Casual dining is on the rise. According to a recent Mintel survey, sales at quick service restaurants have increased to nearly $30 billion in the past five years. This trend is being echoed throughout our hotels as guests spend less time in fine dining restaurants, opting for quick and convenient items instead. In response, Hilton Worldwide has reinvented the dining model at Hilton Hotels & Resorts, DoubleTree by Hilton and Embassy Suites brands and is introducing three new casual concepts — Herb n’ Kitchen, Made Market and Brickstones Grill – to debut in the U.S. in early 2013.
“We surveyed 22,000 guests, owners and operators and we learned that the way people eat at home is translating into the way they eat on the road,” said Beth Scott, vice president of food and beverage concepts, Hilton Worldwide. “As a result, we decided to reinvent the hotel dining model to better serve the needs, wants and lifestyle of our customers.”
A concept created for Hilton Hotels & Resorts, Herb n’ Kitchen, infuses gourmet items into a retail experience and gives guests a transparent view of the kitchen. Additionally, the self-service model offers hotels flexibility to transition from lunch to dinner and may include a variety of options from a live-action station to made-to-order or pre-made salads and sandwiches or the bar and barista zone, depending on location.
Made Market, a concept created for DoubleTree by Hilton, is synonymous with the brand – fun, approachable and convenient. This all-day eatery combines the ease of a market with the allure of a brick oven gastro pub. From fresh coffee and pastries to a pint of artisan beer, Made Market offers a contemporary, yet relaxed, comfortable environment. The first Made Market is slated to debut in January 2013 at the DoubleTree by Hilton Tulsa Downtown in Oklahoma.
Infusing value and smart design with comfort food, Brickstones Grill offers a contemporary experience that seamlessly transitions cooked-to-order breakfast to a-la-carte for lunch or dinner. Exclusive to the Embassy Suites brand, Brickstones Grill’s menu will feature American dishes, served in single or family portions, created within the iconic brick pizza oven, open pit grill and rotisserie. The open display kitchen is a staple in Brickstones Grill’s simple, yet sophisticated design along with comfortable booths and organic surfaces with quarried stone and reclaimed wood. Select locations are currently being considered.
All three concepts are optional to owners and among more than 30 additional concepts featured on HiltonRestaurantConcepts.com — a website that pairs hotels and owners with preferred food and beverage concepts to meet a variety of property’s needs. Hilton Worldwide has plans to open 800 restaurants in the next three years. For more news and updates, visit news.hiltonworldwide.com.