Consumers are still eating out, but many are ordering more appetizers instead of more expensive entrees.
While food inflation and affordability dominate conversations about U.S. consumers, new restaurant purchasing data shows that even among Americans who go to restaurants, many are considering eating less.
“Entree orders are up 20% year-over-year, even though entrees and desserts are mostly flat or down,” said Jim Pazanese, executive vice president of global strategic sourcing at Buyer’s Edge Platform, which tracks supply chain data within the restaurant industry. “We’re seeing changes at the item level,” he said, with some popular appetizer sales for restaurateurs seeing growth rates of more than 30%.
popular appetizers
Mozzarella sticks, 36% more pickle chips, 35% more cheese curds, 33% more jalapeño poppers, 20% more cheese bites, 17% more
Source: Buyers Edge, year-to-date data
Pazzanese calls the current restaurant environment the “appetizer economy.”
Dessert orders, on the other hand, are down 2% from a year ago, he said.
Pazzanese said one reason appetizers are becoming more popular is because of their association with promotions, which is key to getting Americans to spend money in the current economic climate.
“Consumers are realizing that appetizers are often tied to promotions and drink specials,” he says. “Now you can save even more when eating out.”
He added that purchasing frozen and shelf-stable entrees, which are the fastest growing appetizer SKUs, also makes sense from an economic standpoint for restaurateurs. “This allows owners and managers to reduce waste and address unpredictable demand,” Pazanese said.
“The K-shaped economy we’re seeing is reflected in food spending,” said Brian Choi, CEO of the Food Institute.
That trend is also being seen in grocery stores, where there is a continued shift to private labels as food inflation impacts consumer purchases, he said.
“While the top 10% are increasing their spending on new products and are willing to pay for them, the majority of consumers are moving toward private labels rather than national brands,” Choi said. “Consumers can save 10 to 20 percent by switching to private brands,” Choi added.
According to a recent study by the Food Institute, consumer perception of private labels has improved significantly over the past five years and is now on par with national brands.
”albertsons, costcoand kroger are just a few examples of companies creating more shelf space for themselves,” Choi said.
“Save Mart launched private labels for beef, chicken and pork, and Amazon launched Amazon Grocery, which has a large selection of products under $5,” Choi said. “Albertsons believes private label could account for 30 percent of sales.”
Amazon debuted a private label grocery store in October.
Food inflation may be down from its 2022 highs, but food inflation remains stubborn, according to Food Research Institute data.
“Food price inflation has been increasing since mid-2025, with meal-in-place prices increasing in the range of 1.9% to 2.7% year-on-year,” Choi said.
The latest September consumer price index (there was no October report due to the government shutdown and the November report was delayed) showed food prices rose 3.1% compared to the same month last year. Prices for meat, poultry, fish and eggs have increased by 5.2% over the past year.
“Private brands are expected to grow further and should surpass national brands by 2026,” Choi said.
The September CPI showed that the inflation rate for “food away from home” was even higher than the overall food inflation rate of 3.7% (4.2% for full-service meals). As a result, spending on private brands by restaurants, university cafeterias, convenience stores, etc. is increasing.
“The $1.5 trillion out-of-home food industry is increasingly moving toward private label brands to reduce costs,” said Phil Kafalakis, CEO of IFMA (Out-of-Home Food Association).
“Tariffs and supply chain issues are causing price increases, especially for fresh produce,” Kafalakis said.
Price easing is not expected to happen anytime soon.
“Consumers don’t understand the food supply chain,” Kafalakis says. “It doesn’t get better even after a few weeks.”
IMFA expects consumers to begin to realize the price relief from tariffs in the spring.
“Consumers don’t know how long it will take to produce beef. If there is a drought or other issues that affect the supply chain, it will take time to rebuild the supply chain,” Kafalakis said.
