These days, it's no secret that everyone wants to improve their health, and customers are constantly looking for exciting new options that are delicious while still adhering to their diets. To keep up with the demand, you'll want to find ways to adjust your dishes to create a healthy menu at your restaurant, bakery, cafe, or other foodservice establishment. We've compiled 5 ways to incorporate the latest health trends in your menu:
1. Vegan-Friendly Menu Choices
Going vegan has become a popular lifestyle change in recent years, and more people are ditching meat consumption in favor of plant-based foods. Veganism has a multitude of health and environmental benefits, and even people who regularly eat meat and dairy find themselves gravitating towards vegan foods as a healthy and eco-friendly alternative to their normal meals.
However, vegans often have trouble eating out as many restaurants aren't accommodating to their dietary
restrictions, and they are usually limited to simple salads or veggie side dishes. It's likely that most
of your customers have considered going vegan or already are vegan themselves, and might be willing to
give up their preferred food spots to stick to their lifestyle change.
How To Accommodate Vegan Customers
- To keep customers happy and traffic flowing into your business, it's important to provide a variety of vegan options that are delicious and inspire people to return.
- Try recreating your menu's popular dishes with vegan protein replacements, like soy, tofu, or vegetables.
- Get creative with your vegan recipes. Develop new takes on classic comfort foods or create unique flavor profiles to make your dishes memorable.
How Vegan Options Benefit Your Business
Including a vegan section in your restaurant's menu is a great way to retain and expand your customer base. Adding vegan options in your menu also provides great opportunities for marketing your foodservice establishment as taking the initiative to be more healthy and inclusive!
2. Organic Foods
The organic food trend is one that has dominated the foodservice industry. Organic foods offer many benefits for those who produce and consume them. People place a lot of importance on knowing exactly what they're eating, and organic foods have fewer preservatives, pesticides, and hormones compared to conventionally grown foods.
How To Add Organic Foods To Your Menu
- Begin by taking a look at your current menu items to see what ingredients can be replaced by their organic counterparts.
- Try passing by a farmer's market or looking into seasonal produce from businesses in the surrounding area.
- Offer an organic menu deal on the weekends or include a small organic section with rotating dishes that use in-season ingredients.
- "Organic" is a huge buzzword that customers look for and it's a great marketing boost for those who want to improve their social media following.
How Organic Options
Benefit Your Business
Your customers will love the farm-fresh goods in your healthy menu and bringing in small businesses from the surrounding area adds a community feel to your foodservice establishment. Using organic ingredients in your kitchen is a great way of ensuring high-quality and freshness in your dishes, and protecting the environment. However, it's no secret that going organic can be costly for those on a budget, so gradually adding organic produce to your menu will be better for you and your wallet.
3. Gluten-Free Alternatives
Why Go Gluten-Free?
As customers have discovered the benefits of removing gluten from their diet, more gluten-free options have begun to pop up everywhere. For those with gluten intolerance or Celiac's disease, going gluten-free isn't just a health trend, but a way of life.
Eliminating gluten from your diet is helpful for people with digestive or inflammatory issues and has been known to boost energy levels. It's important to be as accommodating of your customer's dietary restrictions or needs when possible, and a great way to do that is to include gluten-free foods in your menu by creating a gluten-free dessert section.
How To Accommodate Gluten-Free Customers
- Gluten-free cake flour or dough can be swapped into your longstanding recipes to make various cakes, pastries, chocolates, and other sweet treats.
- Use color-coded kitchen tools for your gluten-free dishes to prevent cross-contamination with other ingredients that contain gluten.
- Try baking and passing out gluten-free bread baskets made with cassava or almond flour.
How Gluten-Free Options Benefit Your Business
Your customers will love seeing healthy dessert options they can indulge in, and those with gluten sensitivities will appreciate being able to enjoy your creative confections.
4. Cold-Pressed Juices
Cold-pressed juices are extremely popular among millennials, the latest health trend to hit the foodservice industry. For those who are health-conscious but lead busy lives, cold-pressed juices have become the equivalent of getting your "5 a day" fruits and vegetables in one shot.
How To Add Cold-Pressed Juices To Your Menu
- Start by choosing the kinds of fruit and vegetables you want to include in your juices. Celery, carrots, strawberries, lemons, and super greens are all popular ingredients.
- Provide a selection of pressed juices available in your grab-and-go store, bakery, or cafe. Cold-pressed juices are a healthy alternative to sodas and other sugary drinks, something your customers will appreciate.
- Displaying your bright and colorful pressed juices in clear bottles is a great way to catch your customer's eye.
- To up your social media game, create and post a juice bottle wall or display case in your foodservice establishment. Your customers will love the photo opportunity, and it's a great way to boost your business's promotions.
Why Should You Choose Cold-Pressed Juices?
The cold-pressing process doesn't involve any heat, so the natural vitamins and nutrients in your ingredients aren't killed off, and the juicer can pull out the maximum amount of liquid available. Buying a cold-pressed juicer for your foodservice establishment is a great investment, and the fruit and veggie combinations are practically endless.
5. Keto-Friendly Options
What Is The Keto Diet?
The keto diet is the latest trend that's taken over the health and fitness scene, promising weight loss and a boost in heart health. Surprisingly, the keto diet is low in carbs but high in fats. Minimizing carbohydrate levels while increasing fat levels puts your body in a state of "ketosis" which allows you to burn through fat faster for energy. Keto-friendly foods include:
- Almond Flour
- Coconut Oil
- Sesame Oil
- Eggs
- Turkey bacon
- Sausage
- Pork
- Lamb
- Shrimp
- Tuna
- Cheese
- Greek yogurt
- Flaxseeds
- Chia seeds
- Avocado
- Cauliflower
- Peppers
- Green beans
- Zucchini
How Keto-Friendly Options Benefit Your Business
Just about everyone who's looking to up their health game has tried the keto diet. Having keto-friendly options at your foodservice establishment is a great way to meet your customer's demands. Creating a keto breakfast menu is an ideal way to kickstart your customer's mornings. Perfect for those coming into your restaurant after a gym session or on their way to work, having keto-friendly options on your menu is an excellent way to attract health-oriented customers. Most breakfast foods already have keto-friendly ingredients, so you might not have to make many adjustments to your current breakfast menu.
How To Accommodate Keto Customers
Try whipping up:
- Protein-heavy keto breakfast bowls or skillets
- Turkey bacon avocado toast
- Egg stuffed avocados
- Keto breakfast muffins with eggs and peppers
- Almond flour blueberry waffles
- Avocado and chia seed pudding
- Turkey bacon egg wraps
- Sausage and egg breakfast burrito bowl
By incorporating keto-friendly options in your menu, health-conscious customers will be more inclined to stop by your food establishment for a quick and easy morning meal that perfectly fits their current dietary standards. Plus, your customers will enjoy the creative twists on traditional breakfast foods and the additional health benefits!
Why Health Trends Are Important For Your Business
Keeping up with the latest health trends is the best way to meet your customers'' needs. Providing a healthy menu or offering a variety of meals prepared with health-conscious ingredients will give your foodservice establishment a boost amongst your competitors and shows the kind of care you put into satisfying your customers, dietary needs, or restrictions. Try incorporating any of these 5 health trends in your menu to add a healthy edge to your foodservice establishment.
