Delicious as bread may be, many consumers scrutinize their consumption of bread products – whether due to allergies or digestive issues, or simply because they want to consume more whole foods and fewer processed ones. Making changes to accommodate them could mean ramping up whole grains in certain menu items, swapping in a vegetable where a wrap or crust might otherwise be used, or trying vegetable-forward options that mimic the flavor and mouth feel of bread. Keep these varying consumer needs and preferences in mind when you set your menus this year. Where is there room for customization with a bread substitute that is just as – or nearly as – appealing to guests?

Salads can be a harder sell in the winter months, when consumers may crave hearty, warm dishes. But at the same time, many consumers also prioritize their health in this first part of the new year. You can tick both boxes by making some tweaks to your salad menu. Weaving in some whole grains – or even using them as the foundation of some salad options – can help you offer more satisfying salads that deliver key nutrients as effectively as produce-packed salad choices. Grains can also be a reliable winter warmer, so try bringing some additional dimension to your menu with warm, grains-based salad options.

New takes on the chicken sandwich are on-trend this year – and you can likely offer something fresh by taking cues from your existing menu and using spices and global flavors in new applications. For example, some of the flavors already present in your salad selections might help you entice guests to try your sandwiches instead (and minimize your use of lettuce during the current shortage). Consider a Mediterranean chicken sandwich with roasted vegetables marinated in Greek lemon vinaigrette or create a creamy chicken Caesar salad in sandwich form. On-trend Southeast Asian flavors could work well on your sandwich menu too: Experiment with coconut, citrus fruits, cilantro, mint and basil.

​For a number of years, gluten-free menu options felt like an afterthought – a substandard substitute for guests who weren’t able to digest the intended version of a dish. But the need for gluten-free menu options has changed that: According to new research, the global market for gluten-free foods was estimated to be worth $5.9 billion in 2021 and is expected to climb at a compound annual growth rate of 9.8 percent between 2022 and 2030 due to rising rates of celiac disease, as well as other digestive disorders. This calls for gluten-free ingredients that are permanent, purposeful and tasty parts of the menu. Consider what substitutions you can make to elevate your menu options with gluten-free ingredients.

At the start of a new year, many consumers are taking a closer look at their diets – at least for a little while – and trying to make incremental changes to improve their health. Restaurants that can make health and nutrition as palatable as possible stand to win over these guests. As you review your menu for the year, consider how you can ramp up the nutrition of your options in natural ways – with higher concentrations of nutrient-dense vegetables, fiber- and mineral-rich flours in place of refined options, or chameleon ingredients like cauliflower as alternatives to traditional rice or pizza crust.

According to research from Mintel, 75 percent of consumers enjoy spicy foods to some degree, with 29 percent happy to turn up the heat on the menu as high as possible. Is there room to add some spice to your menu options? The National Restaurant Association predicts that variations on sriracha will be among the top trends on menus in 2023 – and sriracha’s moderate spiciness can be a safe way to weave more heat into your menu. Consider using it in marinades for chicken or dressings on salad, in condiments like ketchup and mayo, or even on your cocktail menu to add some zing to your beverage options.

Comfort food continues to be a big draw for guests right now. As you serve up warm winter dishes, consider what items help you generate the most benefit from your inventory and labor. What is simple to prepare without skilled staff? What is a good for a crowd – yet also presents well when frozen and served later? What will allow you to use ingredients that you also use in salads, appetizers, sides and other entrées?

Elevating your menu items doesn’t require complex combinations of ingredients. The addition of a single premium ingredient can transform an ordinary appetizer into something memorable or justify a higher price point for an entrée. In fact, making these small enhancements to your menu is an easy way to help you make a popular item that much more profitable – and allow it to earn its place on your menu.

The National Restaurant Association recently published its annual What’s Hot forecast for the coming year, highlighting the ingredients and approaches it expects to see in the industry in 2023. Included in these trends is an anticipated continuation of the blending of dayparts as consumers spend more time working from home or from places other than the office and eating at odd hours as a result. So in addition to regular mealtimes, the in-between times – happy hour or snack times, for example – continue to be important to attracting guests. Restaurants that may have played down those times of the day before may now be looking for menu options to lift business during those periods, not to mention staff to cover the orders that come in. At the same time, however, one of the top three macro trends in the 2023 forecast was menu streamlining. More than before, restaurants face having to do more with less when it comes to the ingredients they weave into the menu. An ingredient must work hard – not simply as a featured player in an entrée, but also as a supporting player in several other dishes in different menu categories. Yet those dishes must be different enough to make the menu sufficiently interesting to guests that they are motivated to order from restaurants at a time when their money isn’t going as far. Restaurant operators are doing a delicate dance right now to find the right mix of dishes on their menu. The ingredients that can elevate a dish – but also disappear into it by becoming something new when combined with different spices, sauces and textures – can help operators spread their inventory as far as it needs to go right now.

Recent research from the NPD Group found that breakfast traffic has been growing at U.S. restaurants and was within 1 percent of recovering its pre-pandemic levels. Quick-service restaurants capture the vast majority of breakfast traffic – 87 percent of it – so if you’re looking for ways to build business in this daypart, consider how you might entice guests with offerings that can be enjoyed on the go, or which can travel easily to home or office. That’s particularly true as many people have resumed their pre-pandemic schedule, along with the eating habits that go with it.