Lenten Menu Ideas for Restaurants

When the new year starts, some people have to start preparing for Lent. For restaurants and food service businesses that want to help support their customers who observe lent, having some menu ideas for lent will help make it easy for people. Another great part about having more meatless options is you can extend these menu ideas throughout the whole year. Eating less meat has a lot of health benefits and is a trendy menu item for 2023. Lenten menu ideas for restaurants will be a great change on your menu that will benefit lent observers, people with meat allergies and vegetarians. 

Fish Fry

A Friday fish fry is a great way to celebrate lent and stay away from meat. Fish, shellfish and meat-alternatives like tofu make it easier to skip on eating any chicken or beef. Your restaurant or foodservice menu can list fish-based dishes or list regular dishes with a meat-substitute. Here are some menu options that you can promote that are “lent-friendly”:

• Fish and chips


• Fish or shrimp tacos


• Seafood casserole


• Shrimp mozambique


• Baked salmon


• Sushi rolls

Egg Dishes

Having more alternatives to meat than just fish is a great idea for any menu for lenten season. Eggs are a great source of protein that will help make a dish filling and delicious. The best part about eggs is that they are versatile and can be used with a variety of herbs, spices and vegetables to make any dish meat-free. Try having a breakfast for dinner menu by serving eggs with a variety of breakfast foods like French toast, pancakes and fruit salad. Get your menu ready for lent with any of these egg dishes:

• Scrambled/poached/fried eggs


• Egg frittata


• Shakshuka


• Egg tacos


• Quiche


• Egg sandwich

If you need some help with cooking your eggs, we have a great video on how to poach eggs in a speed oven.

Soup Dishes

What’s more comforting and filling than a hot bowl of hearty soup? Soup can still be filling and delicious without meat-based broth. Make your no-meat Ash Wednesday menu full of warm and hearty soups that are packed with flavor and veggies to give more options for eating. Be sure to use a vegetable or vegan broth in any of these soups. Skip the regular chicken noodle for any of these great meatless options:

• Vegetable stew


• Tomato soup and grilled cheese


• Meatless chili


• Lentil and chickpea soup


• Broccoli cheddar soup

Pasta Dishes

Pasta is the easiest way to avoid meat and still have some of your favorite foods. Pasta is also great because there are so many options that you can use to customize dishes and swap out meat for other ingredients. Also check on the ingredients of your sauces if you aren’t making it in-house. Some toppings and sauces, like pesto, can technically contain some meat-products.

• Shrimp alfredo pasta


• Cheese ravioli


• Mac and cheese


• Sweet potato lasagna


• Spinach and ricotta stuffed shells


• Pasta primavera