Canada’s 2025 dining trends

1. Value-first mentality

• Digital coupons overtaking paper: Canadians are increasingly hunting discounts on social media, and digital coupons have surpassed physical ones for the first time squareup.com+15retail-insider.com+15foodindustrynetwork.com+15.

• Smart spending over skipping outings: Only 1 in 6 Canadians is skipping table-service restaurants—most consumers are choosing cheaper menu options, ordering water, and reducing extras instead restaurantscanada.org+7retail-insider.com+7barandbeverage.com+7.

👾 2. Gen Z driving innovation

• Digital deals & loyalty: Gen Z leads the shift toward digital ordering, loyalty programs, and seeking value through tech-enabled experiences squareup.com+14retail-insider.com+14globenewswire.com+14.

🌍 3. Changing demographics and plant-based demand

• Growing diversity: Canada’s population is becoming more ethnically diverse—people of colour may nearly double by 2041 retail-insider.com+13retail-insider.com+13globenewswire.com+13.

• Cultural food preferences: Nearly 48% of South Asian and 32% of Latin American diners prioritize plant-based options, compared to just 21% of white diners baking.ca+8retail-insider.com+8globenewswire.com+8.

🍔 4. Menu trends: fries, burgers… chicken sandwiches

• Familiar favourites rule, but the chicken sandwich is the star performer—it’s the fastest-growing menu item, with servings up 26% from 2020 globenewswire.com+7retail-insider.com+7globenewswire.com+7.

🧠 5. Reframed view on “value”

• Beyond low prices: Value now means customisable experiences—digital deals, lifestyle-aligned meals, and fair pricing in a high-cost landscape canadianpizzamag.com+15retail-insider.com+15globenewswire.com+15.

🔧 Implications for restaurants

• Embrace digital: Prioritize mobile coupons, loyalty apps, and seamless online ordering.

• Customise offerings: Offer cheaper combos, water as default, and plant-based or culturally relevant dishes.

• Innovate menu-wise: Capitalize on the chicken sandwich craze without abandoning staple items like burgers and fries.

📊 Why it matters

• Affordability is front of mind—value-conscious dining dominates consumer behavior.

• Gen Z and diversity are reshaping what success looks like in foodservice.

• Operators who adapt—digitally and culturally—are best positioned to thrive.