foodha for thought – menuism blog

No, we’re not talking about organic vodkas and the organic drinks that use them; we’re all about what restaurants are doing to save some money, ’cause diners just aren’t spending like they used to. According to this article on trends in restaurant beverage consumption, proprietors are offering more limited-time-only drinks to showcase innovative drink ideas without considerably lengthening their menus.

One trick restaurants are using to move drinks are including the words “100 fruit juice” or “natural ingredients” on the menu. This particular study showed that about four out of ten consumers were more likely to order a juice that was branded as actual juice. And thirty-six percent of restaurants polled sold bottled water, forcing all of their customers to specify that they wanted tap water while the server gives them the old stink-eye.

I was genuinely surprised to see that diners are embracing the all-natural drinks; I worked at a restaurant where we sold only all-natural soda, so when someone asked for a Coke, I’d have to kind of shuffle around and say that we had an all-natural drink similar to Coke, and hope that they were okay with agave nectar and fruit-derived colors