"The techniques restaurants adopt to make customers part with their cash have been revealed.

The top tricks are using a specials board to charge a premium for old food, set menus and targeting women with desserts.

The techniques, featured in UK food magazine Olive, also include manipulating menus by putting items the restaurant is keen to promote in the right-hand corner, which draws the eye. French terms were often used to make dishes sound more exotic and justify a higher price tag."

My comments are: 

1. Maybe the writer has never heard of marketing! I mean every business tries to put their wares in the best possible light.

2. I don't know many restaurants who sell "old food", however it is natural to try to use all food prior to it's use-by-date. It is just good business practice, especially in this tough market.

I will bet anything that even the writer has rehashed something in his or her career! However, unlike a rehashed story, if the food is 'off' or 'old' then no self respecting restaurateur is going to offer it to his clientele. Oops, I used a couple of French terms, sorry, I meant customer and food place owner of course. I was just trying to make my story more attractive.

The words restaurant and cafe, both have their deriviatives in the French language and suddenly I am pressed to find an alternative word. I would hate to be accused of dressing up my story!

3. As for desserts, if restaurants only targeted women my guess is that they would be cutting out half of their market. I recall in my restaurant we made desserts appealing for people who liked ... well desserts, actually.

Well, that is it. I have said my piece. Over to you!