Summer Sizzle
Wednesday, 21 January 2026
Sweet ideas to seduce your customers this Valentine’s Day
Featuring:
Lisa Van Zanten – Get Caked by Lisa and Atlantic Group
Valentine’s Day is a highlight of any restaurant’s calendar, but are you making the most of it?
With February 14 falling on a Saturday this year, it makes sense to offer Valentine’s Day promotions on the days and weeks before, to stimulate sales and bookings in addition to what is already a busy night.
Here’s how to increase your average spend when love is in the air, by offering sweet delights, more meal occasions and little extras for guests to take home.
Share the love
“I really think Valentine’s Day has evolved beyond romantic couples to include all loved ones, family and friends, as well as a bit of self-care,” says expert patissier Lisa Van Zanten. “It’s a really nice day to highlight and give something really beautiful to others.”
With a career spanning over 20 years, including two at the famed Clarige’s Hotel in London, Lisa is Executive Pastry Chef for major restaurant, catering and events company Atlantic Group, as well as running her own specialty cake business, Get Caked by Lisa.
“Atlantic restaurant at Crown will have lots of tables for two for dinner on Valentine’s Day, and I’ll be featuring a dessert to share, which makes it extra romantic, I think it’s a lovely thing to do,” she says.
However Lisa believes venues can share the love beyond dinner to cafes, patisseries and more casual restaurants. “I can see great scope for serving cake and dessert throughout the day, either for sharing or as individual serves.”
This could even extend to a special offer for groups of female friends to celebrate ‘Galentine’s Day’ on 13 February, or ‘coffee dates with your bestie’ during the week.
Trending flavours
Lisa says cupcakes, heart cakes, and brownies are a sure winner either in-house or as a takeaway. “Mini heart cakes are trending at the moment, in a vintage style that captures the essence of Valentine’s Day.”
Meanwhile for Atlantic restaurant, Lisa is planning a seasonal dessert menu that leans into romance. “We always keep one decadent chocolate dessert, and we will hero beautiful summer fruits like berries and stone fruits,” she says.
“In terms of flavours, I think it’s still very classic, like white chocolate and raspberry, champagne and strawberry, dark chocolate and caramel. Biscoff is another flavour profile that I find appeals to most palates,” she adds.
Pistachio was huge this year and I think that will extend to other nuts next. Maybe hazelnut or walnut… what the Dubai chocolate craze taught us is that people love texture inside cakes and desserts, and nuts give that element of crunch.
Limited editions, unlimited potential
According to Lisa, Valentines Day is a great opportunity to elevate an everyday cake or dessert and offer customisations to make it something truly special.
“For example, you might have a strawberries and cream cake, but you can offer an upgrade of champagne syrup through the cake, or an extra layer. Personalising the cake with a name or short message is also an easy upsell.”
Another way to create excitement is to offer a limited edition cake or dessert for a few days, either for sharing or as in individual treat. Give it a hashtag to encourage social media sharing.
“Dessert boxes do really well, because you can offer a selection of items, like a cupcake or a mini heart cake, a couple of chocolates and a brownie,” she adds. “If you get your packaging right, it gives that really luxe feel and makes a beautiful gift.”
Salt adds sweetness
An ambassador for Anchor Food Professionals, Lisa swears by Western Star Butter. “My ambassadorship shows how much I love their products,” she says. “You want to 100% ensure you are giving customers the perfect vision of your product, to bring repeat business. It must be consistent and give the best result, every time.”
Lisa tells InSeason that she only bakes with unsalted butter, so she can control the salt levels herself.
Sometimes people are a little bit scared to use salt, but I find it brings out the sweetness and helps your palate.
Prepping for success
In the kitchen, Lisa recommends batching preparation of cakes, fillings and buttercream, and freezing cakes ahead of time. “If you use a consistent base product it’s easy to upgrade with flavours and decorations,” she says.
“I use a tiered approach – a hero luxury celebration cake, then a mid-range dessert box or dessert, and then more economical small treats, that way there’s something for everyone.”
She also suggests offering a pre-order window to gauge demand for gifting and takeaways, and set up an assembly line workflow for efficiency when decorating.
More than a one-night sugar hit
So this Valentine’s Day, think strategically about what your venue can provide beyond dinner for two. Whether it’s a limited-edition offer, a personalised upgrade, a beautifully packaged dessert box or a shared sweet dish at any time of day, there are many ways to enjoy February 14’s halo effect.
With a little planning and a focus on creativity and flavour, you can make the most of this peak trading period and ensure the love flows.
Dessert boxes do really well, because you can offer a selection of items, like a cupcake or a mini heart cake, a couple of chocolates and a brownie. “If you get your packaging right, it gives that really luxe feel and makes a beautiful gift.
Western Star has been crafting butter in Victoria since leading butter makers in the Western District got together in 1926. Its Unsalted Butter is expertly crafted from one natural ingredient, Australian cream.
Pure taste —no added salt means the natural creamy taste of the butter shines through.
Complete control — add the exact amount of butter needed for your recipe with no risk of over-salting.
Enhanced texture — with a consistent and high quality finish and flavour to all baked goods.
Butter Unsalted
32 x 250g
Not everyone has an expert patissier in house, so when staffing and time aren’t on your side, Allied Pinnacle has your back with Utility Cake Mix.
Raspberry Lemon Mini Cake — bake as a thin slab, cut into small rectangles, then glaze with raspberry-lemon icing and top with berries.
Dubai Chocolate Truffle Cake Pop — crumble baked cake then mix with pistachio cream and roll into balls. Coat in tempered dark chocolate and finish with crushed pistachio.
Mini Heart Cake — add drops of pink colouring to mix, then bake in heart-shaped moulds and top with pink buttercream icing.
Utility Cake Mix
10kg
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