This is not a call to recreate your entire menu. The lifestyle diet trend will be with us for some time to come. Gone are the days when the only vegetarian option on the menu was a baked potato.

Harissa Marinated and Roasted Sweet Potatoes with Simplot RoastWorks ® Roasted Sweet Potatoes.

Gratin of brussels sprouts with Simplot Simple Goodness™ Brussels Sprouts (brussels sprouts are having a moment right now!).

Flank steak filled with spinach and cream cheese, featuring Simplot Roastworks ® Flame-Roasted Red Peppers and Simplot Simple Goodness™ Cut Leaf Spinach.

Up your veggie side game, giving customers the option of choosing healthy, low-carb sides or add vegetarian options to your menu (66% of consumers saying they perceive food and beverages at restaurants described as vegetarian to be healthy).

Protecting long-term health and preventing future health concerns (37%)įood trend experts predict an uptick in diets designed to lose weight following the early days of the pandemic, when consumers reported ordering “comfort food” at elevated levels across dayparts and occasions.4 People are eating healthier to be healthier, but also to lose the “Quarantine 15.” You can meet this demand by adding foods commonly associated with weight loss diets.

Feeling better and having more energy (40%).

What motivates people to adopt these eating habits: Forty-three percent say they have followed a specific diet or eating pattern within the past year, (an increase from 38% in 2019). The International Food Information Council’s 2020 Food & Health Survey reported 85% of Americans have made at least some change in the food they eat or how they prepare it because of the coronavirus pandemic, with 27% of respondents saying they think about food more than usual. Health and healthy eating habits are beginning to reassert themselves as the pandemic progresses. They offer Paleo, Keto, Whole 30, vegetarian, and vegan bowls, riffing on the same ingredients, but in different combinations.

Chipotle is another great example of meeting diners where they are with customizable options in a bowl format. Olive Garden, an Italian chain restaurant known for its endless breadsticks, easily accommodates Keto dieters with meat and fish dishes featuring sides of low-carb veggies.

Other large chain restaurants are offering this same kind of customizable meal. Swap the turkey and bacon out for their black bean patty, and now you have a vegan-friendly sandwich. Wrapping sandwiches in lettuce instead of bread makes much of their menu gluten-free. Likewise the Paleo Club offers a sandwich with roasted turkey, applewood smoked bacon, avocado, fresh tomatoes, oil and vinegar, wrapped in lettuce. They offer gluten-free, vegetarian, vegan, and Paleo options, offering customers choices in how they build their sandwich. Americans also report being on diets that are:Īccommodating a wide variety of diets is doable with some customizable options. “If you can devote a portion of your menu to their dietary imperatives, you can attract a significant following.”Ĭurrent data show consumers describing themselves as:īut that’s not the whole story. “Lifestyle diet restrictions are top-of-mind for many patrons and play a crucial role in where they choose to dine out,” explains Simplot Foods Chef Roberto Roman. That number jumps to 26% among those aged 18-34. Eighteen percent of consumers follow a specialty diet.

Paleo, Keto, Whole 30, flexitarian, vegetarian, pescatarian, vegan, gluten-free-with so many emerging lifestyle diets and dietary restrictions, it can be challenging for restaurants to meet patrons’ diverse requirements.īut that doesn’t mean you should overlook these diets now is the time to embrace their followers.

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