As final few months of 2018 are fast approaching, it’s time to start thinking about the trends that will dominate the restaurant industry in 2019. The driving forces behind some of the biggest restaurant trends that are going to rule in the coming year are an advancement in technology, smooth dine-in environment, and eye-catching food serving.
However, sustainability remains a significant trend, and restaurants are going further to be environmentally responsible by remaining high on ethics. And they are doing it by mitigating waste as well as sourcing local produce.
As the world is becoming increasingly digitized, restaurants are also opting for many streamlined and automated operations using cloud-based POS solution. And, as per increasing trend of social media–focused society, restaurants should be more striving to be more Instagrammable.
Here is the list of restaurant trends that are going to hit the café and restaurant industry in 2019:
Waste Conscious Menus
The sustainable and farm-to-table cuisine is being a buzzy term for years now and it will continue to be the first priority of your visitors. Nowadays, people have become more concerned with where the food comes from and its environmental impact.
The latest iteration of the movement is “Root to stem”, which means restaurants are also obliged to play a vital role in keeping the environment, food, and living better. They mainly practice it by focusing on curbing food waste by using each part of the veggies, fruits, and other products. The NRDC reports suggest that 40 per cent of food in America is losing up to 40% of its food from farm to fork to landfill; instead, it’s wasted and ends up in the landfill. Thus, so many restaurants are exploring ways to use every part of the product — as well as food that has already been discarded.
Technology-Driven Operations
Whether you have been in the restaurant industry for a while or starting a restaurant set up this year, expect digitization and automation to take a leading role in the restaurant world. Recently, many restaurants have started adopting advancement in tech as they have started using cloud-based POS to keep track of each business detail even when n the go.
The cloud-based Pos solution keeps restaurateurs at ease by keeping them aware of their sales, inventory, and accounts, which means they can run whole business on fingertips.
The cloud-based POS system isn’t just to keep track of business operations, but the software also helps to maintain customers’ data perfectly.
Note: Famous Myths About Cloud-Based POS that is Proved to be False
Location-Based Marketing
In 2019, there will be more restaurants tapping into the opportunities by enabling geo-location technology to invite and attract customers. The much-advanced tech functionality, such as Google’s announcement that restaurants are now allowed to embed their menus within their search results, offers high opportunity to target hungry diners who are looking for a nearby place to have great food.
Restaurants are taking smart moves by targeting nearby potential customers through social media channels. This location tagging technique on social media makes it easy to place ads for a limited time period in a specific area and customers.
(Learn Effective Ways to Give Your Customers Best Experience—Win Their Loyalty)
Instagram Worthy Food and Drinks
Now, people aren’t just conscious about what is going into their tummy, but they do concentrate on the beautiful servings that are tempting as they need to put pictures on their Insta, Snapchat, Facebook, and other social media accounts. Social media has upped the ante for restaurants as people search for more unique, beautiful, and over-the-top items.
If you check out celebrities’ profiles, they also love to dine-in at places that offer food which is great in taste, have great ambience, and looks oh-so-hot. And, in each season, you will need to design a new theme and ways to make your food look delicious and eye-catching.
Arguably, buzz-worthy drinks and food can be a boon for restaurants, as social media users look out for such meals and try (or at least share photos of your meal) the items. Thus, all restaurateurs should count on this trend to hang on as foodies continue to seek out FOMO-inducing and Instagrammable content. (Learn what are the 10 things to focus on before opening a new store.)
Offer Expended delivery and Pickup Services
Gone are the days when restaurants used to offer pretty much-limited delivery and takeout options, which are usually consisted of Chinese food and pizza. There are plenty of restaurants who planned their businesses on the idea that there are people, who want to eat restaurant food, but they aren’t necessarily interested in being at the restaurant. Thus, restaurants understand the behaviour of customers and making delivery and take away process more convenient.
In response to the rising takeaway demand of customers, now restaurants are altering their structures and processes with dedicated pickup counters, make lines, cubbies, and etc.
Please Share Your Thoughts!
We hope that you will keep all these restaurant business trends in mind while entering the New Year with zeal and zest. If any of you have some other interesting knowledge about the restaurant trends for coming years, then do share it in the comment section below.