Menu Matters Monthly Minute | June 2025
We’re writing this from the air, on our way to one of our favorite industry events: the Specialty Food Association Fancy Food Show in New York. We’ll be presenting on multisensory experiences in food — how to create concepts, designs, menu items, and products that resonate on a deeper level with consumers. It’s all about getting consumers off their phones and more engaged with our brands, creating a more memorable experience overall.
It’s a topic we’re passionate about, as you can see from our 2025 Consumer Need States report. And, as we head into summer, you can think of all the sensory opportunities we experience as the weather gets warmer: the sizzle of a burger on the grill, the smell of a freshly-cut herbs from our garden, the chill of a popsicle when the thermometer is climbing, the vibrant color of a sliced watermelon or ear of sweet corn.
How can you create deeper, more emotionally resonant consumer experiences? How do you innovate against consumer need states? Whether you are looking to develop new products and menu items, you want to combine consumer needs with real-world trends on a curated market immersion tour, or you want to survey consumers to target very specific needs your brand can solve for, send us a message and we’d be happy to chat.
Stat to Know
34% of consumers say eating bolder flavors makes them want to experiment even more.
It was the top effect that eating bolder had on consumers, followed by giving them more energy (32%) and making them more excited (31%).
How many times have you heard, “We tried that and consumers didn’t like it,” about a new product or menu launch? It’s always an excuse to play it safe and pull back from anything truly innovative.
But a sense of adventure doesn’t exist in a vacuum — it’s reliant on trust, environment, story, etc. It can take years for a brand that has played it relatively safe to teach customers that they are a safe place to try new things. After all, the top two reasons consumers say they hold back from being more adventurous in food — they’re afraid to waste money and that they won’t like something — take a lot of brand trust to overcome.
Consumers are ready for something new — it’s our 2025 Consumer Need State — but that doesn’t mean slapping something they’ve never heard of before on the menu and assuming they will snap it up. It requires a more thoughtful approach. If trying something bold leads to even more experimentation, can you begin the meal with a unique amuse bouche or bolder appetizer, priming the diner to get more adventurous with the rest of their meal? Or consider a longer hospitality experience like a hotel stay or cruise vacation — encouraging a guest to try something out of their comfort zone early in the trip can make them more adventurous throughout their stay, creating a more memorable experience overall. One hotel brand has already realized this, with Marriott reporting that 2/3 of travelers say they are braver on vacation.
For true innovation to be accepted, it requires a deeper, more wide-ranging, long-term approach. But the result — getting consumers out of their rut, introducing them to a new and exciting new food, adding a bit of excitement to their lives — is worth it.
Best of LinkedIn
Do you follow Maeve and Mike on LinkedIn? From their #MondaySparks (three creative ideas to jumpstart the week) to their popular #FridayFive (five things they learned in the past week) and beyond, here are five posts that earned plenty of engagement last month:
The magic of a New Orleans second line.
What happens when 1,700 strangers have to talk to each other for 30 minutes.
Lessons from this year’s UMass Chef Culinary Conference.
How make-your-own waffles created the world’s largest lodging brand.
One Vermont spirit brand’s success in telling a story.
You can catch every #FridayFive, #MondaySparks, and more from Maeve and Mike on LinkedIn. Follow Maeve here and Mike here.
Menu Matters in the News
Let’s Meet Up
New York, NY - June 29 - July 1 - Summer Fancy Food Show
East Lansing, MI - July 2-3 - Client Event
Saskatchewan, Canada - July 22-25 - Lentils.org Farm Tour
Orange, CA - August 25-27 - Client Event
Denver, CA - September 17-19 - Client Event
Kansas City, MO - October 6-8 - Client Event
New York, NY - December 4 - New York Produce Show Foodservice Forum
Try This! Maeve & Mike’s Hot List
Delicious meals, excellent hotels, favorite products, thought-provoking books, great TV shows and movies — these are some of Maeve and Mike’s favorite recent discoveries.
“I recently stayed at Nine Orchard, a boutique hotel in the Lower East Side of Manhattan. The communication from this hotel before, during and after my stay was impressive. Additionally, and as Mike and I always talk about, the hospitality was on point with every staff member. They have two great restaurants - The Corner Bar and The Swan Room - both of which offer excellent food and great cocktails. While it's not inexpensive, it is an excellent value for the service, amenities, appointments and location. ” MAEVE
“The experience Maeve and I haven’t been able to stop talking about was our visit to Tatlo in New Orleans. This self-proclaimed ‘Filipino witch bar’ is a true experience in every sense of the word. They are an absinthe bar that sets up a full absinthe drip experience at the table. There are patrons having in-depth tarot card readings in the corner. At one point they bring out dried bay leaves which you write your intentions on, burning them in a small bowl to manifest them. It’s only steps from Bourbon Street, but it’s world’s away from the kitschiness.” MIKE
"Tucked up on the floor above Aster Hall at 900 N Michigan in Chicago is a lovely bar with a quiet, comfortable space to read, study or meet. You can order from every vendor in the Hall either through a QR code at the table or through some extremely hospitable table service. The cocktails were lovely. It was a treat enjoying the selection of a food hall but with great service. Next time I'm in Chicago, if I need a spot to sit down and work after a long day, this place will be at the top of my list.” MAEVE
"I love an old school steakhouse and Jack Fry’s in Louisville lives up to the ideal. First opened in 1933 as sportsman’s hangout for those who liked to gamble on the horses, today it’s the type of place where customers still wear jackets, servers with trays full of ice cold martinis navigate the room, and birthdays and anniversaries are happening all around you. I was thrilled they had cocktail onions to make a true gibson, plus veal medallions (you rarely see veal these days) with an extra side of spicy horseradish.” MIKE
If you had to eat the cuisine of any other country for a year, what would you choose?
Earlier this year we asked this question to over a thousand consumers. Here are a few of their answers:
“If I had to eat only one cuisine of one country, it would be Japan. I really enjoy Japanese food. There are some healthier options, it would be easy to find restaurants that offer Japanese cuisine, like sushi. I could also eat Japanese food at home as comfort foods like ramen or udon.”
Greek or Mediterranean because I have heard it is the most healthy.”
“Mexican! It has a yummy, authentic taste that doesn’t get old.”
“Brazil, due to the fact that there’s many new experiences.”
“Italian because it has pizza and pasta which are some of my favorites and make for different meals.”
“Mexican, probably because not much of it is gluten- and dairy-based. If that wasn’t an issue I would choose Italian.”
“I’d choose Japanese food because I like fish and matcha and I typically really enjoy their cuisine.”
“Italian food because you can’t go wrong with Italian food. I love the bread and pasta and all of the flavors and seasonings.”
“Korean, because they always try different trends.”
“Any Asian country honestly. There are lots of plant-based options and lots of veggies.”
The most mentioned cuisines were Italian, Mexican, Chinese, and Japanese.
