The restaurant industry is expanding at a lighting speed. If you own or manage a business in the food and beverage sector, it's important to be aware of the trends and changes that can shape the industry in the coming year.

With over 3 million registered restaurants projected in the United States alone this year, employing nearly 16 million professionals, in 2019, this industry is a nucleus for endless possibilities. The global food-service market is projected to grow at a CAGR of 7.01% by 2022.

To get you in the growth mindset, we have compiled a list of the most talked about trends in the dining world that will help you make strategic decisions for 2019.

Technology will continue to rule the industry in 2019 too..

..and those who refuse to adopt and implement innovative restaurant technologies to run the operations are going to be the biggest losers. Restaurants are now understanding the potential of integrating smart software into their systems that can tell the management where the problems are and what they need to fix.

In 2018, it became clear that integrated systems and data made it possible to deliver a better guest experience and boot productivity out of staff. Here are some restaurant technology trends that will help you build roadmaps for 2019 and beyond.

95% of restaurants think that technology improves their operational efficiency

49% of diners think that Kiosk adoptions improve their ordering experience.

73% of diners think that technology improves their dining experience.

59% restaurant-goers will use a restaurant's app to make reservation and order food

Online ordering is here to stay

And why won’t it be? By 2026, the two-third population of millennials will be parents, with nearly half of this group preferring to get food delivered at home. The result is incremental sales growth for restaurants who can provide speedy and impeccable food delivery experience. On top of this, many regular restaurant-goers have started ordering food online by using food delivery services like GrubHub, Zomato, UberEats etc. In fact, according to NPD Group, it was surveyed that the number of online delivery orders has doubled between 2010 and 2015. If you still don’t have an online ordering system on your website, it’s time you do. The below stats will help you take the right decision.

37% of restaurants are investing in smart online ordering system to beat the competition, according to the NRA.

42% restaurant-goers would prefer restaurants that provide the facility to order online.

34% of the diners usually pay $50 per order when ordering food online. Whereas, the average spend per person in a full-service restaurant ranges between $16 and $30.

QSRs and fast casual restaurants are big on healthy food options

As always, health is of paramount importance to the new generation. People are looking for healthier options and they don't mind switching to a restaurant that offers healthy food options, even if they have to pay 40% more than they did two years ago. Because of the increased customer demand, more restaurants are now offering healthful items on their menus.

70% of restaurant-goers are looking for healthy restaurant menu options.

66% of American consumers are more likely to switch to a restaurant that offers locally sourced food items.

Future food trends will include organically grown ingredients, local sourcing, and healthy eating

Bottom Line

Restaurant industry trends change every year, but statistics don’t lie. If you’re a restaurant owner or plan to be one, keeping these facts in the forefront of your mind will help you stay ahead of the curve and maintain status quo.

What do you believe has been the most talked about trend in 2018? Let us know your thoughts in the comment below.