The restaurant's most valuable product may not be on the menu according to Steven Johnson, Grocerant Guru® at Tacoma, WA based Foodservice Solutions®.
Man
is a social being.
That
simple observation has enormous implications for restaurants, grocery stores,
convenience stores and every other food retailer competing for today's
consumer.
The
pandemic changed where consumers ate. It accelerated delivery, takeout,
drive-thru, digital ordering and eating at home.
But
something else happened.
Consumers
discovered that convenience has a limit.
People
still want to get out.
They
want to see people.
They
want to be seen.
They
want to meet friends.
They
want to celebrate.
They
want to discover a new food, flavor, beverage or restaurant.
They
want to sit across the table from someone and talk.
And
increasingly, they want the restaurant to give them a reason to do it.
That
is why I believe restaurants should stop thinking of themselves simply as
places that sell food.
Restaurants
are social settings.
And
that may become one of their greatest competitive advantages.
The Consumer Can Eat Anywhere
Let's
start with the uncomfortable truth.
Consumers
have never had more ways to get food.
They
can cook it.
They
can order it.
They
can have it delivered.
They
can pick it up.
They
can use a drive-thru.
They
can buy Ready-2-Eat or Heat-N-Eat food at a grocery store.
They
can grab a meal at a convenience store.
They
can eat in their car.
They
can eat at their desk.
They
can eat in front of a 65-inch HDTV.
So
why leave home?
That
is the question every restaurant operator should be asking.
Because
if the only reason to visit a restaurant is the food, somebody else can
eventually sell the consumer something similar—and perhaps cheaper, faster and
closer to home.
But
if the restaurant provides food + atmosphere + discovery + hospitality + human
connection, the competitive equation changes.
The
restaurant becomes an experience.
2026: The Data Says Consumers Still Want to Gather
The
newest data makes the point remarkably well.
OpenTable's
2026 dining research found that 78% of Americans agree that dining out is a way
to feel connected to others. Group dining involving six or more people was up 11%
year over year, while 36% of consumers said they wanted more group and private
dining in 2026.
Read
that again.
Dining
out is a connection business.
Not
just a food business.
And
the evidence goes even further.
OpenTable
reports that experiential dining increased 46% year over year in 2025, while
37% of Americans said they wanted more experiential dining in 2026. Nearly
half—48%—said they were more likely to dine at a restaurant hosting a pop-up,
collaboration or other special experience.
Why?
Because
consumers cannot duplicate that experience simply by opening the refrigerator.
The
experience is the product.
The Restaurant Is Becoming the New Social Media
For
decades, restaurant operators worried about location.
Then
came websites.
Then
online reviews.
Then
Facebook.
Then
Instagram.
Then
TikTok.
Now
the restaurant itself has become a form of media.
The
food is photographed.
The
beverage is photographed.
The
dining room is photographed.
The
décor is photographed.
The
customer photographs the table.
The
customer photographs the menu.
The
customer photographs the experience.
OpenTable
reports that 79% of Millennials and 68% of Gen Z consider a restaurant's
Instagram/TikTok-worthiness important when deciding where to dine.
That
is a remarkable transformation.
The
restaurant is no longer simply the place where the marketing happens.
The
restaurant has become the marketing.
Every
table can become a billboard.
Every
handheld can become an advertisement.
Every
unusual beverage can become content.
Every
interesting service interaction can become a story.
This
is what I call Hand-Held Marketing—and today the consumer's hand may be holding
both the food and the smartphone.
Consumers Want Discovery
My
original thinking about young adult consumers was built around the idea that
they wanted to explore.
That
idea has not gone away.
It
has become more important.
Consumers
want something they have not experienced before.
A
new flavor.
A
new sauce.
A
new beverage.
A
new handheld.
A
new preparation.
A
new restaurant.
A
new collaboration.
A
new way to share food.
A
new reason to gather.
In
2026, OpenTable reports that 54% of consumers are willing to pay a premium for
a one-of-a-kind dining experience, while local charm and unique restaurant
environments are increasingly important elements of restaurant design.
