International food and restaurant consultants – Baum + Whiteman – have recently revealed their report on the hottest restaurant trends for 2017. Here’s our summary of what you need to know:
1) Drone Delivery
In recent years, more and more food and drink establishments have begun to offer delivery services to accommodate the growing demand for home takeaways, whether it is via Deliveroo or Just Eat. And now, as technology continues to develop, consumers could look to receive their orders via drones in the near future. The futuristic concept could see restaurants and casual dining businesses cut costs on takeaway services whilst achieving an alternative revenue stream from dine-in trade.
Some of the big tech companies already exploring the possibility of drone delivery include Google and Amazon.
2) Breakfast Gets a Makeover
Traditional breakfasts include eggs, cereal and toast. However, breakfast is set to become more experimental with crunchy textures and bold flavours including sriracha, crispy chorizo and coarse whole-grain. The growing trend could see coffee shops and restaurants offer a more mixed variety of offerings to accommodate to morning, lunch and evening trade.
3) Room for Dessert?
2016 was the year of the ‘freakshake’ – a freestyle milkshake topped with all sorts of sugary indulgences. 2017 is predicted to be the year of oddball ice creams. The mismatched dessert looks to offer endless combinations of quirky and unusual ingredients from savoury flavours such as avocado and potato to caramel popcorn and candy floss. Oddball ice creams could provide coffee shops and casual dining spots with a distinctive USP, giving their reputation a new lease of life.
4) Vegetables – The New Comfort Food
Consumers have noticeably reduced the amount of meat consumption as many have taken to vegan or vegetarian diets. According to an analysis of Pinterest users, searches of the word ‘veggies’ rose 336% in 2016. Expect to see restaurants offering more allergen-aware dishes alongside an increased use of pickled and alternative vegetables. Equally, coffee shops could also focus on using veg as the key ingredient in sandwiches, soups and even sweet items.
5) Bringing the Heat with Spice
2017 will see an increase in the use of Eastern and European spices including – but not limited to – cumin, cayenne pepper and lemongrass. The bold and punchy flavours are predicted to make appearances in food items across casual dining and restaurant establishments and could possibly make their way into hot or cold beverages in coffee shops.
Check out Baum + Whiteman’s full 2017 restaurant trends report here.
We’re excited to see how restaurants, casual diners and coffee shops tap into some of 2017’s new food and drink trends and how they could influence the interior and brand design.
For advice on your coffee shop or restaurant design, contact Offbeat Creative at hello@offbeatcreative.co.uk or call 020 7060 3121