Picture a busy Flour Bakery + Cafe serving Asparagus + Ricotta Toast—a dish topped with chili crisp, a mix of crispy fried chili peppers, garlic, and onions typically found in Chinese cuisine. Or maybe Dog Haus’ Ohana Chicken Sandwich featuring chili crisp, spicy mayo, and teriyaki aioli.
In both situations, the chili crisp is being used outside of Chinese cuisine to get people interested in dishes that might otherwise be boring, says Ophélie Buchet, associate director, food and drink, at research firm Mintel. The food innovation epitomizes a growing trend in the U.S. foodservice industry—reimagining the familiar to indulge modern guests.
Buchet presented Mintel’s findings at SIGEP World, a global conference in Rimini, Italy focused on gelato, pizza, pasta, coffee, baked goods, and pastries. The executive drew on Mintel’s research to showcase how indulgence, as well as convenience and value, are reshaping the way Americans dine out and also how restaurants can adapt to meet these evolving expectations.
Many customers seek a gratifying and fulfilling dining experience, according to Mintel’s data.
One Mintel survey of 611 internet users in October found 50 percent of respondents dine out to treat themselves, followed by 46 percent wanting to enjoy new experiences, 38 percent wanting to save time on cooking, and 38 percent planning to socialize more with family/friends. In a separate study of 1,893 internet users in March, 51 percent tried a new item at a restaurant either most of the time or all of the time.
“It’s really a very important thing for them to keep seeing these new items on the menu and to want to keep trying them,” Buchet said. “It’s even true in occasions like breakfast, which we can say are a bit more traditional occasions, or occasions that are more functional. We have 49 percent of consumers saying they go to order breakfast at a restaurant because it feels to them like a treat.”
Fusion cuisine, like the aforementioned chili crisp dishes, is a significant driver of indulgence. Buchet used Chicago’s dining scene as an example. The city showcases global flavors in unique formats, from Taiwanese wheel cake waffles with mandarin peel syrup to Hong Kong-inspired French toast with peanut butter and kumquats.
Gen Z is much more likely to say they’re ordering an innovative and trendy item (34 percent versus 15 percent for baby boomers), according to a survey of 1,919 internet users from August.
“So what does this mean? It means that we need to keep having those new innovative trendy items on the menu to keep this generation engaged,” Buchet said.
Convenience is also a major factor in dining decisions; younger guests are vocal about their need for quick options. When asked how they were satisfied by fast-casual restaurants, 80 percent of Gen Z said online/mobile ordering options, according to a survey of 1,047 internet users in April 2024. Seventy-three percent were satisfied via customer service and 67 percent were satisfied through the dining atmosphere.
To address this, restaurants are releasing technology-driven solutions. For instance, Panera’s “crunch time ordering,” allows diners to reorder favorite meals with one swipe, while Sweetgreen’s revamped loyalty program streamlines the ordering process and offers early access to new menu items.
But balancing indulgence and convenience is critical—guests are looking for both, whether it’s at a casual-dining or fast-food experience.
A study of 2,000 internet users from October 2024 found that 33 percent of respondents ordered takeout from a sit-down restaurant, a venue that typically favors indulgent occasions. That category placed ahead of coffee/tea shops, family midscale restaurants, food trucks, convenience stores, and fine dining. Meanwhile, at quick-service restaurants, where convenience usually reigns supreme, a 2,000-person survey from November 2023 found that 39 percent of respondents tried new flavors in fast-food restaurants or about the same as people did at sit-down restaurants.
“There’s this balance that needs to be found between the options where we want to sit down for a bit and the options where we want to eat quite quickly and be on our way,” Buchet said.
Value—which Buchet described as the “elephant in the room” within the restaurant industry—remains a big point of emphasis for operators. Consumers are not only scrutinizing prices but also weighing quality, health, and overall experience when assessing a brand’s value proposition.
A survey of 1,540 internet users from January 2024 found that 62 percent of respondents who ordered from fast-food restaurants would be more likely to visit if they were loyalty program members. Forty-six percent ordered from fast-food places because of daily deals, and 49 percent did so because of value meal options.
One study of 1,821 internet users from July 2024 found that 56 percent of guests are willing to pay extra for premium ingredients and 53 percent said they’d do the same for healthy menu options. However, financial constraints often push lower-income consumers toward indulgent or less nutritious choices.
Buchet emphasized that restaurants must do better with communicating the value of healthy dishes since price points could be a turnoff. According to Mintel’s data, 41 percent of consumers define value in health through natural ingredients, while 40 percent look for high-protein options. Demonstrating naturalness—such as using scratch-made, minimally processed ingredients—could be key in reassuring diners of the quality behind a higher price point.
Another way restaurants redefine value is through smaller portions or tasting menus. Around 42 percent of U.S. consumers express interest in half-sized portions, while 40 percent favor tasting menus and 30 percent prefer snack-sized options, according to a study with 1,927 respondents from October 2024. These formats allow diners to sample various dishes without committing to larger portions or higher costs. One big example is McDonald’s Mini McFlurry, which debuted in September 2024.
“With this idea again that you get more value out of something where you’re going to try different options,” Buchet said. “You don’t have to commit to a big size. You can just try a smaller size, and if you like it, then you can buy a bit more.”
Additionally, in the post-COVID environment, consumers have been more focused on employee well-being. Fifty-one percent of respondents said they’re willing to pay more to support better wages and benefits for workers, according to a study of 953 respondents from October 2024.