Plan Your Meetings

Hospitality trends for 2010

Creating caché, forgoing finery and incorporating reality TV-like activities for guests are some of the top hospitality trends Andrew Freeman & Co., a San Francisco-based hospitality and restaurant consulting firm, predicts will be big in 2010.

Among the general trends meeting planners can expect to see offered at restaurants and hotels are:

1. Putting off the ritz. Expect simplified ambiance, service and menu items, reduced in-room amenities, and simpler place and table settings.
2. The magic touch. Look for touch-screen interfaces to start to pop up for guests to interact with when checking in or placing orders. Some venues are using touch-screen wine lists and tourist maps to educate visitors.
3. Pinch hitting: ‘Guest’ who’s coming to dinner. Celebrity bartenders, guest chefs and special experts (e.g. celebrity yoga instructors or entertainers) may be among the amenities offered by hotels and restaurants next year.
4. Reality-based adventures. Expect more team-building or educational guest activities to pop up around reality TV show themes.
5. There is such a thing as a free lunch. As it continues to be a buyer’s market for meeting planners, look for perks, such as free bike rentals and bottled water at hotels or complimentary appetizers during restaurant happy hours.
6. Game rooms for adults. Hotel lobbies have already morphed into living rooms; in 2010 Andrew Freeman predicts they will start featuring game room amenities such as pool tables and movie nights; restaurants may feature more activity nights.
7. Spiritual health: value-driven incentives. Planners will have an easier time finding hotels and restaurants that can donate a percentage of profits to a group’s charity of choice or have clearly defined CSR or green initiatives that align with the client’s values.

Predicted 2010 hotel trends include:

1. Immersive experiences such as farm stays and winery bootcamps.
2. An emphasis on fine art as decor, rather than expensive (and perishable) flower arrangements.
3. More perks for loyalty program members.
4. Greater availability of quirky, unusual properties (think airstream trailers converted into hotel rooms).
5. The creation of more unique outdoor event venues (urban rooftop gardens, outdoor lobbies, outdoor workout venues, etc.).
6. Increased attention to making in-room workspaces functional and comfortable with extra desk outlets, ergonomic chairs and updated tech equipment.
7. Customized music playlists, pre-loaded digital picture frames and personalized in-room magazine selections designed to make repeat visitors feel at home.

Look for the following 2010 restaurant trends:

1. American classics will be replaced by their international counterparts. Think sriracha hot sauce instead of salsa and Vietnamese banh mi instead of ham and swiss.
2. Small foods on a stick will become more prevalent, whether they’re satayed, yakitori or twists on the traditional kebab.
3. Asian noodle soups, from ramen to pho, will be offered as one-dish meals with complex, unexpected flavors.
4. Buffets will be livened up with an international smorgasbord of sandwiches that run the gamut from Mexican tortas to Indian kati rolls and Scandinavian open-faced sandwiches.
5. Coastal seafood shacks are opening up in urban areas, catering to a more upscale clientele, bringing a taste of the beach to inland cities.
6. Going beyond local, organic produce, the new breed of eco-conscious chefs are focusing on serving sustainably harvested seafood.
7. Chefs are looking at serving up modern versions of TV dinners and bento boxes with one-plate meals that feature a little bit of everything.
8. Restaurants are focusing on creating experiences that will enhance the dining experience, such as dishes or sauces being prepared tableside and build your own desserts.
9. Entrées are being offered in full and half sizes, as well as in miniature and portions meant for sharing.
10. Beer gardens, with their hardy grub and open-air environments, are expected to be hot next year.
11. Drive-up food trucks create an instant block party while offering a specialized taste of the host city.
12. Restaurants and art galleries are starting to merge, offering artistic food-focused events in an atmosphere decorated with high art.
13. Happy hours no longer are limited to 4 to 6 p.m. Some are starting as early as 2:30 p.m. or going as late as 7 p.m.