In addition to asking chefs and bartenders about top menu trends and bar trends for 2013 the National Restaurant Association (NRA) polled more than 1,800 American Culinary Federation member chefs and almost 200 United States Bartenders’ Guild member bartenders about a variety of other hot topics in F&B.
More than half (55%) of the chefs surveyed said they always make efforts to adjust dishes and recipes to be more healthful, while 37% said they cook with nutrition in mind, but that not all recipes are easily adjusted.
When asked how to best handle the increasing cost of ingredients, 32% of the chefs said changing menus, 25% said adjusting plate composition and 24% said exploring new sourcing options. Only 4% said raising menu prices is the best strategy.
In addition, 67% of the bartenders said adding culinary cocktails to drink menus is a good way to build business, and 26% said culinary cocktails are fun to make because they let the bartender’s creativity shine.
When it comes to technology trends, just over one-quarter of the chefs (27%) ranked tablet computers such as iPads as the hottest technology trend in restaurants in 2013, followed closely by smartphone apps (25%) and mobile/wireless/pay-at-the-table (19%). Among the bartenders, 40%ranked social media marketing and loyalty programs as the hottest technology trend in 2013, followed by tablet computers (29%) and smartphone apps (14%).