1. Going digital is now the norm, not the exception
According to a Food Service Vision study published in late 2025, 68% of French restaurants now use a digital menu at least part of the time. That's 12 points more than in 2024. At this pace, paper menus will be in the minority by 2027.
The shift is no longer driven by chains but by independents, who are discovering the payoff: time saved, allergen compliance, multiple languages. See also our guide, 7 reasons to move your menu online.
2. Sustainability moves from talk to action
Several laws came into force in 2025: a definitive ban on polystyrene, mandatory waste sorting at source for all public-access venues, and doggy bags across the board. A green line on your website no longer cuts it.
In practical terms, for 2026:
- Nutri-Score labelling on menus stays voluntary, but is actively encouraged
- Origin labelling for meat and fish is mandatory
- Local sourcing is worth highlighting on customer-facing material
- CO2 footprint displayed on a handful of pilot menus
3. AI arrives in the kitchen and the dining room
Not the Hollywood kind that cooks in place of the chef. The useful kind, working quietly in the background:
- Footfall forecasting: to fine-tune supplier orders and staff scheduling
- Menu translation: food-aware AI in 30+ languages that understands culinary context
- Menu optimisation: pricing and description suggestions
- Automated review replies: personalised responses drafted for you
- Allergen detection: recipe analysis to flag risky ingredients
QRMENUPRO already includes several of these (translation, allergens, recommendations). More are coming through 2026.
4. Dark kitchens settle into a workable model
After the 2020-2022 boom and the brutal shakeout of 2023-2024, the dark kitchen model (delivery-only kitchens, no dining room) is stabilising. The survivors have found their niche: hybrid kitchens that combine delivery with a shared physical restaurant.
The question for traditional restaurants in 2026: whether to launch their own virtual delivery brand to put the kitchen to work during quiet hours. Plenty are trying, with mixed results — margins on Uber Eats and Deliveroo remain thin.
5. The experience matters more than the plate
Behavioural research backs it up: 71% of customers under 35 pick a restaurant for its atmosphere and its story, not just its food. The restaurant has become a place to spend time in, a setting worth sharing, a mood.
What that means in practice:
- Care given to visual identity, right down to the QR code and menu holders
- Putting parts of the restaurant on show (open kitchen, counter, cellar)
- Monthly themed events (wine, regional producers, guest chef)
- Storytelling built into the menu (where the produce comes from, the history of the place)
"Our best nights in 2025 weren't the ones with the best menu, they were the ones with the best atmosphere. We worked it out by looking at the Instagram photos people were posting." — Jade, restaurant owner in Bordeaux
6. Multiple languages are no longer a bonus
With 100 million international visitors in 2024 and a projected 110 million in 2026 (partly driven by post-2024 Olympics tourism), not having a multilingual menu is now costing you business.
The acceptable minimum has shifted from "English only" to "English plus three to five other major languages". For more on this, see our article multilingual menus: why eight languages are enough.
How to position yourself on these trends
There's no point chasing all six at once. Our advice: pick the ones that fit who you are, and commit to them properly. A traditional rural restaurant can perfectly well stay on paper — as long as it excels at local sourcing and the experience. An urban restaurant, on the other hand, needs to tick digital, multilingual and experience.
Key takeaways
- Digital menus: 68% of restaurants in 2025, heading for 80% in 2026
- Sustainability: from talk to action (Nutri-Score, origin labelling, CO2)
- AI in the background: translation, forecasting, allergens
- Dark kitchens: a settled model, and a possible add-on for traditional restaurants
- Experience beats the plate alone: 71% of under-35s
- Multilingual: from bonus to minimum standard
- Don't do everything — pick 2-3 trends that fit who you are