It was another beautiful day in Chicago at the National Restaurant Association’s NRA Show 2016! Between cooking demonstrations and breaks for food sampling on the exhibition floor, chefs and industry leaders shared their thoughts on trends restaurants are experiencing now, and some they can expect to see in the coming months.
The #NRAShow is awesome and so is @twitterchicago @WeRRestaurants pic.twitter.com/HTmx7lol19
— Mike Sherwood (@FoodBizBytes) May 23, 2016
Unsurprisingly, food continued to be the highlight of the show. Nation’s Restaurant News rounded up some of the major food trends they saw on the exhibition floor.
#Freesamples of #whoopiepies Is this heaven? No. It's the #NRAShow @NRAShow #bakery #pie #pies #food #foodie #yummy pic.twitter.com/HmW8h247ri
— Patti Honacki (@PattiHonacki) May 23, 2016
Now serving Chocolate Hazelnut Crunch Cheesecake at @NRAShow #NRAShow #chicago pic.twitter.com/0em2twe2z1
— Eli's Foodservice (@ElisChefChicago) May 23, 2016
3D printed sugar creations. Amazing. #nrashow #nrashow2016 pic.twitter.com/fasBeFcpiD
— TundraFMP (@tundraFMP) May 23, 2016
11 food and beverage trends from the #NRAShow @FoodWriterDiary https://t.co/y0AcSeAjT6 pic.twitter.com/eHdQjfHdOK
— Restaurant News (@NRNonline) May 23, 2016
There were even cooking lessons on the exhibition floor. They were led by French chef Daniel Boulud, who owns restaurants in London, Singapore, and all over North America — including a Michelin 2-star location in New York City.
Cooking lesson with Daniel Boulud #nrashow #chicago #Eikon oven pic.twitter.com/N21Dzd2HpM
— Judith Tabron (@judetabron) May 23, 2016
Chefs Robert Irvine and Jon Taffer talked about their experiences in bringing restaurants back from the brink of disaster, and what restaurateurs can do to avoid making the same mistakes they made throughout their careers.
Reality is getting real in the Grand Ballroom w/ Chef @RobertIrvine & @jontaffer at #NRAShow. Who's here? pic.twitter.com/K0hzQ8KH8E
— National Restaurant Association Show (@NatlRestShow) May 23, 2016
"From a marketing perspective, we have to find a way to get on that smartphone or on that tablet." @jontaffer #RealityGetsReal
— National Restaurant Association Show (@NatlRestShow) May 23, 2016
Another big topic of discussion was employee retention. Workers belonging to different generations look for different things in the workplace.
Millenials, boomers, gen x-ers — all want something different from jobs. Restaurants that address this retain more great workers #NRAshow
— QSRweb (@QSRweb) May 23, 2016
"The customer experience should never exceed the team member experience." QT by Cinnabon's @GuithJoe #NRAShow
— Tim Tang (@TimTang4Retail) May 23, 2016
The same can be said of guests belonging to different generations.
Generation x likes to be members of loyalty clubs the least. #NRAShow
— Matthew Barry (@EMI_MattBarry) May 23, 2016
want to reach #GenZ ? Share values. They want to believe in you, but they want you to believe in them. – CEO of @Newks #branding #NRAShow
— Sharlene Sones (@SharleneSones) May 23, 2016
#millennials love to share about their #experience instantly -past experience dictates choice for dining -CEO of @Newks #NRAshow
— Sharlene Sones (@SharleneSones) May 23, 2016
"Millennials have a big voice and they like to use that voice." Chris Newcomb CEO @Newks #NRAShow
— RMD Advertising (@RMDadvertising) May 23, 2016
When it comes to tech adoption, some sectors of the industry are doing it faster and more consistently than others.
Franchisees/Chains more likely to use technology. @AnnikaStensson #NRAShow pic.twitter.com/y4Mwha3UZl
— Tim Tang (@TimTang4Retail) May 23, 2016
Guests like to use technology when they visit restaurants, and in most cases, guests would like to see more of it.
Interesting stats here from #NRAShow pic.twitter.com/TIs5fhiudL
— Payments Dive (@PaymentsDive) May 23, 2016
Do you have any interesting insights to share from NRA Show 2016? Let us know in the comments, or on Twitter @Benbria.
