Client: The Spoon & Skillet
Location: Philadelphia, PA
Restaurant Type: Mid-size casual dining, American comfort food
Table Count: 22 indoor, 8 patio
Goal: Increase sales of underperforming menu items (desserts and cocktails)
Solution: Custom printed table tents featuring rotating specials
🧩 The Challenge
The Spoon & Skillet had a strong lunch and dinner crowd but consistently low sales on desserts and featured cocktails. Despite great reviews, customers just weren't ordering past their entrées.
Management realized that waitstaff didn’t always upsell desserts, and the dessert menu—buried at the back of the full-size menu—often went unnoticed.
🛠️ The Strategy
The owner decided to test table tents as a visual upselling tool placed directly at each table. They created:
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Double-sided 4" x 6" table tents
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One side for desserts with vibrant images and names
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One side for cocktails with fun names and pricing
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QR code included for full menu and online ordering
To keep things fresh, the table tents were updated monthly, each with a new theme (e.g., "Fall Favorites," "Sips & Sweets," "Chocolate Lover’s Month").
đź“Š The Results
After implementing the table tents for 90 days, the restaurant saw significant changes:
| Metric | Before | After | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Avg. weekly dessert sales | $220 | $303 | ↑ 38% |
| Avg. weekly cocktail sales | $450 | $610 | ↑ 36% |
| Avg. check size | $21.45 | $24.80 | ↑ 15.6% |
| Customer feedback (Yelp/Google) | Occasional mention | Frequent mentions of dessert specials | — |
🗣️ One reviewer wrote: "We hadn’t planned to get dessert, but the Nutella cheesecake photo on the table was too tempting—glad we did!"
đź’ˇ Key Takeaways
1. Table Tents Are Passive, But Powerful
Unlike staff, table tents never forget to upsell. They deliver the right message, at the right time, to every guest.
2. Photos Make the Difference
Professional food photography drew attention and drove impulse orders. Desserts and drinks with rich textures or vibrant colors performed best.
3. Rotating Content Keeps Guests Curious
Monthly changes to the table tents created anticipation and repeat orders. Staff said guests would ask, “What’s new this month?”
4. QR Codes Add Digital Access
Some guests scanned the QR code to order takeout versions of what they saw on the table—turning dine-in upsells into repeat off-site sales.
👩🍳 What The Owner Says
“Our servers are amazing, but they can’t pitch every dessert to every table. The table tents do it for them—and we’re seeing real numbers because of it. It’s one of the most affordable and consistent tools we’ve ever used.”
– Jennifer M., Owner, The Spoon & Skillet
Final Thoughts
Whether you run a full-service restaurant, café, or bar, custom table tents can be a quiet but effective way to grow your sales and brand presence. They're easy to update, affordable to print, and guaranteed to get seen—because they're already sitting on your tables.
Ready to try table tents for your restaurant?
We offer custom sizes, double-sided printing, lamination options, and low minimums—perfect for showcasing specials, QR menus, promos, and more.
Turn your tables into selling stations.
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