The Morning Advertiser – The Meat Report
What meat trends are influencing the foodservice market?
Meat based dishes remain a staple on pub menus nationwide, however, in recent years there has been a shift away from traditional pub grub, as consumers’ increasingly explorative tastes give way to food trends inspired from around the globe, including Americana themed dishes and BBQ flavours.
Insight shows that diners, especially millennials, are looking to be stimulated by their food choices and an immersive dining experience is just as important as the food on offer itself. The current trend for food customisation is a quick and easy way for publicans to heighten each and every dining experience. Allowing customers to create their dish, their way – from burgers through to hot-dogs, chicken wings to chilli, meat-based foods can be adapted to suit a wide range of taste preferences and need-states by adding additional toppings – including cheeses, relishes, sauces and more. This in itself creates an almost unlimited menu, meaning diners are less likely to become lethargic about your food offering, causing them to seek out dining experiences elsewhere.
Variation in the way meat is cooked and the different cooking processes that adapt the taste of a dish is also a prominent trend today, with consumers favouring smoky, sweet, BBQ and flame-grilled flavours. Big Al’s Foodservice have developed a product range reflective of this – including Flame-Cooked Beef Burgers, Mesquite Chicken Wings, Gourmet Hot-Dogs and on-trend BBQ Pulled Pork – which has seen a boom in popularity in pubs. An ideal solution for licensees looking to establish a food offering for the first time, or simply looking to refresh their existing menu, Big Al’s extensive product portfolio contains a range of quick and easy to prepare microwavable products that can be cooked from frozen.
In addition, with premium burger and BBQ chains growing rapidly across the UK, Big Al’s have introduced a range of concept led solutions that offer an authentic dining experience with minimal investment. This includes The Grill Guru; a fully branded grill concept, offering the unmistakable taste of flame grilled meats, without the need for extensive catering facilities or a chef. Big Al’s can provide publicans with a full suite of point of sale and bespoke marketing collateral to give your customers a more premium fast-casual dining experience and promote each pubs’ food offering.
To further support publicans in creating consistently delicious, quick and convenient menus, Big Al’s have recently launched a dedicated Pub Food Guide – packed full of insight and advice on building a pub menu that works for a variety of on-trade establishments, and their customer bases.
To discover more about Big Al’s full product range and branded concept packages visit http://www.bigalsfoodservice.co.uk
