How Changing Food Habits of Millennials Are Impacting the Restaurant Business

How Changing Food Habits of Millennials Are Impacting the Restaurant Business
Today's resourceful and informed consumers increasingly examine and study the brands they patronize.

By Deepika sethi , Founder, OMO: Soul Food Community

02 Aug 2022 | 7 min read

The Indian hospitality industry is evolving at a fast-moving pace where consumer preference keeps changing. It is the purpose because the call for multiple cuisines and sorts of meals has brought about the contemporary growth in food service. The changing lifestyles of India’s growing middle class are pretty evident, not only from the point of view of rising disposable incomes but also from the way its attitudes towards eating out have evolved. The growing number of new restaurant ventures is ample proof of the massive potential of the F&B sector. Rising disposable income and an inclination to experiment are driving the change in India's attitude towards food and lifestyle. People are looking for organic ingredients, mindfully sourced, nutritional value, and healthy food gaining prominence.

People today like eating out because it is cheap, convenient, tasty, and above all trendily promoted. The eating-out trend has different aspects to it, and the root cause of the evolution is the expanding consumer demand. Millennials are the ones who are attributed for 'change the world'. They make up around two-thirds of the Indian consumer market and are also known for unhealthy eating habits. However, lately, millennials are becoming aware of healthy and conscious eating habits for good health and well-being, and are on the prowl, for hunting down the best healthy choices. While it’s true that the world of food isn’t being disrupted overnight, millennials are certainly driving the change in the food revolution in the F&B industry. From fast casual to farm-to-table, it seems as though every other month we hear about this generation finding something new and unique to sink their teeth into. Millennials’ food habits are different and thus have an important impact on the restaurant business. Over the past few years, India has witnessed an escalation of fine dining restaurants, cafes, pubs, bars, clubs, lounges, and international fast-food joints, which have to come up to cater to the Millennials’ changing food habits and keep up to the trends.

Millennials are the clean brigade with a retaliation. Today’s resourceful and informed consumers increasingly examine and study the brands they patronize. They dig deeper to find answers to every iota of doubt they might have. It may begin with a Google search, but it often lands up on a website and social media page of a flour brand or a restaurant that rides the farm-to-fork wave. Farm-to-fork dining is a new concept. The restaurants are riding this wave and have strengthened this experience in India by using ingredients that are plucked fresh from the farm.

They are the superficial generation that wants to flaunt their lifestyle on every social media platform, and they have no qualms about it. It is a big way in which the forest fire of healthy and conscious eating is on a rise, and rightfully so. Their plates should have taste, style, and a pop of colors that makes them the perfect delectable Instagram post. There have been cases where chefs and influencers put up posts of food they are eating, their experience, or cooking and customers follow the lead and try it at home. The maxim of this generation is ‘You are what you eat.’ They have adopted clean habits from their family and also the red flags on controlling their junk intake. They are the indulgent lot that will make amends through work-outs and deliberate choices.

They are looking for an authentic story that they can bank on, and this new generation is loyal too. If your avocado shake is made from garden-fresh produce and is packed with antioxidants and nutrients, they will adopt it into their lifestyle. They will go the extra mile and pay the extra buck to ensure every bite is worth for. There is a huge shift happening for sure. The millennial eaters want to be wooed, not by discounts and happy hours, but by food and drinks that genuinely uplift their lifestyle and energy levels. They care more about where their food is sourced from, and that's a good thing on so many levels.

Indulging in good eating habits isn't overly complicated. Notwithstanding, it requires cautious preparation, particularly with regards to carrying out the timetable and sticking to the crucial standards of wellbeing and nourishment. Today Millennials’ food habits are more adventurous and do not shy out on experimenting with something new and unique. The inclination of changing the food habits of millennials toward experimental tastes is a positive update in the restaurant industry. This is encouraging home-grown brands as well as international players to expand their menu and geographical presence. People today are willing to pay extra for a premium-exceptional service and experience. Restaurants who can understand this need of their consumers and deliberately cater to their choices will go a long way in satisfying their customers, and their cash registers. Millennials are foodies, their changing food habits are making them step out for a fulfilling and lavish dining experience more than ever. Millennials are not only following the trend of acquiring good well-being but are on a learning track to stick to the essentials, and basic rules, intently screening the remarkable necessities of the body and making sure to achieve health goals in an effortless manner.

The Indian hospitality industry is evolving at a fast-moving pace where consumer preference keeps changing. It is the purpose because the call for multiple cuisines and sorts of meals has brought about the contemporary growth in food service. The changing lifestyles of India’s growing middle class are pretty evident, not only from the point of view of rising disposable incomes but also from the way its attitudes towards eating out have evolved. The growing number of new restaurant ventures is ample proof of the massive potential of the F&B sector. Rising disposable income and an inclination to experiment are driving the change in India's attitude towards food and lifestyle. People are looking for organic ingredients, mindfully sourced, nutritional value, and healthy food gaining prominence.

People today like eating out because it is cheap, convenient, tasty, and above all trendily promoted. The eating-out trend has different aspects to it, and the root cause of the evolution is the expanding consumer demand. Millennials are the ones who are attributed for 'change the world'. They make up around two-thirds of the Indian consumer market and are also known for unhealthy eating habits. However, lately, millennials are becoming aware of healthy and conscious eating habits for good health and well-being, and are on the prowl, for hunting down the best healthy choices. While it’s true that the world of food isn’t being disrupted overnight, millennials are certainly driving the change in the food revolution in the F&B industry. From fast casual to farm-to-table, it seems as though every other month we hear about this generation finding something new and unique to sink their teeth into. Millennials’ food habits are different and thus have an important impact on the restaurant business. Over the past few years, India has witnessed an escalation of fine dining restaurants, cafes, pubs, bars, clubs, lounges, and international fast-food joints, which have to come up to cater to the Millennials’ changing food habits and keep up to the trends.

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