Each week new Meatless Monday participating restaurants and food trucks are popping up worldwide. To do our part in supporting Meatless Mondays we believe that sharing information, recipes, and news about vegetarianism and leading a more conscious life overall is beneficial for everyone, vegetarian and omnivore alike.

From large chains to fine dining, chefs and food truck vendors are discovering the many benefits Meatless Monday offers to both their patrons and their pockets.

What Meatless Mondays Can Do For Your Food Truck Business

  • By signing onto the Meatless Monday movement, you’re joining forces with eateries nationwide! From delis in D.C. to five-star bistros in Santa Monica, this is a public health campaign that everyone can get behind. Even celebrity chefs like Mario Batali and John Fraser now have Meatless Monday specials.
  • Meatless Mondays are a creative way to combat an otherwise slow day in the mobile food industry. Weekly specials are a great way to increase traffic and gain new customers. Meatless Monday also lends itself to a wide variety of one-time events and promotions; get them talking about you one week and dining with you the next!
  • Offering a Meatless Monday special couldn’t be easier! Simply highlight the meat-free options you already have on hand. Just like Sodexo, the world’s premier food services provider, does for its 10 million meals served every Monday. Remember- you don’t have to take meat off the menu to participate. For an exciting start to the week you can also use Monday to launch new meatless options or to highlight a local or seasonal dish.
  • Meatless dishes are usually much cheaper to produce and take less time to prepare. Highlighting meat-free entrees means an increase in profits from each dish sold. Low costs also mean you can offer attractive discounts and specials without breaking the bank.
  • Meatless Mondays are an easy way to show customers that you care about issues in your community. Rates of obesity and chronic preventable disease have soared in recent years. So too have concerns about the environmental impact of what we eat. Meatless Monday addresses both of these issues in an approachable way, allowing restaurants to be part of the conversation.

WHAT’S A MEATLESS MONDAY FEATURE?

There are limitless ways to bring Meatless Mondays to your food truck. But they broadly fall into two categories:

  • Highlight What You Have. If you already serve meatless dishes, simply highlight them as Meatless Monday options! You can gather them under one menu heading, use a little “MM” insignia next to each item, create your own Meatless Monday logo, make a Monday menu inset, or highlight Meatless Monday meals on a specials board. Ultimately, it’s just a matter of drawing attention to the delicious meat-free items you already serve.
  • Add Meatless Dishes. If you don’t already offer meat-free items, it’s easy to create and/or add these dishes. Half the fun of Meatless Monday is trying new, tasty meat-free fare – and this is a great opportunity for chefs and restaurateurs to get creative, experiment with different vegetables, or try new combinations of veggies, grains and beans. If you’re looking for recipes, MeatlessMonday.com is just one place where you’ll find a bounty of possibilities.

IT’S ALL ABOUT CHOICE

We encourage food trucks whenever possible, to offer meat-free options alongside meat dishes. Meatless Monday is a campaign of choice – it’s fundamentally about adding options, not taking them way. We want to introduce people to new, healthy foods and new ways to prepare and eat greens, grains, beans and fruits. The food trucks around the country that have had the most success with Meatless Monday offer choice to their customers.

GO FROM MENU TO MOVEMENT

When you offer Meatless Mondays specials, you’re joining an ever-growing network of food trucks, restaurants, organizations, schools and communities across the globe who have taken the pledge for better personal and environmental health. To tap into the power of the movement, make sure your patrons and staff know the message behind your menu!

Brief your employees on the Meatless Monday Movement – including benefits, history, and why your restaurant is participating – so they can easily answer customer questions.

ADVERTISE ONLINE

  • Let the world know that you’re going meatless on Monday! Add an announcement to your restaurant’s homepage or menu section- you can even use the logos available on www.MeatlessMonday.com. If you’re featuring a full Meatless Monday menu, post a link so site visitors can get a taste of what you have to offer.
  • Let them know you’re going Meatless Monday! Send an e-mail to [email protected] and they’ll add you to their list of participants on site!

USE SOCIAL MEDIA

  • Utilizing social media platforms like Facebook and Twitter is a quick, easy way to share the movement with your favorite customers:
  • Remind your followers about your Meatless Monday special on Sunday night or Monday morning.
  • Reinforce your reasons for going meatless by sharing informative health and environmental articles on Monday.
  • Use social media to ask for customer feedback- that way you’ll be able to share your successes and see where there’s room for improvement.
  • Show your follows what they’re missing! Post pictures of your Meatless Monday entrees, smiling customers, busy cooks or your Monday night full house!
  • Make your followers feel important with exclusive discounts, giveaways, meal deals and other “social media specials”.
  • Take advantage of the Meatless Mondays network! Send a shout-out to Meatless Monday on Facebook or Twitter so they can cross promote you.

www.Facebook.com/MeatlessMonday

www.Twitter.com/MeatlessMonday

POINT OF SALE PROMOTION

Don’t forget to advertise at your food truck! A few well-placed signs and a knowledgeable staff are all it takes to bring your Meatless Monday special to the next level:

  • Place a Meatless Monday cling in your service window so passersby can see that you’re part of the movement.
  • On Monday try putting specials on the menu board. Monday is your opportunity to make a positive impression that will last all week.
  • Train your wait staff to ask customers if they’re celebrating Meatless Monday today. Provide them with general information sheets so they can answer any questions customers might have.
  • Call attention to your Meatless Mondays meal choices- add a graphic to your existing menu, or simply create a separate menu board for Monday.

Please do your part today and join the movement? Signing up is fast and easy! Mobile Cuisine Magazine looks forward to our continued sharing of Meatless Monday articles with our readers!