Gen Z and Millennials Redefine “What’s for Dinner”

 

Millennials are growing up and raising families of their own. Without question, they’ve adopted many of their parents’ habits—especially when it comes to answering that timeless question: “What’s for dinner?”

Only now, the answers are faster, fresher, and far more digital.

Today’s Millennials and Gen Z consumers are turning to Grocerant-niche Ready-2-Eat (R2E) and Heat-N-Eat (HNE) fresh prepared foods—because it’s what they grew up with, and it’s what fits their modern lives. According to Steven Johnson, Grocerant Guru® at Tacoma, WA–based Foodservice Solutions®,

“Memory is the bridge that builds trust in food. When consumers see a meal that connects to comfort or nostalgia, they’re far more likely to try, repurchase, and recommend it—especially when it’s convenient and fresh.”

 

The Data Behind the Dining Shift

The lines between restaurant, grocery, and convenience are blurring faster than ever. Fresh-prepared meals, deli service, and delivery-enabled grocery programs are no longer side categories—they’re the growth engines of modern food retail.

Here’s what the numbers show:

·       $1.52 trillion: U.S. food away from home sales in 2024—the highest share ever, at 58.9% of total food spending.
(USDA ERS, 2025)

·       31,795: Average number of SKUs in a supermarket—each competing for visibility against freshly prepared grab-and-go options.
(FMI, 2024)

·       60 %: Share of Millennial and Gen Z dinner transactions now occurring through drive-thru or delivery.
(Grocerants Blog, 2025)

·       70 %: Millennials who say they’re willing to pay more for high-quality or premium food.
(Grocerants Blog / YouGov, 2025)

·       50 %+: Consumers now open to AI-assisted or AI-suggested ordering experiences.
(DoorDash 2025 Delivery Trends Report)

·       67 %: Millennials and Gen Z consumers actively trying to eat healthier every day.
(IRI, 2024)

This is not a passing phase—it’s a structural realignment of how America eats.

 

Digital Menus, Hybrid Meals, and “At-Home” Dining 2.0

Hudson Riehle of the National Restaurant Association once reported that 69% of adults viewed a restaurant menu online and 44% ordered delivery in a year. Today, those figures are baseline. Menu browsing is a digital default, and delivery is a habit, not a luxury.

At the same time, the “hybrid meal” trend—mixing restaurant or grocerant items with homemade sides—is accelerating. According to NPD, nearly half of Millennial-family foodservice meals are eaten at home. It’s the new “family dinner,” built from multiple sources, blending convenience and control.

That’s precisely where the grocerant niche thrives.

Why Grocerant Wins: Familiarity Meets Flexibility

Johnson explains that grocerant success comes from striking the emotional and functional balance:

“Consumers want what feels familiar but fits their life now—fresh, fast, and flexible. Grocerant isn’t about competing with restaurants; it’s about owning the space where restaurants and retail meet.”

For grocers, convenience stores, and dollar stores, this means:

·       Offering restaurant-quality food with grocery-store accessibility

·       Providing AI-enhanced digital menus and online ordering

·       Designing meals that are modular and customizable (protein + sides + sauce)

·       Featuring limited-time or trending flavors that keep menus relevant

·       Building an omnichannel path—browse online, pick up in-store, or get delivery

 

Four Grocerant Guru® Insights for 2025 and Beyond

1. Memory Drives Trust

Food is emotional. Millennials and Gen Z consumers connect with meals that remind them of home. That emotional connection accelerates adoption—especially when brands pair comfort cues with a modern twist.

2. “Fresh, Convenient, and Upgradeable” Wins

Don’t just claim “restaurant quality.” Frame offerings as fresh, convenient, and customizable. A grilled salmon base that can be paired with rotating seasonal sides feels empowering, not pre-packaged.

3. Digital Discovery Equals Physical Purchase

From Google to TikTok, every meal decision begins online. QR menus, mobile ordering, and personalized suggestions now determine what ends up in a shopping basket—or on a dinner plate.

4. Gen Z Sets the Flavor Agenda

Gen Z diners crave novelty and social validation. Viral foods, global fusion, and visual plating trends move fast—and grocerants that can rotate flavors monthly will capture these taste-makers first.

 

The Future Belongs to the Grocerant

Consumers are redefining convenience through a hybrid lens: part home cooking, part professional preparation, all digitally connected. The “grocerant” is no longer a niche—it’s the new mainstream of mealtime.

Foodservice Solutions® has been helping retailers, restaurants, and convenience operators capture this growth since 1991. Whether through a Grocerant Program Assessment, Grocerant ScoreCard, or Product Positioning Strategy, the path forward begins with understanding today’s consumer—and the memories that still drive their meals.

