A couple of our menu items require a marinara sauce dip. We now have to individually pour the sauce from a large can into individual 1 oz containers. This is obviously labor intensive. Do you guys know of a vendor or a place where can order individually packed 1 oz. marinara sauce (similar to ketchup packets, mayo packets, etc.).
Thanks!
I have found the price of the pre-packaged dipping sauces higher than the do-it-yourself even after taking labor into the equation. Your food supply company should be able to find something for you.
Do you really go through so many that it is a problem? We prep ours up daily and it just takes ten minutes or so. We fill a pitcher and pour into the cups. There’s generally plenty of time for this sort of prep at my shop. As far as a prepackaged one, expect your costs to double if you do find one.
We go through about 300-400 a day. The menu items take a while to make as is. We’ve been looking for the past couple of weeks but to no avail. We found something similar at Restaurant Depot but it was a little much for what we need and pricey. And our supplier doesn’t carry anything of this sort.
Find a pump to affix to the can and the prep will speed along. You are only talking about 2 to 2.5 gallons, so 20 minutes tops to pump and lid souffle cups. Pre-packaged will run a lot higher than you are looking for unless you buy by the pallet, I suspect.
At 300-400 per day you could buy by the pallet. A couple more thoughts on this, as I don’t know what you are using these for. Do you really want to use packets if these are for items that will be dipped into the sauce? What would the customer empty the packet onto in order to dip the food into the sauce? Cups work so much better for dipping. Also, not knowing your volume, 300-400 cups a day is quite a bit. If you are putting multiple cups per item, have you considered moving to a larger cup and including just one? Takes the same time (maybe quicker) to fill a 3.25 ounce cup as a smaller one. Just food for thought. But if you insist on getting prepackaged your food supplier should be able to help. At the volume you use, should be able to find a decent price.
thanks guys! the pump is a great idea. And never thought of the inconvenience of having to pour the sauce onto the food instead of dipping.
I guess I am really missing something…If your not a franchise don’t you want to offer a better product ?..I mean if its all about being easy why not just buy frozen pizza, pasta, etc and microwave it for people…I would hope we could all offer something better than prepackaged sauce…and what kind of an impression do you think this would leave with the customer…
I agree on presenting the best product possible. But we’re just thinking of a possible way that can ease the labor. It’s for a bread roll type product …each one is hand made.
One of the reasons why I post on this forum is to get feedback and tips from those that are more experienced. And the others on here are always great in opening my eyes to possibilities and pitfalls that might seem common sense but sometimes it just takes someone else to make you realize it. So thank you again guys! I think we’re going to stick with our current method which is scooping, after looking at the work flow the pump might prove to be more difficult.
Easygoer13 why not just grow your own tomatoes and spices then to make certain you have control of every aspect of this sauce. Yes you are missing something. As a business gets busier choices need to be made. Very often the choices that revolve around efficiency get blown off as cutting quality. This is commonly not the case. Very often decisions that increase efficiency also add to quality. So please jump off your high horse for a moment and explain how you will prepare your sauce. Is it so different to start with a prepackaged base to make the sauce you put on your pizza than have a company prepackage your dipping sauce cups? If so, please explain.
If I come down off my high horse it will to shove my size 14 boot up your a%%… 
…You can do what you want…but for me when I go to an independent place I have certain expectations…If I get a package of salad dressing It for me automatically makes me think cheap…I understand about being efficient…But be smart about it…don’t put a big red bulls-eye where the customer gets the impression that your in the back just opening up cans…
Completely uncalled for Easygoer13, especially being aimed at one of the premier posters (and probably operators) on this board.
didn’t know my post would cause this much drama :). Thanks for the support! I obviously opted the diplomatic way as this forum is meant to be a community that help each other in a constructive, friendly manner. One would think Easygoer would be supportive of a newbie as he’s also one himself.
Paul definitely hit it on the mark- efficiency doesn’t equal lack of quality. I guess it takes for someone w/ experience like Paul to be able to justify that. That’s exactly the reason why we were trying to find a better way for the dip to not take up so much time so that we can dedicate equal or more time on making the bread roll and it’s not to cut corners.
Are your volumes going to be enough that you could consider a co-packer to create YOUR sauce and labels to cup and serve . . . sell to customers and other places?
Easygoer, you will find that once you have a functioning business, you have to learn quickly where are the key elements and where are the places you can maneuver to reduce food/labor/other costs. You can spend either huge money on foam drink cups or buy the almost exact same product for less . . . small example that most will agree is an easy money saver. As volume increases the challenges and decisions change in scope. Gotta fit into the business model and reality of the kitchens. We buy our celery sticks pre-cut because it is a low impact product with a chance for labor savings.
No it was definitely called for as I believe easygoer and I see business in different ways. I’ve eaten at many as many indy places that have sucked as I have that have been great. Most of the indys that have sucked probably had time to grow their own tomatoes and spices. Those that were good probably started with stanislaus or other fresh packed tomatoes.
As far as sauce cups go, I would tend to think the consistency of the product thats manufactured to your own specs and branded with your own label/logo would be a good thing rather than a detriment. Makes a place look professional in my mind.
Keep those size 14’s on easygoer you’ll need them as you tend to the farm while growing your ingredients from scratch to give your customers only the very best.
not sure what qualifies “high volume” to have it pre-packaged. We go through a little over 1,000 of these 1 oz. dip a week.
Is this just for delivery/carry out, or is it dine in, or both?
I would think a pump system would be faster and cleaner than pouring.
Yes Paul seems like a great guy…I thought he was just having fun with me and was just doing to same in return…I certainly understand that my comment about using a prepackaged sauce could have been seen as uppity…But I do think that even if you want to use a packaged sauce, presenting it to the customer as such is not the brightest thing to do. I agree with the cup idea…Paul if you read this please know I was just having some fun…that’s why I put the wink in there…
Whoa Whoa…back up…my comment was not towards making your own private label product, I agree that could leave a great perception about quality with the customer. It was about using a generic pre packaged sauce as in ketchup pacs. I think presentation and customer expectations are huge…I think that no matter the sauce you want to use if you don’t have your own private label package, than do the cups it in my opionion it makes a better statement to your customer.
We buy our celery sticks pre-cut because it is a low impact product with a chance for labor savings.
Kinda on topic but you can tell when celery has been cut long before you get it. Granted it isnt a big deal, but are the labor savings worth the added cost of the pre-cut? Im not saying cut to order celery, but to make it worth it you would be ordering bulk celery which some ends up sitting for days.
Back to the packets, as long as the product is good it shouldnt be a problem with customers. Putting premade dressing/sauce/condiments, in a packet doesnt mean they are good or bad, just like putting it in a cup doesnt make it better.
I can tell what mayo/ketcup/mustard it is, doesnt matter if it comes in a packet, a cup, a pump, or is put on my food. Just because it comes pre-packaged doesnt mean it is bad or will give a bad impression, it is all about taste.