Beverage

Is this the year consumers finally start saying no to sugar? We’re learning that sugar hooks our brains; pummels our livers; swells our bellies; and accelerates aging, among other effects. Ugh.

Unsurprisingly, interest in low-sugar cocktails has been rising. Mixologists are turning away from fruity syrups and sweet juices and instead experimenting with savory flavors. During a recent visit to Longoven, the celebrated restaurant in Richmond, Virginia, sweet cocktails were notably absent from the menu. In their place were drinks flavored with ingredients like smoked ice, juniper, Chinese shawo fruit (which is actually a radish), coconut oil and coconut water, kombucha and prickly pear.  

Is your mouth watering yet? We take a look at some savory alcoholic drinks that don’t need sugar to be delicious.

Restaurant operators in the United States have one thing on their minds: Labor. Low unemployment rates, immigration restrictions, changes to overtime pay and rising minimum wages have made it hard to hire great staff. 

Retaining good employees is the biggest challenge for 80% of operators, according to Technomic’s May 2019 Foodservice State of the Industry report. Recruitment’s a close second, with 76% naming it as a problem.

One solution to this persistent challenge is investing in equipment upgrades — not to replace the staff you don’t have, but to assist the staff you do have.

Healthy milkshake? It sounds like an oxymoron. But that’s exactly what Subway offered in summer 2019 with an exclusive partnership with Halo Top Creamery: a line of hand-spun milkshakes that customers could feel good about ordering. The shakes, each with 350 calories or less, contain at least 20 grams of protein and a hefty helping of calcium.

The Halo Top milkshakes were a limited-time offering, tested in just 1,000 stores. The jury’s still out on whether the chain will make them a permanent addition to the menu — but in the meantime, we’re seeing a growing interest in milkshakes among fast-casual and QSR restaurant operators. They’re a high-dollar menu item with universal appeal, both as a meal add-on and a snack for the in-between dayparts.

Hamilton Beach Commercial dives deep into global milkshake trends: novel flavors, vegan shakes, fresh presentations and alcoholic kicks.

The fresh-juice market never stops evolving. What was popular five years ago (detox cleanses, charcoal) has become less so. Customers chase ever more novel flavors: pomelo and yuzu, hyssop and beetroot. Around the world, trends flare and either catch fire or fade. 

But one thing’s for sure: Customers are still thirsty for fresh juice. Here's a look at three major juicing trends that will shape the market in 2020 and beyond.

Bartending competitions are incredibly fun to watch, as the most creative mixologists working today execute drinks with poise and flair. But they’re not just entertainment; for bar operators, they’re educational. That’s because the competitors are on the  forefront of global cocktail trends.

We examined the winners of a few competitions to see what we could learn about up-and-coming drinks. And if you have a winning cocktail of your own, why not compete next year? There are dozens of notable competitions all over the world – we’ll tell you about a few.

When shopping for commercial blenders, most restaurant operators zoom in on three numbers: horsepower, capacity, and price. Those numbers are important… but they don’t entirely address the needs of your business. To ensure you’re buying the right model, look a little closer. The best commercial blenders on the market have these six features in common.

You know the old saying, “only the best will do”? For budget-conscious restaurant owners, that’s not always true. If you haven’t blended a dozen margaritas back to back since the weekend of the Parrothead convention, then you may not need to invest in the best commercial blender on the market.

Here at Hamilton Beach Commercial, our high-performance blenders are the stars of our product line. These machines are built for maximum efficiency, power and consistency. They can create a flawless drink profile in seconds, and are built to last for many years in a high-volume commercial kitchen.

But if frozen drinks and smoothies aren’t a core menu item, then you may be able to get away with a more affordable, less powerful bar blender. They’re workhorses too! Here are five things to consider when you’re making a blender buying decision. 

The grocery business is facing an identity crisis. As the rising popularity of pick-up/delivery services and limited-selection format stores makes clear, customers prefer to spend as little time as possible shopping for groceries. The Food Marketing Institute and Nielsen now predict that within five to seven years, 70 percent of shoppers will buy their groceries online. 

This trend is countered by fresh-format stores, which have transformed the once-mundane grocery run into an enjoyable exploration. They offer prepared foods, wine bars, samples, cooking demonstrations, classes, and other upgrades tailored to individual shoppers’ tastes. One profitable example is the in-house juice bar — but is it right for your store? First, consider these four questions.

Who doesn’t love a pop-up cocktail bar? They build buzz. They boost sales during slow days or seasons. And, with themes as diverse as Christmas and cherry blossoms, they’re fun and endlessly inventive.  

But they’re not easy to execute successfully. Just ask cocktail chef Matthew Biancaniello, founder of Eat Your Drink and “LA’s most inventive barman,” as Eater LA has dubbed him. We asked Biancaniello what he’s learned in five years of running innovative pop-ups and bar residencies — here’s what he told us.

People never seem to lose their thirst for smoothies. The global smoothie market is expected to grow at a CAGR of 6.8% until 2023, according to Mordor Intelligence, driven by the demand for healthy, quick meal replacements. 

On the surface, a smoothie seems like the easiest possible addition to a café menu. Fruit, ice, blend, pour. Right? Not quite. There’s an art to making smoothies that will win over customers and keep them coming back for more.