For a business owner in the restaurant industry, it pays to have your pulse on the biggest upcoming trends in your industry. If you fail to do this, you’ll be left in the dust as new technologies permanently change the industry and other restaurants embrace them before you. However, if you continue reading, you’ll better understand what’s to come and how to prepare. Here are our hottest food service trends for 2023.

3D Printing and Food

Can you imagine replacing all your old equipment with 3D printers? That might be a reality in the coming years. Machine learning and robotics specialists are starting to use AI to 3D print foodstuffs. In fact, methods for 3D printing food can even customize flavor profiles and nutritional content.

It’s an incredibly out-of-the-box, unconventional method of cooking food, but it’s starting to gain traction. It might take a while to catch on, but this food-making method is likely to take the industry by storm. Once customers begin to trust the process and realize that 3D-printed food is just as delicious as traditional food, everyone will want to try it.

Efficient Cooking Equipment

The restaurant business is incredibly adaptable. Chefs are used to using equipment that makes their life easier and offers them the best flexibility. This is especially the case with the rising awareness of how we impact the environment and our budgets with equipment and utilities.

Therefore, businesses in the food industry are looking for adaptable equipment that limits waste and saves money in the long run. For example, the latest pizza press machine won’t cost you very much and will speed up production in the kitchen. Similarly, an oven that can tell you when it’s preheated and when food is ready will be more expensive, but it will reduce food waste and utility usage over time.

Dishwasher Automation

Though not a sign of a robot invasion, restaurants are starting to pull out all the stops in their use of automated equipment. Dishwashers are automating, and we expect this to be the beginning of a much larger theme where most equipment becomes completely automated.

Automating dishwashers saves time and labor. Furthermore, automated dishwashers are usually energy efficient. This means they use water and energy in a sensible way that helps save our natural resources. Smart equipment is the way to go if you want to contribute to sustainability trends that also treat your finances well.

Meeting the Labor Challenge

Despite protests to the contrary, technology is becoming far more user-friendly. Icons and pictures on equipment and screens make using them a breeze, so workers can perform their jobs with clarity and ease.

Furthermore, we mentioned how automated systems are taking the restaurant industry by storm, and part of why is how they make labor much easier for employees. For example, conveyor belts in restaurants make employees’ jobs simpler, allowing them to focus their attention on customers and tasks that can’t be automated.

Design Changes

To accommodate rising business costs, food service operators are choosing smaller equipment options over bigger ones to optimize their space. This allows them to save costs on rent or a mortgage while still maintaining regular operations.

Aesthetic changes are also occurring. Open commercial kitchens leave room for better and sleeker cooking equipment. Fryers and ovens are beginning to come in unique colors and materials. Equipment now often comes with customizing options, such as panels and knobs in various materials.

The Internet of Things (IoT)

We’re becoming increasingly connected as a society through the smart equipment we own, and it’s no surprise that this trend is creeping into the restaurant industry. The Internet of Things entails objects with the smart capabilities of storing and exchanging information with other smart objects in a network.

IoT brings with it several cost-saving benefits that are being implemented everywhere. For example, wireless control of ovens, cooktops, and freezers can sense when they need parts replaced and order them for you. They can monitor everything from temperature to motion to humidity to voltage and more. Additionally, you can conveniently monitor these devices from your smartphone.

New Cooking Technologies

Induction cooking is an important food service trend for 2023. Induction cooktops can heat your cooktop appliance quickly and efficiently, preventing the loss of energy to the surrounding surfaces or air. This means that operators can cook different foods simultaneously without overheating the kitchen or equipment. If you’ve ever been in a sweltering kitchen, you know how uncomfortable it can be. Can you imagine working in high temperatures for five to six hours daily? It’s unpleasant, so this trend is great for employees looking for more comfort in their workplace.

You should also watch for solid-state radio frequency (RF) ovens. We know that’s a mouthful, but let’s explain. RF ovens are like microwaves, only they are more powerful, have a greater capacity, and can adapt to any food to cook it thoroughly and evenly. In fact, if you placed a fish encased in ice in an RF oven, the oven would be able to cook the fish without melting the ice! This appliance is revolutionary, as you can prepare orders more quickly and efficiently than you normally would.

Multi-cook ovens are also on the rise. Cutting edge units have four vertically stacked chambers with individually controlled temperature, cook time, and fan speed. This lets anyone operating it multitask by preparing different food items—such as fish, pizza, bacon, and pastries—all with the same equipment. Can you imagine the amount of money and time this saves? Quite a bit!

Sustainability Measures

For a good reason, sustainability is a leading driver in every industry, and it’s the biggest trend in the food service industry. You can see it in the rise of municipalities banning things like plastic straws, which aren’t easily biodegradable. Instead, restaurant owners are starting to embrace plant-based utensils and food packaging. And it’s only going up from here! The food industry will continually be finding ways throughout 2023 to improve sustainability.

The Rise of Robotics

Artificial intelligence in commercial kitchens isn’t something we have to wait for—it’s knocking at our doorstep today. Robotics is incredibly useful, as it cuts labor costs. Currently, we have things like digital menus and payment pads at tables. Self-service kiosks are another example that replace cash registers altogether. Customers can browse menus and place custom orders without working with any human employee.

There are many ways that the food industry is transforming, and we hope this post got you caught up! To hop on the hottest equipment trends, shop Pro Restaurant Equipment. Browse our website or contact us for more information—we’ll get you taken care of.