Amid continued inflation and with competition still strong, chain restaurant operators are feeling the pressure to control costs while driving sales and visits. Fortunately, the side-dish section of the menu offers an opportunity to meet those challenges.
“Everyone should be looking at their sides [right now],” says Andrew Freeman, founder of af&co, a lifestyle marketing and public-relations firm. “They are the unsung heroes of the menu right now.”
Orders of side dishes have been growing over the last few years. According to Technomic’s 2023 Starters, Small Plates and Sides Consumer Trend Report, 71% of consumers order sides from foodservice operators at least once each month, up from 66% in 2021. A small portion of side lovers (23%), order sides every time they order from or visit a foodservice.
Technomic’s report shows the growing demand for sides isn’t relegated to any one restaurant segment. Consumers surveyed reported ordering sides “most times” or “every time I visit” casual-dining restaurants (54%), fine dining (50%), fast-food (47%), upscale casual dining (47%), family-style restaurants (47%), and fast-casual (39%).
To meet demands, many chain operators are menuing sides in a variety of categories. Technomic’s Ignite Menu data shows the most menued side dishes include:
- specialty sides/condiments (47.7% of operators menued this)
- nonbreaded vegetable sides (38.2%)
- rice and grains (35%)
- bread sides (34.6%)
- fries (38.9%)
But while fries, chips, coleslaw, and mac and cheese are the top side items restaurant guests ordered across chains tracked within Technomic Ignite Consumer, Freeman encourages operators to go beyond the expected to “get interesting and creative.”
Adding seasonal sides is a popular approach, says Freeman, as it provides operators the opportunity to introduce something new every quarter. For example, this summer eight-unit, wine-country burger stand Gott’s Roadside, one of Freeman’s clients, menued a side of Street Corn—grilled sweet California-grown corn-on-the-cob with mayo, Cotija cheese, Asado seasoning, and lime.
"It sells out,” says Freeman of the Gott’s side dish special.
According to Technomic’s Season’s Eatings report, corn, along with peach and tomato, are some of summer’s most popular ingredients menued. For fall, the report shows, (not surprisingly) pumpkin spice, apple, Brussels sprouts, pecan, and other squash remaining popular.
Sides also present a low-risk opportunity for operators—and consumers—to explore new flavors.
“The risk you take with a side dish is much less than [an entrée],” says Freeman. “[If it doesn’t work out] it’s not going to kill food costs as much.”
When it comes to having fun with fresh flavors in side dishes, operators and Instagrammers have embraced spicy and “swicy” (sweet and spicy). In its latest Ignite Menu data, Technomic reports some of the top-growing flavors on restaurant side menus:
- Mentions of hot honey have increased 10.5% on menus over the past year, including 44.4% growth on chicken sandwiches in particular.
- Gochujang, the savory, sweet, and spicy fermented condiment popular in Korean cooking, has increased 14.9% on menus year over year.
- Furikake, Japanese “sprinkles” made of dried fish, sesame seeds, chopped seaweed, sugar, salt, and monosodium glutamate (+11.1%)
- Togarashi, another Japanese spice mixture, (+9.1%)
- Chipotle lime (5.6%)
Sonic is among the chains using on-trend flavors to add some zing to familiar favorites. The drive-in chain with more than 3,500 restaurants, recently added Groovy Fries and Groovy Sauce to locations nationwide. The deeply grooved fries are intended to hold the new sauce, which combines the flavors of ranch and herbs with Sriracha. t’s the first time the chain has updated its fries and sauce in more than a decade.
“With the new Groovy Fries, we’re redefining what a fast-food fry can be, and giving folks another reason to say ‘Yes, I would like fries with that!’,” Mackenzie Gibson, vice president of culinary and menu innovation at Sonic, says in a product launch statement.
In May, Fuzzy’s taco shop launched Birria Queso Fries. Fuzzy-dusted fries topped with housemade birria beef, Fuzzy’s famous queso, shredded cheese, pico de gallo, and pickled jalapeños, all served with a side of chipotle ranch for dipping.
How to get consumers to order more sides more frequently at your restaurants? Don’t forget about value, which Technomic reports remains top of mind for today’s consumers. Beyond menuing a variety of craveable options, the top factors consumers reported would motivate them to order more sides more often included offering “better value,” “bundled side deals” (e.g. pick two for $5, etc.), and “more combo meal options.”
