Launched across its five Cambridgeshire and Hertfordshire venues, the new menus come with the inclusion of lighter dishes such as couscous salad (£6.95) and chicken penne pasta (£8.95), along with a more premium range of hot dogs.
Snug managing director Giles Fry said the revamped offer is more in tune with the company’s customer profile, attained through the help of a series of focus groups over a six-month period.
He explained that ‘comfort’ food continues to feature heavily, with burgers still likely to be the number-one seller – but the lighter options would serve as ideal snacks to complement an updated cocktail menu.
With five separate menus – comprising breakfast, lunch, all day, appetisers and sharers, and desserts – Fry said his company has been able to pinpoint specific "day-parts" to meet customer needs. And for the first time, there will be two different price-points across the five bars.
He said: "Through our work with the focus groups, we found that our food was very male-orientated even though 55% of our guests are female.
"The re-brand shows a real step change in our position as a business. It was high time that we re-connected with our core customer profile and understood their needs. We have evolved the brand into something more appealing for the 24 to 35-year-old discernible drinkers market."
In addition to the classic hot dog (£6.25), there is a more premium ‘New Yorker’ hot dog, with dill pickles, and melted mature Cheddar cheese (£7.25), and a chilli cheese option, which is topped with beef chilli, melted Cheddar cheese, diced jalapeños and American mustard (£8.25).
Fry explained: "We’ve had a range of hot dogs on the menu for about six months, but we’ve elevated them with a more premium offer as hot dogs really seem to be popular now. And already, they seem to be going down a storm."
Creative cocktails
Complementing the food offer is an enhanced drinks range, with more emphasis on quirky sharing cocktails such as Indiana Bones & Crystal Maze – Havana rum mixed with Passoa, citrus fruits, sugar, orange, passion fruit and La Fee absinthe – and Brazilian Basil Smash, a Cachaça-based cocktail created with the World Cup in mind.
The company was a finalist in the Best Drinks Offer category in the Publican Awards 2014.
Snug’s rebranding exercise, which includes a new company logo, comes ahead of a major refurbishment of its St Albans bar and next month’s opening of a sixth site, in Hitchin. Plans are also afoot to open a further two bars by next spring.