Restaurant Industry Trends and Outlook for 2022
Change is an inevitable part of life, more so if you’re in the F&B industry. That said, restaurants mainly had to stay abreast of changing food and beverage trends. Until last year that is. The pandemic not only ravaged the fortunes of restaurants worldwide, but it also forced those that survived to revolutionize their way of working.
Here’s a closer look at 5 key trends that emerged in the face of the pandemic—changes that will continue to shape the outlook for restaurants for 2022.
No.1 Restaurants Go Digital
People love stepping out and finding unpretentious hole-in-the-wall gems tucked away in bustling streets. But the pandemic changed all that by ushering in the work-from-home and stay-at-home era. Instead of eating out, the entire world shifted to take-away and food deliveries, making it necessary for restaurants to adjust their capacity to cater to this growing consumer segment [1].
This has also put more pressure on restaurants to increase their presence on food delivery apps. From investing in websites to opening kitchens sans the dining area to digital menus, table-ordering options, and more, digital tools are now synonymous with survival in the F&B industry.
No.2 Drive-thru Lanes
With more customers opting for takeouts, eateries—including the high-end ones—are now offering drive-thru lanes. Alongside the typical sit-in-your-car and order drive-thru, walk-in customers now have separate designated areas to place and collect orders. Even food runners can go and quickly pick up their takeout order instead of entering the restaurant.
No.3 Focus on Hyperlocal and Sustainability
The pandemic saw a boom in consumer interest in sustainability and innovative farming practices such as hydroponics and aquaponics. This awareness led restaurants to curate their menus based on organic, sustainable ingredients.
While, at first, this was a patron-increasing strategy, in the recent few months, sourcing locally has become crucial to survival. Wondering how?
Restaurants that had already welcomed local sourcing weren’t as troubled due to supply chain challenges [2] arising from closed borders (city and national-level).
No.4 Innovative Menus
The pandemic underscored the need for immunity-boosting, functional ingredients in meals [3]. And so, many people took to the internet, searching for health benefits of ingredients. The result? A greater focus on fresh ingredients and fun flavors, home-cooked meals, and experimentation in the kitchen.
With videos of home chefs creating and recreating recipes going viral, how can restaurants not follow suit? Innovative menus that showcase creations such as bacon-stuffed enoki mushrooms, puff pastry pizzas, matcha mille crepe cakes, and so on are the norm today. Rainbow pancakes, anyone?
No.5 Adoption of Bots
While robots made their appearance in large retail stores [4], transportation services, essential services [5], and even social media [6], how can restaurants be far behind?
Not only have a few hotels and restaurants welcomed robochefs, the demand for online deliveries and a shortage of food runners have also led restaurants in cities like Los Angeles and Wisconsin to adopt robots as delivery drivers. This trend is set to spread in other parts of the US as well, making delivery robots one of the key trends to look out for in 2022.
Conclusion
While the pandemic has been detrimental in more ways than one, it has also sped up the rate of innovation and automation in many key industries, including the restaurant industry.
With a greater need to pivot and adapt to the fast-changing scenario, restaurants are turning to strategic solutions to lead the way forward and set the ball rolling for 2022. Bon appetit!
