It seems like flavor trends are changing and evolving more than ever, and we truly have seen this over the past year. In 2022 there was a boom in true-to-fruit flavors, and we can bet you encountered this trend on menus throughout the year. According to Sensapure, some of the most popular true-to-flavor trends of this year were coconut lime, plum blossom, cranberry, blueberry mint, pink grapefruit, pineapple, orchard fruits, guava, hibiscus pear, and sweet tangerine. Tastes are changing in the ever-evolving foodservice industry, but are you keeping up?
Below we will take a deeper look into the importance and benefits sampling stations offer and how they can boost profits and participation. Not only is there a monetary benefit to this concept, but also an intangible benefit to note. Sampling stations can create a better understanding of what your customers, students, guests, or diners want out of the food you are serving them. See what works and what doesn’t work on a small scale before implementing new food concepts in larger quantities. Keeping up with trends is easy with the right versatile equipment. Here, we will take a closer look at what Stanford University did with their sampling station and the success it brought.
The Why:
Stanford University sought a versatile serving solution that would allow students to try cuisines from around the world in smaller proportions. This would be a space to let students sample new flavor combinations and try exotic tastes. It would give students hands-on experience creating those flavors, too, as the sampling stations allow the chefs to directly interact with diners during prep and serving. This space also needed to be mobile so it could be used in the dining hall as well as by catering areas across campus. Multiteria was able to work with Stanford to find a solution for this need of theirs.
Flexible fit:
Multiteria spoke with the university and helped them create something versatile that could meet their needs while offering the ability for maneuverability by one person. Not only was mobility a key feature needed, but also the stand’s ability to fit through standard doorways. A custom solution was created with a wood front and lettering to match their goal aesthetic to build upon the entire dining atmosphere. An expanding counter gave flexibility and much needed real estate for mixing bowls, platters of food, displays, and signage to introduce featured ingredients. To this day, these carts are still being used to introduce students to everything from amaranth to soybeans to whatever other unique ingredients might be in that month’s harvest. This sampling station offers a great way to make the most of the changing palates and other trends among Gen Z diners. This set-up offers an option to be used for banquets, special events, or as a special feature in dining areas to make sure this station can travel across campus and be utilized in various settings.
What’s Next:
Keeping up with the trends will delight your diners, whether you work in foodservice at a university, or you work in foodservice at a long-term care community. With this, it is important to implement versatile solutions that your team can adapt to the use of future trends, change, evolve, and shift. Learn more about the possibilities with sampling stations here!
