Capitalize on new ways to help guests enjoy restaurant food at home

As challenging as the pandemic made running a restaurant or other foodservice business, it also triggered a wave of creativity among operators as chefs were challenged to find new ways to bring restaurant-quality food to people at home. Now, though consumers are free to return to restaurants, many continue to seek ways of enjoying quality food without the hassle of cooking or leaving the house. A new business stream has emerged from this. On the surface, it sounds like catering, but it’s more about marrying the experience of restaurant dining with the comforts of staying at home – and it’s helping many operators remain profitable right now. In fact, it’s contributed to 2024 being the year of the dinner party, according to Eater. For example, a recent report notes the growing appeal of Moveable Feast, a company that hires chefs to prepare meals for up to 12 people that are then shipped to points around the country. The idea for the business was born out of the pandemic, when Moveable Feast cofounder John Stubbs was looking for ways to support chefs. While participating in the business does generate some in-person restaurant visits, it mainly gives the restaurants an additional means of getting their brand out to hungry consumers. Similar meal packages are popping up around the country in cities featuring high-end restaurants. increasingly, consumers looking to host a dinner party can pay to turn their home into something like a small satellite location of that restaurant, with the multi-course food and drink menu prepared and served by the restaurant’s chef. Regardless of the kind of food and drink you serve, can you envision new ways of bringing it to your guests and their friends on their own turf?

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