Small plates could have a big impact on restaurant menus

The days of the all-you-can-eat buffet may be numbered. Tapas and small bites are en vogue everywhere from fast-casual to sit-down restaurants. USA Today recently wrote about restaurants introducing smaller plates — typically a dollar or two below the appetizer price — that are meant to be shared.

National chains like the California Pizza Kitchen and Cheesecake Factory are hoping to lure more business with their small cravings (introduced last month at half the price of appetizers) and small plates and snacks, respectively.

Leawood-based Houlihan’s has reported that small plates account for 28 percent of its sales in Kansas City (the best-selling of those is the $3.50 mini burger). And even though White Castle’s long gone, you can find every kind of slider — from crab cake at Jack Gage‘s to pulled pork at 12 Baltimore.