Food & Beverage

Has food become secondary to foodservice?

Being a restaurant customer today involves many considerations beyond just the food itself. In fact, at least one group of forecasters said the food is becoming secondary to the experience.

On a planet where the pandemic is still pervasive, diners have lots of other things on their minds beyond the actual food itself. (Photo: iStock)

March 9, 2021 by S.A. Whitehead — Food Editor, Net World Media Group

Ask restaurant and food trends expert Suzy Badaracco what drives diners to quick-service restaurants today, and the answer might surprise you.

"Food is not the driver anymore," said the founder of Culinary Tides, a data analysis and trend predicting company.

In an industry created to both create and serve food, food is playing second fiddle to safety and affordability.

"The top issue is budget. Budget trumps everything," Badaracco said in a recent interview with this website. "Consumers are trading down across the board in all areas of their lives. Drive-thru and take-out created a physical and psychological alliance between consumers and the restaurant. Takeout and drive-thrus didn't drive consumers to those restaurants because of the quality of the food, but because they could safely get food.

"The second driver is safety. The third driver is the desire to support local businesses. The food and food quality is a distant forth. The type of food is not on the radar other than, 'Can I afford it?' and 'Can I get enough to feed my family?'"

These are just a few assessments from a report, recently released by Badaracco, who analyzed more than 220 lists of predictions from nearly 180 foodservice experts. The analysis ultimately paints an up-to-the-second picture of U.S. society at this point in time around everything from politics and health, to travel, food and beverage.

She and her team of analysts used the data to reveal a few things that restaurateurs could do to reap the greatest rewards. See below for an interview with Badaracco.

Q: If the pandemic had not slammed into all our lives, where were analysts projecting the foodservice industry was heading at the start of last year?

A: At the end of 2019, it was still not going to be a super-pretty year anyway. We were going into an election year, and that always makes people pull back on experimentation. … But my company, we knew we were going into a recession.
COVID just accelerated that. … So then we were in quarantine, and travel (which had previously been spawning restaurant industry trends pre-pandemic) — like all of us — went into hiding. So what happened is that the only place people could go (food-wise) was back into what we had in 2019. …

Now, going into 2021, everything is all about isolation and safety. But we're starting now to watch what are some of the first locations to open up for travel -- like the Caribbean Islands … and camping and hiking. That is where some of the trends are opening up around.

Q: Alright then, given what you know as a researcher about the U.S. culturally at the moment, what kind of fast food concept would you say might be best positioned to take advantage of the current American consumer's mindset?
A: It would have dine-in, curbside, drive-thru and delivery, but I would use full-time employees as drivers, not delivery companies.

I would have a seasonal menu that changes two times per year. The kids' menu would be identical to the adult menu, just smaller portions.

It would have fresh and grilled items, but no deep-fryer. It would have part of the breakfast menu served all day. Desserts would be from local vendors by region (and) it will have outdoor seating or roof-top seating

Q: Conversely then, what would you say would be the top things a QSR operator would really NOT want to sink any money into in coming days, given the cultural climate?
A: Tech that they don't already have. Anything they are lacking intelligence information on to understand where it will be in future. And communal tables. LOL. …

Q: What do you mean when you say QSRs should avoid "tech that they don't already have"?
A: Let's say that they don't have a drive-thru. Well, at this point, they probably really don't have the money to put into a drive-thru. … So technology — whether it's around a drive-thru or something else – if they haven't already switched to it, then — because so many brands are running super-low on money … they won't have the cash to sink into any kind of new tech now. …

But they can be more competitive way more cheaply. … They can (for instance), find ways to address (consumers') budget and safety needs first. And that can happen without costing a lot of money. …

My point here is that you can be making a ton more money by doing things that cost you nothing to do — by allying with consumers and telling them what you're doing to help keep them safe and save them money. It's about empathy and what you're doing to be on their team.

Q: Okay then — stepping back to the food of the moment again — even though you believe that food comes in a distant fourth behind safety, affordability and even community/social responsibility, as a dining driver, what kinds of foods will be prominent players against this backdrop?
A:One trend that will stick this year is healthy indulgence. If you can find a way to combine those you can hit the QSR sweet spot … and it's got to be affordable. … Like vegetarian and flexitarian (menu items) go up every recession with things like black bean burgers, beans and rice, and grains. Plants and plant-based, too – but it will be the simple, natural version of plants — not faux burgers. … Restaurants are losing their shirts on faux burgers. People are abandoning them. …
The other trend that I can't tell you how many forecasters have said in their report, but we would never make in our report, is saying premium – "I want premium." No. Hell no.

Why? They (consumers) can't afford it. Yes, they will say in a survey they want that, but that's not the behavior they show in reality. That's why it's dangerous to look at surveys and not weigh them against behavioral research."

Q: Alright, let's end then with what most of us start our days with — breakfast. Wendy's said it's re-entry into the breakfast ring has been going great guns, so what are your feelings about QSR breakfast based on the data?

A: Breakfast suffers because there are not as many going to work so not as many on the road in the morning. But breakfast still has to play by the same rules that cover all day-parts — namely, "Can I afford it?" "Can I feed my family?"
Breakfast is the easiest meal to eat at home, they need a reason that overrides safety and budget concerns to go out for breakfast. …

Also I recommend generally being more focused on not the newest flavor trend, but asking what on our menu can we make into either snack sizes or, the opposite —shareable sizes. Snacking too is up and it goes up every recession, partly due to (consumer) stress, but partly because they can't afford a regular meal.

Mostly, this is all going to change (consumer brand) alliances and people will abandon even long-held brands now … because the drivers are value and safety."

About S.A. Whitehead

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Pizza Marketplace and QSRweb editor Shelly Whitehead is a former newspaper and TV reporter with an affinity for telling stories about the people and innovative thinking behind great brands.