When restaurants closed their indoor dining rooms during the 2020 Covid-19 pandemic, customers had no choice but to either have food delivered or arrange for a pick-up. However, it seems that the rising delivery and takeout trend may have permanently altered the way consumers prefer to acquire hot, ready-to-eat food.

Pizza Sales Trends

Pizza delivery sales have risen every single year since 2013 and probably will continue to increase beyond 2022. Carryout pizza sales in 2020 have increased by more than $1.5 billion from 2019. Similar trends hit all types of restaurants too, regardless of whether they sold pizza or not.

Additional Restaurant Trends

Hot pizza places followed many of the same new operation trends that occurred because of the labor shortage that began in 2021-2022. However, this doesn’t just pertain to pizza trends or even only to hot foodservice. This also affects convenience stores, which sell both hot and cold food.

AI Automation

It’s not just a rumor spread on social media. The rise of AI automation has hit the food industry in ways most people would not have imagined in the past. Pizza robots, for instance, can now create 100 topped pizzas in about an hour. This may have previously only occurred in manufacturing settings that already used artificial intelligence, but now, it affects retail markets more.

Special Seating

Restaurants have now designated dining room sections to people waiting for their pickup orders. Some of these might even have seats at them, so customers can relax while waiting for an order.

Some convenient stores that sell hot foods have also followed suit, and this also applies to people who prefer to pick up their pizzas to save money on the delivery charge after ordering from an app.

Expanded Menu Options

New ways of keeping customers even when dining areas may not operate at full service include expanded menu options. For pizza places, gluten-free pizza crusts, vegetable pizzas, and plant-based cheese, or meat substitutes have become popular. The increased inclusion of beef, chicken, and other sausage or pepperoni alternatives has also occurred.

Refrigerated Pizza Display Counters

Some pizza display counters originally installed in either C-stores or pizza places usually contained soda, sandwiches, desserts, and other items. However, people often can now access already made items from these refrigerated areas. Pizzas from as small as 10 inches all the way up to 18 inches or more have made their way into these spots.

Heated Pizza Food Displays

If people would rather pick up hot food ready for them to eat without having to warm it up, they can. Heated pizza food displays now keep the food at about 160 degrees Fahrenheit, and people can special order items for pickup. The Vision Series cases have 78-inch hot food displays, and each adjustable shelf also has an individual control. Vision series cases dramatically enhance visibility from the front and side perspectives. This allows for more engagement, more appeal, and increased return on investment. The design of the Vision Series offers a minimalist approach to styling, which can help to increase the appeal of the merchandise inside. In addition to a more streamlined appearance, customers have improved visibility from the front with a lower bottom deck and sides with glass ends. This dramatic approach to visibility encourages more engagement from customers who can see what is offered, from every angle.

Whether you’re seeking an integrated design or a presentation that pops, your case can be customized with your choice of exterior laminates, custom wraps and more.

Click below to see how the new Vision Series can put a fresh spin on proven quality in your foodservice operation.