That
is the opportunity.
Different
does not have to mean expensive.
It
means memorable.
Convenience Didn't Die—It Changed
Now
here is where restaurant operators can get themselves into trouble.
They
can hear "social experience" and conclude that consumers suddenly
want slow service, complicated menus and leisurely dining every time they eat.
Wrong.
Convenience
is still king when convenience is what the consumer wants.
The
National Restaurant Association has continued to document the enormous
importance of off-premises dining, particularly among younger consumers.
Consumers
want restaurants to accommodate their lifestyles.
Sometimes
that means:
“Get
me in and out.”
Sometimes
it means:
“Bring
it to my house.”
Sometimes
it means:
“I'm
eating in my car.”
And
sometimes it means:
“Give
me a table where I can sit with my friends for two hours.”
The
consumer isn't inconsistent.
The
occasion is different.
That is an important distinction.
Speed of Service and Socialization Can Coexist
The
smartest operators understand that speed and socialization are not opposites.
They
are different consumer needs.
A
commuter wants speed.
A
parent between activities may want convenience.
A
teenager may want a place to hang out.
A
couple may want a date-night experience.
A
group of friends may want a table.
A
family may want food everyone can agree upon.
A
senior may want conversation.
A
businessperson may want lunch and Wi-Fi.
One
consumer.
Multiple
occasions.
That
is why I have long argued that there are no silos in the consumer mind.
The
consumer does not wake up and say:
“Today
I am a restaurant consumer.”
They
simply ask:
“What's
for dinner?”
Or
lunch.
Or
breakfast.
Or
a snack.
Or
coffee.
Or
something to share.
The Price-Value Equation Just Got Bigger
There
is another critical issue.
Consumers
still care about price.
In
fact, they care enormously about price.
But
price is not the same thing as value.
OpenTable's
2026 research identifies happy hour and value promotions as the No. 1 dining
trend restaurateurs expect to see in 2026, while 51% of Americans said they
wanted more happy-hour and value promotions.
That
is not surprising.
Consumers
want to know:
“What
am I getting for my money?”
And
increasingly the answer isn't just ounces of food.
It
can include:
Food
+ service + atmosphere + convenience + entertainment + discovery +
socialization.
That
is a much larger definition of value.
A
restaurant can therefore compete on value without simply becoming the cheapest
restaurant in town.
The
goal isn't always to lower the price.
Sometimes
the goal is to increase what the consumer believes the experience is worth.
The Dining Room Has Become a Product
For
years, restaurant operators treated the dining room as an operating expense.
I
believe they should increasingly treat it as a product.
What
does the consumer see?
What
does the consumer hear?
Where
do people sit?
Can
people see other people?
Is
the room inviting?
Can
groups comfortably gather?
Is
there counter seating?
Is
there bar seating?
Can
someone dine alone without feeling alone?
Can
two people have a conversation?
Can
six people celebrate?
Can
a family spread out?
Can
consumers discover something happening around them?
OpenTable
reports that counter seating increased 26% and bar seating 23% year over year
in its 2025 data.
That
isn't simply furniture.
That's
social architecture.
The
way a restaurant is designed influences whether people interact with the
environment around them.
The Best Restaurant May Give Consumers Something to Talk
About
The
old restaurant question was:
“Did
you like the food?”
The
new question should be:
“What
did you experience?”
Was
the burger different?
Was
the beverage interesting?
Did
the server make you laugh?
Was
there a special event?
Did
you discover something?
Was
the dining room exciting?
Did
you see something you had never seen before?
Did
your friends enjoy it?
Did
you take a picture?
Did
you tell somebody about it?
That
final question is critical.
Because
when a consumer tells someone else about a restaurant, the consumer becomes the
restaurant's salesperson.
That
is powerful marketing.
And it doesn't require a television commercial.
Restaurants Are Selling "Together"
This
may be the biggest opportunity of all.
The
restaurant industry has spent decades selling:
Breakfast.
