You may be surprised to learn that assisted living menus follow many of the same trends as the restaurant industry. By implementing some of these food service updates for your facility, you can help improve your residents’ health and happiness.
Resident satisfaction is a key focus for long-term care centers, with meal quality and the dining experience playing an important role in the lives of seniors. Residents want to feel at home, not as if they are living in an institutional setting.
With that in mind, senior centers around the world are adopting new strategies to make mealtimes more enjoyable for residents.
Assisted Living Menus Replicate the Restaurant Experience
Buffet-style meals have long been popular at senior facilities. Facility and food service managers know that serving meals in this manner cuts food costs and reduces labor expenses.
At one time, this approach to food service was popular with seniors, just as cafeterias were popular in the restaurant industry. Unfortunately, the cafeteria format has lost its attraction to most diners, including seniors. Today, assisted living residents prefer to dine as they would at home or in a restaurant.
Menu planners at many long-term care facilities have embraced this idea and now provide table service rather than buffet meals. Seniors are happier with a restaurant-style dining experience and this type of meal format is safer and more convenient for residents with mobility issues.
Assisted Living Menus Cater to Residents’ Cultures and Tastes
In the past, institutional food service programs relied on highly-structured meal plan templates designed with a focus on residents’ dietary restrictions, efficiency and the bottom line. As a result, menus were basic, bland and repetitive.
Today, dietary limitations, mealtime efficiency and food costs are still critical factors in developing menus for assisted living centers. But, thanks to meal planning software and other technological innovations, facilities can effectively address all of these compelling factors while serving more appetizing and varied menus.
Long-term care facilities can now cater to the tastes of the residents, providing delicious and nutritious food that is crave-worthy. Instead of bland, boring meals, menu planning software creates dietitian-approved menus that incorporate favorite foods and different styles of cuisine.
This trend extends to regional and cultural considerations as well. For example, residents of a facility in Arizona may prefer more southwestern or Mexican-influenced recipes, whereas Georgia residents may demand a more Southern style of food preparation.
Long-Term Care Facilities Use Less Processed Food
For many years, senior center food preparation was handled by unskilled workers rather than trained culinary professionals. As a result, recipes were often simplified and assisted living menus were primarily based around prepackaged and processed foods.
Today, a greater focus on resident health has led many facilities toward more natural, healthy ingredients rather than processed and prepackaged foods. Local, seasonal produce now plays a large role in senior facility meals. Residents – as well as their families and doctors – recognize the health benefits of this culinary shift and appreciate this approach to menu planning.
The Grove Menus meal planning software program provides a simple and cost-effective way to capitalize on these and other relevant industry trends. Contact us today to learn more about how this revolutionary meal planning tool can improve your assisted living menus.