“Nostalgia isn’t what it used to be.”
That quote is often attributed to Yogi Berra, but the use of the witty truism predates the late, great Yankee catcher. It seems to have emerged in England in the early 20th Century, and was also the title of actress Simone Signoret’s memoirs, published in the 1970s.
A recent article in the New York Times cites Gen Z nostalgia for the casual dining restaurants of their youth as a source of new life for several old brands. Some young adults are tripping down memory lane by visiting places like Chili’s, Outback, Olive Garden, even Red Lobster (when they’re not in bankruptcy court trying to repair the bottom-line damage from the latest all-you-can-eat shrimp promo). Dining out with family and friends has changed a lot since Mom took the kids to Applebee’s after soccer practice, and today’s young adults miss that warm, fuzzy experience.
But the great bulk of guests at these old-school CDR chains is still older people, and that puts the brands in a dilemma: update their menus for younger palates, and risk losing touch with their core customers. The occasional nostalgic visit will never rival the steady revenue of older loyalists. The phenomenon called ChainFEST made me think about some format-busting mashups that could offer a new approach. If, like me, you weren’t aware of ChainFEST until recently, it is “the world’s largest celebration of chain restaurants.” They’ve held the event in Los Angeles and New York, drawing more than 5000 foodies to revel in the glow of CDR, FC, and QSR brands and sample exclusive gourmet versions of classic dishes.
Clearly, the festival promoters are on to something.
Meanwhile, another trend in dining is the proliferation of the food hall, offering a variety of culinary options and experiences under one roof. Why not merge the two trends? A group of CDR brands from Landry’s, Brinker, and Darden could create a kind of dining marketplace where guests could choose selections from their favorite brands, in a sort of permanent ChainFEST. Maybe that’s one approach that could help save and evolve some venerable brands, seizing upon multiple trends, meeting market needs in an innovative way. Your thoughts?