24/05/2022
Chicago! It’s been 3 years since the last NRA-show, but finally people from all over the world could meet up and learn more about what’s happening in the restaurant industry. Most people and businesses have definitely had enough on their plate trying to survive and navigate through the pandemic. But, some of the trends we saw a few years back have also fast-forwarded because of covid, which again has led to emerging new business opportunities and consumer behavior. Here are a few of the things I take with me from the show - not all of them new, but still worth mentioning:
• A LOT of plant-based and vegan alternatives for seafood, chicken, burgers, bacon, pepperoni, eggs, ice cream etc.
• Food safety: touch-free dispensers, QR-code menus and catalogues, sustainable disposables
• Mobility, traceability and automatization: trace your order/food/packaging, robots delivering to your place or to your table, pick up your order from a heating cabinet when it suits you
• Screen time vs real time: hours and hours are each day spent on the screen, and for many people there has to be a magical experience in the other end if they’re choosing to go outside and interact physically with other people. We need to deliver on multiple levels to make the consumer happy; like food, ambience, service, sustainability, corporate profile, marketing, diversity, efficiency, price, quality, honesty, healthy options, feedback, availability etc.
