7 Key Restaurant
Trends for 2019
Technomic looked into wide-ranging factors affecting the
restaurant industry and compiled
seven key trends that are sure to
gain traction in the next year:
Levantine cuisine: Growing
interest in Israeli cuisine
has led to increased flavor
innovation from Israel’s
surrounding countries.
Natural enhancements:
Next year will see a
blossoming of the second
wave of functional ingredients.
Sensory thrills beyond a
snapshot: Instagram stories,
Facebook Live and You Tube
have extended the social
media trend to what plays
well through videos.
The next wave for third-party players: Food delivery
companies are stepping up to
feed an on-demand culture.
Extreme meat-free:
Plant-based dining now includes
zero-waste policies and a
wider sustainability focus.
Tech taking over:
Technology amenities such as
drone delivery are redefining
convenience.
Multifaceted transparency:
Brands are moving toward
full transparency on pricing,
revealing true net costs and
unbundled costs.
Technomic’s Ignite
technomic.com/ignite
1
Turnover of
Foodservice
Employees
Begins to Slow
Despite a historic drop in
unemployment, foodservice
employee turnover has dropped
slightly, with data signaling
the start of a new trend rather
than a temporary pause from
years of acceleration, according
to new research from People
Report. However, the macro
trends that make recruitment
and retention challenging
for restaurants continued to
gain momentum, leaving the
foodservice industry stuck in a
tightening vice. In September,
unemployment dropped to a
49-year low of 3.7%, resulting
in an increasingly shallow
labor pool for foodservice
operators. Meanwhile, demand
for more employees continues
to grow, with the number of
jobs in the restaurant industry
increasing 2% year over year in
August. Still, the slowdown in
employee turnover was good
news for an industry that has
winced through multiple years
of acceleration. “This trend,
however, is not expected to
reduce turnover rates enough
for retention to lose its status
as a critical issue haunting
operators,” People
Report said.
FoodService Director
foodservicedirector.com
2
Now on Sale
in Arizona:
Marijuana Meals
The nation’s first takeout kitchen
for cannabis-laced meals opened
in October, signaling a further
convergence of the marijuana
and restaurant industries.
According to a study from A. T.
Kearney, 41% of consumers in
the U. S. and Canada would try
cannabis-laced food if it were
available. The Mint Dispensary
in Tempe, Ariz., features entree-type items, from burgers to pasta,
according to press reports, with
the idea of providing users of
medical marijuana with a way
of consuming cannabis in the
normal course of their day. The
Mint Dispensary also offers buy
one, get one free deals on its
website, as well as daily specials
and premiums. Online ordering
is offered, and local media
accounts say the facility plans to
add catering and delivery for the
holidays. Because recreational
use is not legal in Arizona, The
Mint Dispensary is available only
to residents bearing a permit to
buy and use medical marijuana.
Restaurant Business
restaurantbusinessonline.com
3
3 Reasons Gen
Z Is Invaluable
to C-Stores
With members of the Gen
Z demographic saying
convenience is their top retail
channel, making nearly eight
trips to c-stores per month, the
14- to 25-year-old consumer
could be very valuable to
convenience-store retailers,
according to research from The
Coca-Cola Co. The company
during the recent NACS
Show in Las Vegas showcased
insights about Gen Z shoppers,
suggesting the use of engaging
in-store experiences to appeal
to this shopper base. Here are
some key research findings:
Gen Z trips to c-stores are
for immediate-consumption
items, and 1 in 3 of their trips
last five minutes or less.
There are 86 million
members of this
demographic, which makes
up 27% of the U.S. population.
Gen Z does most of its
shopping on weekends and
accounts for 21% of c-store
shoppers.
Nearly 90% of Gen Z said
product selection affects
how satisfied they are with a
shopping trip.
CSP Daily News
cspdailynews.com
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