Another round?
“Free food (especially bread and chips) encourages diners to order more drinks, which have a high profit margin.”
It’s all about the history…it goes way, way, way back.
“There’s a historical precedent. Tavern owners historically served one meal per day, at a set time and for a set price, so filling diners up on bread before the main course of meat, fish, or other more expensive foods helped keep expenses down.”
Just enough to pass the time.
“If you go into a restaurant and it takes 15 minutes to receive your food and you have nothing to occupy yourself but sitting there nursing your water, 15 minutes seems a long time. If you have bread (or chips and salsa) you are distracted and not focused on how long it takes to prepare your food. Instead of being frustrated that the restaurant can’t get meals out of the kitchen in a timely manner as you sit unoccupied, you instead praise the prompt service when distracted from the passage of time.”
Bread works like a primer.
“Primes your appetite just in time — people who’ve had a couple of bites of bread order more food because they think they’re hungrier than they are.”