Signature dips to keep you ahead of the game

Posted on Friday, 5ᵗʰ July, 2024

When it comes to feeding the fans, easy-to-hold and shareable food ticks all the boxes.

In previous articles, we’ve discussed the secrets of a crowd-pleasing pub and the benefits of developing a dedicated game-day menu that meets the needs of footy fans.

In this special ‘Feeding the fans’ article, we explore why burgers are the perfect fodder for footy crowds.

According to UFS research, pubs, clubs, and sports bars could be doing more to attract sports-loving patrons by offering game-day menus loaded with dishes that are shareable, easy to eat, and cater for a diverse range of diets.

Burgers are an ideal stand, hold, and eat meal for patrons who are on their feet while cheering on the match-of-the-day on your venue’s big screens. But how can you be sure that your burgers will stand out from the competition?

1. Cost efficiency: Building your own sauces off a reliable mayonnaise base allows you to source ingredients in bulk at lower prices, reducing overall expenses and maximising your margins.
2. Menu diversity: Custom sauces help you meet the requirements of diverse dining audiences, including those with specific dietary needs.
3. Differentiation: Signature sauces that are exclusive to your pub, club, or bar will set you apart from competitors.
4. Adaptability: Taking control of your sauce production gives you the flexibility to quickly respond to changing consumer trends and preferences.

Research by Unilever Food Solutions reveals that a growing number of footy pubs and bars across Australia and New Zealand are including signature dips and sauces on their menus.

These range from dipping sauces with familiar flavours—such as hot English mustard mayonnaise, roasted garlic aioli, and chipotle mayonnaise—to emerging flavours, such as blue cheese mayonnaise, smoked aioli, and truffle mayonnaise.

With just a few tweaks, you can transform your basic mayonnaise dips into signature sauces that customers will love. Think of it as your secret weapon to stand out from the crowd while being able to charge a little extra.

Some venues are off to a flying start, featuring multiple budget-friendly yet appetising dipping sauces across their menus.

Renowned sports pub, the Warren View Hotel in Enmore, central Sydney, offers a bar snacks menu* that includes hot chips with aioli, chicken wings with sriracha mayonnaise, and tempura onion rings with vegan mayonnaise.

The sports bar menu* at popular East Perth footy pub, The Royal, includes a salt and pepper Szechuan fried squid dish with native finger lime aioli, while its no-meat burger comes with a jalapeño mayonnaise.

In each instance, an emphasis on an appetising dipping or secret sauce elevates a comfort food classic into a full-flavoured dish that can command a premium price.

With a wide range of versatile, authentic, and scratch-made options that work with any menu, it’s no surprise that Hellmann’s is the world’s no.1* mayonnaise brand. Make new fans with the footy crowd by building upon a base of Hellmann’s mayonnaise to bring these simple sauces to your game-day menu: 

For even more inspiration, check out these 6 quick and easy dipping sauce recipes.

Many venues still don’t fully recognise the power of a well-written menu that puts an emphasis on evocative copy and dish descriptions that help to set apart a venue’s food.

This is especially important when it comes to up-selling patrons into high-margin meals with dipping sauces. With a little effort, that signature sauce could be more temptingly described as a creamy ranch-style dip with roasted garlic or a chunky avocado dip with a hit of finely grated wasabi.

With figures from Statista showing home delivery only getting more popular, put your menu descriptions under the microscope and make sure they’re working as hard to sell your meals as you are preparing them.

*Menu sauce examples sourced direct from online menus in April 2024.

*Source: Euromonitor, Cooking Ingredients & Meals, retail value RSP in 2023.