Foodservice Solutions® – The Global Leader in the Grocerant Niche
📍 Tacoma, Washington
📞 253-759-7869
📧 Steve@FoodserviceSolutions.us
🌐 www.FoodserviceSolutions.us

Customers Drive Grocerant Niche Takeout Sales

 

Are you doing what makes customer happy? Are you selling full flavored food and beverages that are Ready-2-Eat or Heat-N-Eat freshly prepared?  If you can say yes, you are on your way.  Regular readers of this know that giving food operators that are giving customer what they want and how they want it are winning can garner incremental customers, top-line sales and bottom-line profits according to Steven Johnson, Grocerant Guru® at Tacoma, WA based Foodservice Solutions®.

Recently, Mintel edified our won findings when they announced three trends set to impact global consumer markets in 2022.  While their cultural descriptors were more fun than ours, (in our opinion), we know our regular readers will enjoy Mintel’s findings. Please pay close attention and remember focus is on the customer.

Mintel from technology that predicts the success of potential romances to brands tackling COVID-19 “survivor’s guilt” and eco-anxiety, this year’s trends include:

·         In Control: In times of uncertainty, consumers crave a sense of control over their lives. Brands can deliver the information and options that consumers need to feel like they’re in the driver’s seat.

·         Enjoyment Everywhere: Having endured lockdown, consumers are eager to break out of their confines and explore, play and embrace novel experiences, both virtually and in the ‘real’, physical world.

·         Ethics Check: While many brands have made their voices heard on controversial topics, consumers want to see measurable progress against their goals.

“In 2019, we took a bold, new approach to predict the future of global consumer markets and expanded our outlook to 10 years,” said Simon Moriarity, director of Mintel Trends. Mintel’s 2030 Global Consumer Trends — known as the seven Mintel Trend Drivers — were developed as a living, growing prediction model that will adapt to the unforeseen. As the COVID-19 pandemic unfolded, impacting nearly every industry worldwide, our consumer expertise and prediction model meant we were well placed to analyze how it would impact markets. Not only did our 2030 predictions hold true, but the pandemic accelerated many of the shifts we foresaw.”

Looking ahead to 2022, Mintel’s trend analysis and prediction research are grounded by observations of the seven Trend Drivers over the last 18 months and backed by Mintel’s robust consumer and market data, predictive analytics, action-oriented insights and expert recommendations, Moriarity said.

“We put everything into context to better understand what it means for — and how it could inspire — our clients’ business decisions across industries, categories and demographics, and amid global themes and times of uncertainty,” said Moriarity.

In Control

According to Moriarity, feelings of precariousness and financial insecurity both created, and exaggerated, by the pandemic mean that consumers are looking for a sense of control over every aspect of their lives. But misinformation is making it harder to carry out the necessary research to make informed decisions.

“Consumers need clarity, transparency, flexibility and options,” he said, “to make decisions that suit their individual changing needs and circumstances.”

Brands will need to work harder to deliver reliable information and balance censorship and authenticity, Moriarity said. The race for the fastest delivery will evolve to focus on being more flexible, giving consumers more control over when products arrive to fit around their schedules or to match their other specific needs.

“Consumers’ desire to know potential outcomes will manifest in the development of predictive technologies that can anticipate adverse events,” said Moriarity. “From diseases to likely death dates to relationship outcomes using compatibility profiles, technology will evolve to grant consumers the power to plan with peace of mind.”

Enjoyment Everywhere

“Consumers are seeking sources of joy as the continuing pandemic and other local and global crises have caused them anxiety and stress,” Moriarity explained. “Many may be feeling a kind of “survivor’s guilt” and, as a result, brands are recognizing the importance of uplifting people by giving them permission to feel happiness once again.”

While the stress caused by the pandemic may no longer be central to consumer needs for fun and escapism, they will continue to seek enjoyment and playfulness, according to Moriarity. “As brand interactions through campaigns, apps and transactions take on more and more gamified elements in response to consumer interest, expect to also see pushback against it and the instant gratification it offers,” he said. “This tendency will rise from consumers taking a more mindful approach to pleasure and enjoyment.”

Ethics Check

Consumer demand for, and expectations of, brands’ ethical commitments are evolving. They have moved beyond simply wanting brands to “be ethical” and are demanding to see measurable, transparent and consistent actions from those they choose to support. Consumers will look beyond a brand’s achievements and strengths; businesses will need to be transparent about their weaknesses, too, where and why they fail and how they plan to address these issues in future.

“All the transparency in the world doesn’t necessarily help consumers to understand the impact of a brand, which is why it’s key to use metrics that accurately reflect the problems brands are trying to solve,” Moriarity explained. “If a company isn’t properly measuring what they aim to fix or change, it’s difficult to determine whether progress is being made, let alone communicate that progress in a way that consumers will understand

Foodservice Solutions® team is here to help you drive top line sales and bottom-line profits. Are you looking a customer ahead? Visit GrocerantGuru.com for more information or contact: Steve@FoodserviceSolutions.us Remember success does leave clues and we just may the clue you need to propel your continued success.