just a coffee shop. make sure you have an experienced staff to handle this offer as it all comes down to taste in this article.

8. breakfast pizza

When talking about the best-selling snacks, the presence of pizza cannot be ignored. yes, pizza on a cafeteria menu can sell like hotcakes when it’s made and presented the right way. what is the correct path here you ask? to turn pizza into a warm and comforting offering that’s a cross between breakfast and lunch.

In other words, it’s breakfast pizza.

Made from very common ingredients like eggs, bacon, sausage and cheese, this particular offering can further appease your customers if your cafe has a seating arrangement. If you’re selling your coffee and snacks through a pop-up window or food truck, then you can go the mini-pizza route to deliver pizza to go, and still enjoy the benefits of including this popular dish in your stores. suggestions from your cafeteria menu. In addition to the breakfast sandwich above, this breakfast pizza is another way to branch out into more exciting foods through your cafeteria.

9. cupcakes

once ranked as one of the most popular foods in the us. In the US, cupcakes remain strong in terms of the demand that surrounds them. With different varieties and toppings to choose from, they remain a staple for coffee shops, especially during busy lunch hours and closing time. If you want to serve the best-selling sugary snacks to a variety of customers through your coffee shop, then cupcakes are the way to go.

You can ask your staff to prepare your cupcakes with some of the more basic flavors and toppings. but you can also get them through a third-party provider. Make sure you’re not baking big batches when you start offering them and wait for your customers’ response on the screen. once you’re sure of the demand around them, you can easily add them as a permanent fixture to your cafe menu ideas.

10. macaroni

Another sweet snack that you can easily offer in your coffee shop is the macaron. Made from a meringue base, these colorful little offerings add great charm to your display and attract different customers as they shop for their preferred form of coffee. Since they are light and still promise a distinctly sweet taste, they are very popular with customers who don’t want something as heavy as a cupcake, but need to satisfy their sweet tooth.

You can make macarons in-house through an experienced staff member, or simply go the route of contacting an outside vendor. Starting slowly with these offers and increasing your offer with customer demand is a good way to go for your coffee shop. Make sure your baristas are doing everything they can to sell them, especially to your late-night crowd, as that’s a great time for people to enjoy something like this and treat themselves.

Overall, having these 10 items in your cafeteria menu suggestions can enhance your offerings to serve a wide variety of customers. most of these items also come in vegetarian and vegan options, so you can cater to that customer base quite easily as well.

But whatever you do, be sure to check your finances and foot traffic before adding more items to your menu. As a pro tip, make sure your staff are also doing their best to upsell and cross-sell customers as they see fit, as that will help you hit your daily sales goals with ease.