Future of the Food Industry

            Things change in our society at a fast pace. The restaurant industry changes, but not as quickly. Things become trendy and eventually die out or trends change depending on the neighborhood. I’ll discuss a few trends to come and ones I believe that pretty popular today.

            With the revolution of the ipad, throw out your paper menus, restaurants and servers alike have begun to use the ipad to take orders or for customers to see the menu. Having digital formats allows easier changes and businesses are being greener! Another hot item I’ve seen is called the square. This device can be attached to any iphone or ipad to take payment. A receipt can be e-mailed or sent via text message to a customer. It’s become very popular in the food truck world, where many businesses were only able to accept cash.

            Trends in the restaurant industry are due to change, but some of the biggest currently are local food sourcing, microbreweries, and the expansion of the children’s menu. Local food sourcing coming to restaurants has been a pretty exciting trend. Having restaurants buy from local farmers is great for the community. The locals support restaurants that buy local. Microbreweries have become huge. These microbreweries only create a certain amount of each beer. People love the uniqueness of each brew that is created. World of Beer and House of Beer are two franchises that have taken off with this concept, numerous microbrews and beers from around the world. Children’s menu has now started to reflect adult menus. The time where mac and cheese was offered is long past. Adults like seeing dishes off the regular menu being offered on the children’s menu.

            For the near future I see many restaurants being more digital friendly. Possibly, being able to order your food online before you get to the restaurant. Restaurants will expand to different avenues and have food trucks to reach a wider range of people. Food trends will continue to change with the taste of society. I look forward to what the future of food may hold.