Written by Naji Haddad, VP – EMEA at Deliverect

In 2025, several key trends are reshaping how restaurants operate and interact with customers. Keeping up with these trends is crucial for food service brands to stay competitive, enhance customer experiences, and seize new growth opportunities. In this article, part of our 2025 and Beyond report, we’ll explore four pivotal trends food service businesses should follow to thrive in the coming years, focusing on the intersection of business, technology, and customer experience.

Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Automation: Revolutionizing Operations
AI and automation are no longer futuristic concepts—they are present-day necessities. These technologies are transforming operations from customer service to back-of-house processes, creating new efficiencies and opportunities for growth. These are the main areas where AI will make a difference during 2025, driving significant operational improvements and enhancing overall customer experiences.

Here are some of the most relevant ones for our industry:

1. Enhancing Customer Service: AI-powered chatbots are now indispensable for handling customer inquiries, automatically managing up to 80% of queries. This reduces the workload on human staff, improving response times and allowing employees to focus on complex, high-value interactions. By ensuring swift and effective responses, restaurants can enhance customer satisfaction and build loyalty.
2. Optimizing Menu and Profits: AI can boost profitability by optimizing menus based on customer preferences, ingredient costs, and market trends. Smart menu engineering can increase profits by up to 15%, a significant boost in an industry known for tight margins. Combined with predictive analytics, these AI-driven insights allow food service brands to refine their offerings and stay ahead of consumer demands.
3. Streamlining Operations: AI also impacts inventory management and supply chain optimization. Predictive analytics help forecast demand more accurately, reducing food waste and ensuring popular items are always in stock—cutting costs and enhancing customer satisfaction. By integrating these technologies, restaurants can create a more resilient and efficient operational structure.
4. Addressing Staffing Challenges: AI and automation offer a solution to staffing shortages by taking over routine tasks like taking orders. This frees human staff to focus on roles requiring a personal touch, such as bespoke recommendations or handling complex issues. As a result, restaurants can maintain high service standards even during labor scarcity.

Hyper-Personalized Ordering Experiences: Catering to Individual Tastes
The era of one-size-fits-all menus is over. In 2025, hyper-personalization is be essential for food service, driving deeper engagement and customer satisfaction:

1. Customization at Scale: Advanced mobile apps and online platforms enable unprecedented customization. Customers can easily modify their orders, accounting for allergies, dietary preferences, and momentary cravings. Restaurants leverage technology to offer “secret menu” items and app-exclusive options, driving customer engagement and fostering a sense of uniqueness.
2. Data-Driven Personalization and Building Brand Loyalty: By analyzing customer data, restaurants can offer tailored recommendations and promotions, enhancing the customer experience while driving sales by suggesting items aligned with individual preferences. The insights gained from customer data are the foundation of hyper-personalization, allowing restaurants to use machine learning to understand personal habits and provide intuitive and personalized suggestions, ultimately improving overall satisfaction.

This level of hyper-personalization also fosters a sense of exclusivity and recognition, which are potent loyalty drivers. When customers feel understood and valued, they’re more likely to return and advocate for the brand. This direct connection to customers’ tastes helps food service brands differentiate themselves in a competitive market and build long-term loyalty.

Restaurant Digitization and Automation: Streamlining the Dining Experience
Digital transformation is reshaping restaurant operations and customer interactions, creating a seamless, efficient dining experience from start to finish. The following sections explore the technologies making this transformation possible, from digital menus and self-service kiosks to cashless payment solutions.

1. Digital Menus and Self-Service Kiosks: Digital menus and kiosks are becoming standard features. They reduce wait times, minimize errors, and provide detailed information—empowering customers to make informed choices. This shift towards digitization improves operational efficiency and aligns with the customer demand for greater control and transparency in the ordering process.
2. Cashless and Contactless Payments: In an environment where safety and convenience are paramount, cashless payments have become a critical differentiator for restaurants looking to enhance customer trust. By integrating these payment options, restaurants cater to modern consumer expectations and streamline the payment process, reducing transaction times and minimizing the potential for human error. This ultimately creates a smoother and more enjoyable dining experience, increasing customer satisfaction and long-term loyalty. Moreover, adopting cashless technology can provide valuable operational data, offering insights into customer behavior that can further refine service delivery and optimize marketing efforts.

Sustainability and Transparency: Meeting Ethical Consumer Demands
Sustainability and transparency are essential for resonating with modern consumers, especially younger, increasingly values-driven generations. Contrary to misconceptions, sustainability can reduce costs. Restaurants investing in sustainable practices can cut utility costs by up to 30%, proving that profitability and sustainability coexist. Moreover, efficient energy usage and waste management contribute to environmental goals and improve the bottom line, making sustainability a wise business decision.

With 87% of Gen Z expressing concern for the environment, adopting eco-friendly practices is crucial to attracting and retaining younger customers. By demonstrating a commitment to sustainability, food service brands can build a stronger emotional connection with these consumers, fostering loyalty and advocacy.

Blockchain and internet-of-things (IoT) technologies enable unprecedented transparency in the food supply chain, offering real-time tracking of ingredients from farm to table and addressing consumer concerns about food sourcing. This transparency reassures customers that they make informed, ethical choices, enhancing trust and brand reputation. Notably, 80% of consumers are willing to pay more for food products that provide transparency through AI technology—highlighting the value placed on knowing the origins of their food.