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FIBERMAXXING

Healthy salad made up of avocado, kale, arugula, carrots and sweet potato

BEYOND PROTEIN:THE MENU HACK BOOSTING RESTAURANT MARGINS

Fiber‑forward menus become this summer’s most profitable pivot.

Driven by TikTok, wellness creators, and a broader cultural shift toward gut‑health and longevity, the trend is about deliberately maximizing intake through high‑fiber foods, swaps, and add‑ins. It’s not a fad detox; it’s a way of eating that nutrition science has supported for decades.

  • Sweetgreen is a leader in fiber-forward bowls, using ingredients like broccoli, kale, lentils, chickpeas, and quinoa.
  • Taco Bell’s Veggie Cravings menu focuses on black beans, cabbage, avocados, and tomatoes.
  • Tim Hortons is jumping into the game with better-for-you options such as whole-wheat breads, oatmeal, and harvest bowls filled with grains, vegetables, and beans.
  • Qdoba and Chipotle are highlighting brown rice, whole beans, and a variety of produce items like peppers, corn, romaine, onions, and tomatillos.
  • Freshii menus are packed with fiber-rich-foods such as brown rice, quinoa, sweet potatoes, kale, edamame, broccoli, cabbage, and beans.

HIGH FIBER, HIGH PROFITS

Diners are increasingly hyper-focused on high-protein and plant-based foods. Alongside all of the new-fangled, lab-based, cell-cultured options out there is the humble bean. A staple food for millenia, beans are being re-examined as a healthy, versatile ingredient worthy of menu inclusion.

  • Retro and heirloom recipes—like Southern succotash, French cassoulet, and Cajun red beans and rice—fit the bill for those in search of authenticity.
  • Most world cuisines incorporate some type of bean in their classic dishes. Think feijoada in Brazil, black beans and rice with plantains in Puerto Rico, and garbanzo beans in Israel. Modern interpretations of these recipes are packed with produce and herbs.
  • The creamy texture of mung beans is proving an ideal substitute for those that are eliminating soy from their diets.