When it comes to Restaurants trends they come and go all the time. There are things that are here one day and gone the next. This week it is turning things that aren’t doughnuts into doughnuts. Next week it is stuffing as many different things inside of one another as possible. We take a look at what trends you are likely to see coming to restaurants during 2020.

The Rise of Dark Kitchens

The home delivery food market is on the rise and continues to see record growth. A lot of this is being fuelled by third party food delivery companies. These help existing restaurants who prove an in-house experience to be able to give the same food to at-home diners. What some businesses are finding is that creating the food for delivery customers is tying up the kitchen and impacting on the restaurant. However, because the market is so valuable, they don’t want to give up the deliveries. This is giving the rise to dark kitchens. These are kitchens that prepare food exclusively for home delivery. These can be created by a group of different restaurants pooling resources. These free up the regular restaurants for normal diners whilst maintaining the delivery channels.

Frictionless Guest Experience

This is not only about having excellent customer service, but it is about having a personalised experience for guests. This includes having things like apps and other data gathering devices that allow guest to order their food before they even arrive at the restaurant. This means that kitchens can order only exactly what they need for each guest and to have food ready and waiting for their customers. This helps improve efficiency and reduce waste, all whilst ensuring the customer is well looked after. Imagine going to a restaurant and your food is brought to your table as you sit down, and it has already considered any food allergies or special requirements that you have. This is the future.

The Boom of Fast Casual Dining

Fast Casual Restaurants have been booming in recent years and will continue to do so. These are restaurants that allow you to have a quick and healthy sit-down meal that gets you in and out with a minimum of fuss so you can carry on with your night. This is all about riding the wave of customer convenience in much the same way as home delivery does. People going into restaurants like Nando’s know what they are going to get, they know the food will be good and they can be in and out in no time.

The Embracing of Technology

This is something that is always going to continue to grow and restaurants are now employing more and more technical solutions to their business. This includes integrated systems that include point of sale as well as the back of house management. This is allowing businesses to become much more efficient about the way in which they manage their business. There is also an increasing number of robotic kitchen devices helping to pave the way for food preparation of the future.