 The appeal of non-alcoholic beverages has been on the rise for some time, with Millennials leading the charge. According to the IWSR Drinks Market Analysis, volumes of non-alcoholic beverages consumed in the U.S. climbed 29 percent in 2023 over the previous year – and people continue to favor these drinks. “An increasing consumer focus on moderation, health and wellness is having a positive impact on all no-alcohol sub-categories, with growth rates higher than their full-strength equivalents,” said Susie Goldspink, head of No- and Low-Alcohol Insights for IWSR.
Non-alcoholic beverages allow foodservice businesses to offer options that have a beneficial effect on health, while helping to boost guest satisfaction and check totals. Consider prebiotic and probiotic sodas, fermented beverages including kombucha and kefir, and smoothies with immunity-boosting ingredients. Or expand your tea and coffee menu with seasonal varieties. As the festive season approaches, you can inject some fun and creativity into your menu by developing a rotating list of drinks around a theme, telling a story about your signature drink, incorporating seasonal or functional ingredients into your hot and cold drinks, or naming drinks after noteworthy people in your community (or featuring a contest to have a drink named for a guest).  Chances are you’re serving more guests who are abstaining from alcohol these days. Whether for reasons related to wellness or simply a decrease in social pressures to consume alcohol, more consumers are opting for non-alcoholic drinks. In fact, research from Statista found that global revenue in the non-alcoholic beverages market has been climbing for the past seven years and is forecast to reach a new peak in 2027. Yet despite that upward trend, many menus still play it safe with non-alcoholic beverages – staying in the neighborhood of sodas, flavored coffees and teas, or a few simple stand-ins for alcohol. But there is a thirsty market for concoctions that aren’t simply alcohol substitutes but are worth the visit in their own right. As a recent Eater report says, the latest incarnations of non-alcoholic drinks break the boundaries of traditional cocktail culture. Case in point: The Sun Ship, a signature drink of Ghost Note Coffee in Washington, D.C., is “technically a coffee beverage, but you would be forgiven for forgetting that there’s espresso in it — there’s also coconut water, lime, and smoked grapefruit rosemary syrup. It’s refreshing with strong citrus notes, but the rosemary adds a deep herbal aroma to it.” These drinks call for a chef’s sensibilities around flavor complexity – and as a result, they can help justify prices more akin to those typically charged for conventional cocktails. What can you do to make your non-alcoholic beverage menu worth a special trip – or at least a second glance?
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