Price for Designing a Menu

[dealinhoz]

hello chefs, i've been asked to design an appetizer menu (15 items) for a friend who is starting up a winebar/asian fusion restaurant. considering i would be developing recipes, instructing the cooks how to cook/plate and giving her full ownership of the recipes... what would you charge for this service? thank you.

[sucrechef]

The only way I know of to charge this is to calculate how many hours you anticipate spending on this project, figure out what you want to charge per hour and multiply the two. Then figure out how much you want to charge for the rights to the recipes and add in a cushion of hours if something goes wrong or longer than expected. This should give you a starting point for negotiation.

[Blueicus]

How exactly does rights to recipes work? I mean, I hear Coca Cola could've patented their recipe for Cola, but didn't because it would be known to all... does such a similar concept exist with regards to menus? If one place does Bearnaise ice cream does that mean no other place can serve it? I just wanted a little clarification.

Also, if you're writing a menu and you're not the chef remember to figure into the factor how on Earth the restaurant is going to source their ingredients... if you're going to put sichuan peppercorns or Italian white truffles you better **** well hope the chef knows where to go get a constant supply or show them.