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Appetizers are key for driving traffic and sales for your restaurant. That’s why more and more operators are turning to Texas Pete® Test Kitchens for fresh ideas and important insights to make their appetizers stand out with spicy goodness. Why Texas Pete®, and why go with a spicy flavor? Here are some insights on how to get more from your menu.
1. Texas Pete® Is #1 In Brand Loyalty among Hot Sauces!
IRI is a company that gathers data from sales at supermarket retailers. A deep dive into their data last year found that Texas Pete® hot sauces had the highest brand loyalty of any hot sauce on the market. It’s the brand that top restaurant chains turn to for a bold and balanced flavor for their menu while connecting with a brand that consumers know and love. Make sure you offer Texas Pete® bottles on your tabletops and one of its portion control packets for your drive-thru or takeout. The iconic red cowboy can make an important difference.
2. Gen Z is Fond of Spicy Food and is Willing to Spend Their Money on it.
Datassential surveyed consumers and found that those in the 18–34 demographic prefer spicy foods more than any other demographic. That’s important because Gen Zs spend more of their disposable income (21%) on restaurant food than any other segment, according to a survey conducted by Morning Consult. While Gen Zs are more likely to experiment with new or exotic foods, the survey found that their favorite foods are the old faithful flavors everyone loves—make it delicious and with some spicy goodness.
Gen Zs were asked to list their favorite foods by Morning Consult, and the results were restaurant menu mainstays.
3. What’s Trending on Appetizer Menus This Year?
We’ve checked the latest trends in the fastest-growing appetizers, and here’s what we found from Datassential.
Arancini, Italian deep-fried rice balls filled with slow-cooked minced meats, was the biggest surprise, ranking second among the fastest-growing appetizers among the top 5 in fried appetizers.
Here are the Top 5 fastest-growing fried appetizers in the past year on restaurant menus.
As for sauce flavors for appetizers that you can count on to be trend-worthy, parmesan garlic has grown by 44% in just the past year, while Cajun, teriyaki, jam, and BBQ are what’s hot.
The top trending sauce flavors for appetizers this year have shown double-digit growth in the past year.
4. Keeping it Simple in the Kitchen is Key to Appetizer Success
Simplicity is an important factor for success in making your appetizer menu special. That’s why Texas Pete® Test Kitchens continues to develop a collection of simple and easy custom sauces your staff can make in minutes and serve for days. The Simple As Collection shares recipes and quick instructional videos on preparing sauces for new or untrained kitchen staff to assure consistency batch after batch, like this beautiful Campfire Ranch sauce that is versatile for multiple menu applications.
Discover how to make your appetizer menu more appealing to your customers and add flavorful excitement to your dishes this year with these valuable insights. Check out our gallery of delicious Texas Pete products to explore a range of mouth-watering flavors.
