![]() As food safety has played a larger role in consumers’ view of hospitality in recent years, salad bars and other foods served buffet-style have felt the impact. We’ve all seen salad tongs drift into the ingredients they are meant to serve, carrying bacteria with them – and this is more apt to disturb consumers now than it did before Covid. Making salad serving areas feel safe requires vigilance from staff – a difficult task if you have a smaller-than-ideal team right now. But as with so many other parts of the restaurant experience, there are options coming to market that are automating self-service and delivering potential benefits for food safety. One example: touchless self-service salad bars that store ingredients in clear, refrigerated compartments and dispense a set amount of ingredients. No germy tongs or sneeze guards required – and restaurants can manage portion control at the same time. ![]() There is a growing subset of guests who are concerned less with how many calories they consume and more with the processes required for that food to reach them. They want to eat foods with a low carbon footprint and for their food packaging to reflect that ethos too. Industry research indicates a growing number of restaurants across categories offering climatarian menus that measure and share a menu item’s carbon footprint. Whether or not your restaurant offers such an option, climate impact is a topic likely to be on the minds of more guests – as well as existing and potential staff. ![]() Has the term "regenerative agriculture" come onto your radar yet this year? If not, Datassential’s new report on the year’s food trends predicts it’s only a matter of time before it becomes part of operators’ vernacular. The phrase has been appearing with increasing regularity on food packaging and marketing, as well as on menus. Regenerative agriculture refers to a wide range of farming principles and practices designed to restore crop and soil biodiversity, remove carbon from the atmosphere and sequester it in soil, improve water quality, and make agriculture more sustainable as a result. While it's not a new idea, it weaves together a number of modern sustainability practices found in agriculture. Sustainable foods continue to attract the attention of consumers – currently, 70 percent of consumers believe the food they eat should be grown on farms that use sustainable practices – so restaurant employees will need to be conversant about their own brand practices and values in this area. ![]() Plant-based foods have been on the rise for some time – and there’s no end in sight. A new report by Bloomberg Intelligence projects the plant-based foods market to comprise a substantial share of the global protein market, reaching 7.7 percent by 2030 – a huge leap from where it was in 2020. Consumer interest in healthy, sustainable foods is driving the trend. Plant-based options are expanding into in new product categories including ice cream, eggs, cheese and seafood options. The recent National Restaurant Association Show reflected the continued rise of plant-based options, with a plant-based tuna filet and shrimp attracting attention and accolades in the seafood category. ![]() A cool drink can be an even bigger draw than great food on a hot summer day – and more consumers are looking for beverage options without alcohol. Food Navigator research found that low- and no-alcohol consumption is on track to rise by one-third by 2026. What could be helpful for restaurant operators to know is that many of these beverages cost just as much on store shelves as their alcoholic counterparts do – and your menu prices can reflect that. But according to Mintel research, it’s important to promote the experience of these drinks to justify the price tag. Experience-enhancing traits could include flavor combinations that are perceived to be higher-end, eye-catching colors, and ingredients that profess to improve health or mood. ![]() Environmental friendliness means a lot more to today’s consumers than it did just a few years ago – and to accommodate that change, restaurants are making changes well beyond the food they serve. For example, Taco Bell’s planned installation of electric vehicle charging stations in more than 100 of its California restaurants this year is not only a nod to its environmentally aware guests in the state. It also has the potential to help the brand pull business from convenience stores, which, as Modern Restaurant Management put it recently, have been taking a “larger piece of the quick-service restaurant pie” with their ability to combine multiple service offerings in one stop. Considering the habits and values of your guests, how might you demonstrate your environmental awareness in creative, convenient ways – whether large or small, and both on your menu and beyond it? ![]() A recent article in Eater points to consumers’ subscription fatigue: People subscribe to so many services in their daily lives that asking them to add another can feel like a big ask. Nonetheless, UBS predicts the subscription market will boom to $1.5 trillion by 2025, and restaurants are keen to join it. The more successful ones are finding ways to build exclusivity and even community around their offers. For about $7 a month, P.F. Chang’s Platinum Rewards Program, for example, allows members to jump to the head of the reservation line, earn double points on purchases compared to their unpaid Gold membership, and participate in “insider panels” that the restaurant uses to plan new business developments. While the pandemic supercharged the concept of bringing the restaurant experience home, the idea is here to stay – and restaurants that find ways to use these offers to elevate their connection to guests, whether that’s in the dining room, at home or in between, could gain some die-hard fans. What do your best guests want to see from you? ![]() Need a creative new recipe? Some operators are turning to ChatGPT for help in fine-tuning ideas. According to a recent article in the Robb Report, Raven Bar in San Francisco tapped some key ingredients and a flavor profile into the AI tool and landed on a new concoction that combines mezcal infused with guajillo chili peppers, blood orange, grapefruit juice and Firewater bitters. To give credit where it’s due, they named the new beverage CraftGPT. The tool can be a helpful means of generating the initial ideas that lead to new recipes. ![]() At a time when guests are looking for a memorable experience that feels like a good value, all while restaurant operators are looking for ways to manage supply chain fluctuations and waste, tasting menus can be everyone’s friend. They give operators more control over food waste and overhead costs, since they can generally be offered with fewer staff. At the same time, when guests know they are experiencing something fleeting, the meal becomes special and gives them a reason to return again the next time you offer something new. Finally, tasting menus can give chefs an opportunity to get creative with ingredients again, particularly if they have been leaning on more speed-scratch items in the kitchen. How can you incorporate more of the plentiful ingredients on hand this season into appealing tasting menus? ![]() Bowl-based meals continue to be in high demand across day parts. They present a good opportunity for chefs to offer the health-conscious, plant-forward combinations guests are craving — and freshen up their menus with flavorful, in-season ingredients ranging from peas to asparagus. Help your bowls stand out with layers of texture and color, pops of flavor delivered by additions like global spices or fermented produce, and homemade signature add-ins on top of any speed-scratch ingredients you’re using. |
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