I think I have a pretty good feel for the retro and classic foods that keep coming back by preference on historical rotations. But I’m woefully out of touch with what the ‘kids’ are eating. By ‘kids’, I’m talking Millennials and later generations…
Asian Ramen or Pho bowls are right up Gen Z’s valley for 2025? How about yours?
It can be both entertaining and educational for someone in my profession to intentionally look be-yond my own comfort zone now and then to see how the other half lives. In this case, what they’re eating. And it appears they’re not so far out of line with my reality as I thought they might be…
Specifically, I’m looking at the youngest ‘layer’ on the generational cake: the Gen Zs. It’s them I init-ially expected to be farthest removed from, food choices-wise.
Who says?
The source for the bulk of my findings about the preferences, choices and leanings of Gen Z diners is Gordon Food Services (GFS), which provides wholesale fresh/raw foods to many players in the food-service retail sector. They’ve been keeping track of what they sell various types of restaurants. And quizzing the operators about what they’ve been seeing on the ‘front lines’…
1. The basics – With a twist…
“Young people, like people of all ages, enjoy burgers, pizza, chicken, sandwiches, salad, and fruit. And the younger they are, the more simple they like it, according to restaurant-hospitality.com,” GFS says. “From middle school and beyond, their tastes broaden to include more flavors, combinations, and global variety.”
“If your kitchen isn’t ready to roll out a lineup of Middle Eastern or Guatemalan specialties, don’t despair,” GFS assures. “You can still appeal to their flavor preferences with customizable fruit and vegetable smoothies, Mexican foods, pasta dishes, and Asian cuisine – all perfect for fresh, fast, made-from-scratch, customizable twists on what you already serve.”
2. Something new and unique
“More than half of Gen Z diners say they enjoy trying different foods […] that feature innovative fla-vors or ingredients.” GFS notes.
“An August survey by food-management.com asked college and university foodservice professionals about Gen Z appetites […] found a flair for adventure:
- Breakfast comfort foods from a wide range of ethnicities and available all day.
- More authentic and varied global offerings, such as Mediterranean, Southeast Asian, Korean, and Middle Eastern. (See curry photo, top of page.)
- Hot, spicy, and more-adventurous flavors [within reason].
- Plant-based menus.”
3. Consider some classics
“If new and unique don’t fit your [style], you can always call on time-tested favorites. Gen Z diners may be young, but they […] have a taste for nostalgia.”
After the Boomers, Gen Zs may be the primary target market for ‘newstalgia’ menu ideas!
“FONA International, a company that specializes in sweet and savory flavors for the food and bev-erage industry, says leading flavor [preferences] among young people include berry, citrus fruit, chocolate, vanilla, and marshmallow. Cheesy and sour flavors [are also popular]”.
4. Think: ‘local’, ‘free range’, and ‘sustainable’
“[Such factors] resonate with Gen Z more than any other generation, according to Flavor & The Menu’s Generational Flavors report. […] Technomic Inc.’s Generation Consumer Trend Report [adds], Gen Z customers are willing to pay more for products that support social responsibility.”
My take
I find a lot to agree with in the GFS Gen Z preferences guide. Though I must qualify that with a firm caution that I want less-exaggerated spicy and more-subtle savoury flavours. I guess that’s something that happens when a person gets older. But I will also volunteer that I’ve always favoured relatively tame implementations of bold flavour profiles. I still want to taste the flavours themselves over any ‘fac-tors’ – such as ‘heat’, ‘spice’ or ‘tang’ – that might otherwise overshadow the actual flavours.
I agree fundamentally with all four key findings of the GFS Gen Z food preferences report. But I would also qualify that by invoking one of my fundamental rules: Moderation in all things – except, possibly – moderation. Sometimes, you have to take a good thing to extremes just to see how far you can go with it!
~ Maggie J.