2026 Restaurants Outlook: Jenny Cho

Cho’s 2026 Projection: We’re living in a somewhat new world and trying to figure out how we can balance that next wage increase with having to increase our menu prices. The trend is there are no trends anymore. You don’t necessarily have a rush hour anymore, certainly in quick service. People work from home now; they have their own hours. You have to constantly be on the ball.

What changes brought about by COVID-19 remain six years later?
A big one is labor and the expectation of employees. I think that when people received subsidy money from the government, for some, it changed work ethic. COVID-19 upset employment, it upset labor, it upset cost.

Is the takeout trend that took hold during COVID-19 still going strong?
Yes. We didn’t have online ordering until after COVID. There were some good things that came out of COVID. You had to step back and look at what you were doing wrong or what you’d been putting on the back burner. It’s all about efficiency.

What is the outlook for the restaurant labor market?
I hope that politically and economically things calm down a little bit. It’s a numbers game trying to find those people that want to make a dollar, that want to work hard but also want to be there with you and feed off each other in a good way.

How have inflation and rising labor costs affected the industry?
If you don’t have a fulfilled staff you’re going to fail. You take care of your staff, you make sure they want to be there, and you make sure that you’re paying them enough. You need to pay your employees enough to be able to keep their heads above water while also keeping yourself above water.

Food & Beverage Magazine identified sustainability and local sourcing as a 2025 trend. Do you think this will continue to matter?
I pray that we can get more on to that trend, but it’s the bottom line everyone’s looking at. I’m glad that farm-to-table caught on and people started to see the benefits. I think that trend will continue.

What food trend do you see dominating?
I do feel like the build-your-own style is becoming way more popular right now – customization – whether we want it or not. Even if you have a preset menu, you still have people that want to change their meal and sometimes it has to do with diet. Celiac was big before, and now it’s alpha-gal syndrome. You’re used to being able to tweak those ingredients yourself to make it what you want, so I think that is a big trend. You’re paying attention to that wallet a little bit more. You’re going to pay for what you want.

Do you think people will eat out more?
I do, because they’re working. You don’t have time to get home and put forth that effort. Oftentimes that means eating out, and I don’t think that’s a bad thing, necessarily. I hope that we can persuade the public that eating out can be good for you. You can give them that feeling of a home-cooked meal. There are people trying to get what they can in a 15-minute window or after soccer practice or choir practice or church, so, yes, I feel like the restaurant industry is here to stay.

Where do you see artificial intelligence integration going for restaurants?
I’m seeing the benefits of it, especially with customizing. AI is able to kind of view a person’s wants and needs and put it down in a very neat, organized, outlined way. AI can help us try to kind of narrow down descriptions to find the most efficient way to describe something to a customer so they understand what we’re trying to serve them.