Lunch.
Dinner.
Snacks.
Beverages.
Desserts.
But
perhaps the most important thing restaurants sell is:
Together.
Together
with friends.
Together
with family.
Together
with coworkers.
Together
on a date.
Together
for a birthday.
Together
after a game.
Together
before a concert.
Together
because nobody wanted to cook.
Together
simply because people wanted to see other people.
OpenTable's
2026 research shows that birthdays were the most popular celebration associated
with dining out in 2025, while anniversary dining generated 40% more spending
per person than an ordinary restaurant visit.
That
is the occasion economy.
And
restaurants are perfectly positioned to own it.
The Grocerant Opportunity Is Bigger Than Restaurants
Here
is where this becomes bigger than restaurants.
The
same consumer behavior applies to:
Grocery
store service delis.
Convenience
stores.
Food
halls.
Dollar
stores.
Retail
prepared foods.
Virtual
restaurants.
Takeout.
Drive-thru.
Home
delivery.
The
consumer does not care who owns the kitchen.
The
consumer cares about getting the right food for the right occasion at the right
price with the right amount of convenience.
That
is the Grocerant Niche.
The
grocery store can become a restaurant.
The
convenience store can become a café.
The
restaurant can become a retailer.
The
retailer can become a foodservice operator.
And
the consumer simply moves between them.
No
silos in the consumer mind.
The New Restaurant Question
So
I would challenge every restaurant operator, foodservice executive and food
retailer with one question:
If I removed your food from the equation, would consumers
still want to be there?
If
the answer is no, you have a food product.
If
the answer is yes, you may have a destination.
That
distinction matters.
Because
food can be copied.
Menus
can be copied.
Promotions
can be copied.
Prices
can be copied.
Even
technology can be copied.
But
community, atmosphere, hospitality and human connection are much harder to
copy.
That
is the restaurant's moat.
Three Insights From the Grocerant Guru®
1. Stop Selling Meals. Start Selling Reasons to Gather.
The
consumer has never had more convenient ways to get food.
Therefore,
convenience alone is not a sustainable competitive advantage.
The
restaurant needs to answer:
“Why
should I leave home for this?”
If
the answer includes food, discovery, hospitality, atmosphere and people, you
have created something that delivery cannot fully duplicate.
2. The Dining Room Is a Marketing Channel.
Restaurant
operators should stop thinking about four walls, tables and chairs as simply
operating costs.
The
dining room is media.
What
consumers see, photograph, experience and share becomes part of the
restaurant's marketing.
Make
the food visual.
Make
the environment inviting.
Make
the experience memorable.
Give
consumers something worth talking about.
Let
the customer help market the restaurant.
3. The Future Belongs to the Restaurant That Understands
the Occasion.
Tuesday
at 5:15 p.m. may require speed.
Friday
at 7:00 p.m. may require atmosphere.
Saturday
afternoon may require family convenience.
A
birthday may require celebration.
A
business lunch may require efficiency.
A
group of friends may require a social setting.
Same
consumer. Different occasion.
The
winning operator doesn't ask:
“Who
is our customer?”
The
winning operator asks:
“What does our consumer want to accomplish with this meal?”
That
is the difference between selling food and understanding the consumer.
And
that, ultimately, is what the Grocerant Guru® has been saying for decades:
The
consumer is not looking for a food category.
The
consumer is looking for a solution to an occasion.
Restaurants
that understand that will sell more than meals. They will become places people
want to be.
And
in an increasingly connected but increasingly isolated world, being a place
where people want to be may be the most valuable product a restaurant can sell.
Success Leaves Clues—Are You Ready to Find Yours?
One
key insight that continues to drive success is this: "The consumer is
dynamic, not static." This principle is the foundation of our work at
Foodservice Solutions®, where Steven Johnson, the Grocerant Guru®, has been
helping brands stay relevant in an ever-evolving market.
Want
to strengthen your brand’s connection with today’s consumers? Let’s talk. Call
253-759-7869 for more information.
