12 Apr, 2024
Hybrid Restaurant Trend
In the past few years, the trends in the restaurant industry have changed drastically. This is not just the result of the pandemic, but also the changing habits of people all over the world.
Traditional practices of a standalone outlet no longer stand strong and there is a need for constant updates and change within the restaurant industry. It does not matter whether you own a fast food restaurant, a QSR or a cloud kitchen, restaurateurs need to find new ways to keep attracting customers to their restaurants.
What is in vogue now is a Hybrid Restaurant Model!
What is a Hybrid Restaurant Model?
A hybrid restaurant model is a combination of more than one type of outlet or service or experience in a restaurant.
A hybrid restaurant does not have to necessarily combine two outlets providing cooked food. It can be a QSR and an ice cream parlour or a coffee shop fronting a cloud kitchen or even a cafe opened inside a bookshop etc.
Current Trends in a Hybrid Restaurant Model
In the past few years, restaurants have undergone some radical creative changes. Experimenting with the location and type of restaurant and setting up and running them has become very popular.
Let’s take a look at some instances where a hybrid restaurant model can be implemented:
1. Micro Cloud Kitchens
Micro Cloud Kitchens are the easiest way to venture into setting up a hybrid restaurant model. This idea is specifically for those restaurateurs who already have a fully-functioning restaurant.
In this, dine-in restaurants open a small cloud kitchen unit within their premises which focuses only on food delivery. This cloud kitchen is completely separate from the existing restaurant and the services of both are independent.
A good point here is that owners have the freedom to experiment with different menus for both outlet types. This is also a great way to increase revenue at a time when footfall is reduced in the restaurant.
2. QSR and Cloud Kitchens
A QSR or a Quick Service Restaurant usually serves fast food to the customers. This includes food items which can be made in the shortest possible time. Even though QSRs require minimum service, they do provide some seating areas for customers to have an option of dine-in, although it may be self-service.
Setting up a cloud kitchen in this situation will increase your returns without the hassle of building more seating space or dining areas. You can design a completely different menu and handle both easily since the amount invested in both will be very less compared to opening a second full-fledged restaurant. Moreover, while one can focus on dine-in and takeaway, the other can completely focus on delivery.
This will also help raise brand awareness since your cloud kitchen delivery can be widespread to areas farther from your restaurant and bring more customers to your doorstep!
3. Cafe and Lifestyle Store
Cafes are the most popular form of restaurant outlets. They are small restaurants which sell light food and beverages. These days, cafes are more known for their aesthetics and having Instagrammable interiors. Who better to use this to their advantage than lifestyle stores?
Lifestyle cafes are a relatively older concept in Western countries. Luxury retail stores such as Selfridges in London, and Macy’s in New York have their own in-house cafes and restaurants for the shoppers. They serve premium quality food and a range of options to choose from. This is a good way to make customers spend more time in the store and splurge on both – products and food!
Enjoy people-watching while you sip on espresso at Café La Tana
4. Bookstore Cafe
It is said that public libraries are diminishing in number. Book lovers are finding fewer and fewer nooks to curl up with a book and enjoy a cuppa coffee apart from their home. A bookstore cafe is a great way to turn your cafe into a hybrid model.
You can either partner up with a bookstore and open an in-house cafeteria there or open your independent cafe and build a small library there. Book readers tend to spend long hours in the same place and hence that is also a good way to multiply your billings.
5. Art Cafe
Art Cafes are highly interactive cafes which involve various activities that customers can participate in. They provide two favourite things of humans together – food and entertainment.
Art cafes can also be developed as art viewing cafes. If you are an art enthusiast, you can turn your restaurant into a viewing gallery cum cafe. This will add a unique touch to your interiors making the cafe aesthetically pleasing and increasing customer frequency.
The Polygon patio has a gorgeous view of the city skyline.
Even though hybrid restaurant models are still a pilot study, they have proven to be majorly successful and cost-effective. Restaurant owners are teaming up with entrepreneurs who have the vision to do something different and offer not just good food but a wholesome experience.