Food-to-go in 2026: what to expect

As we look at the prospects for the year ahead, here are our five key areas of focus:

1. An expanding “better for you” market 

A key way in which London's food-to-go landscape has evolved in the past year lies in the expansion of vegetable led specialists such as The Salad Project, atis, Urban Greens and Farmer Js. Quality, fresh, seasonality and variety underpin the amply filled bowls - or fieldtrays - that each of them serve. They’ve been expanding at pace over the past year - now combined trading across 50 London locations. And international opportunities now beckon - Farmer J has just opened its first location in Manhattan, while The Salad Project will open in Paris later this year. 

This isn’t just a UK phenomenon. In the US, the likes of Sweetgreen, CAVA and many others have long been playing in this space, while across Europe businesses with similar positioning have been expanding in the past year – not least Dublin based Sprouts, Vienna based Fat Monk and Berlin based Beets & Roots.

And in Europe some have already scaled significantly. Munich based Dean & David has developed considerable scale in Germany, where it now trades from over 150 locations, and beyond.

While its offer stretches beyond bowls, they are a significant part of its offering. And Barcelona based Honest Greens has expanded across Spain and Portugal, and even to London, where it opened its first location in late 2025. A Paris restaurant will follow.

The trends towards healthier, fresher food-to-go and bowls in particular - are also being reflected in retail. Protein led bowls in particular are a key current focus in the UK, while expansion from the likes of Picadeli and Foodmaker is creating significant waves across a number of countries in Europe.  

And of course there's a continuing broader wave around protein growth. Increasingly fibre is entering more into the conversation alongside this - both look set to appear prominently across growing numbers of products in 2026.

2.  Value vs. experience is a key consumer consideration and driver

The UK and France are two markets where value for the lunchtime occasion is often shaped by the meal deal, especially in retail. What we’re expecting in 2026 is further development here across both retail and food-to-go specialists (for example with Pret recently trialling meal deals of its own). Retailers – across supermarkets and convenience – as well as those trading from forecourt/ roadside locations  – will continue to test and evolve in this space. One factor feeding into this is the mixed consumer sentiment right now – and diverging patterns which are leading many to become more conscious of their spending. 

But at the same time there’s a clear demand for experience within food-to-go. Inevitably part of this will be trading up from more value-led options, while part will be trading down from fuller restaurants. Yet crucially there feels to be significant further opportunity, not least if, in the manner of Farmer Js and Honest Greens, trade can be extended to include evening missions as well as those during the day. 

A further consideration around the evening mission is what convenience stores can do in this space. Žabka in Poland is an excellent example of a convenience store business that thinks like a QSR in meeting a wide range of food-to-go missions, effectively targeting later in the day missions as well as breakfast, lunch and snacking during the day.

3.  Efficiency is becoming a more business critical concept from the get go

A lean supply chain has perhaps never been so critical a success factor as right now. Rising wage costs across many markets are encouraging more businesses to look more closely at technology as a cheaper alternative to labour while there is significant momentum around several significant food-to-go solutions right now. 

Creating an impactful concept with low waste costs is a holy grail in the world of food-to-go. It is not easy to achieve. But it can be done, with the correct operational rigours in place. Simplicity, control and measurement need to be key areas of focus here to drive consistent and profitable customer experiences. This is one reason why we're seeing more technology adopted, such as the rolllout of the Infinite Kitchen from Sweetgreen, which automates much of the bowl preparation process.

And from an efficiency perspective, we are paying close attention to the growth and evolution of vended solutions. Meanwhile the growth of operators such as Lucie in France points to how an efficient, labour light model can succeed in targeting missions for today. 

That said, there are clear dangers in going too far with technology and automation in diluting the core USP of the experience that an operator or retailer is seeking to deliver. If anything, people will need to play a bigger role in creating this differentiation in the future. Employing the right people and deploying them in the right way is therefore key.

And considering the further elements that can help elevate the customer experience and relationship will also be key - loyalty schemes have an important role to play here.

4.        Making global cuisines locally relevant

From a proposition development perspective, these are exciting times. There's been a huge amount of innovation recently, and the market feels ready for more.

And what we're starting to see more of is the interpretation and adoption of global cuisines to meet local audiences. Several poké bowl specialists for example have expanded their menus into related areas to add to menu appeal.

A great example of using the core cuisine or carrier as a canvas from which to extend, innovate and evolve is Velvet Taco. It is a US chain, focused on tacos, with over 100 US locations and offering a wide combination of flavours. In December 2025 it opened its first UK location in London.  The flavour profiles are broad and global – currently the menu includes Korean and Indian inspired tacos as well as Mexican and broader Latin American flavours. 

And there's also a continuing goal on the part of food-to-go suppliers and retailers to bring more identity and focus to their ranges. A great example of this is Fresh Corner from Paris-based Asian food-to-go specialists Kumo. Designed to drop into food retailers, this is  a shop-in-shop concept that it tested in 2025 and is now looking to roll out across France.  The concept includes its range of sushi, bentos and rolls, alongside a broader range of international dishes and desserts. 

Expect more innovation here on both the food retail and food-to-go specialist side. Broad concepts that are geographically oriented but that also give cuisine stretch across geographies are well placed here.

5. The hot food-to-go opportunity remains very much in place for the right solutions

This in fact was one of our trends for last year, but it remains one where we see continuing opportunity for development. And in fact a significant body of evidence on shelf and at the counter, as equipment providers and suppliers look at increasingly creative solutions. The elixir is a combination of hot and healthy – expect this to remain a continuing focus across a wide breadth of operators in 2026 and beyond. The Farmer J breakfast solution – simple to execute, but with a variety of options (notably around eggs) is one that we see as pointing to the future direction and opportunity. 

Across a variety of different markets across Europe and the US, we’ve seen a range of different approaches here – and different products and solutions being introduced to the mix. We’re expecting a lot more in 2026.

Ready to dig deeper?

Want to get ahead in 2026? Our food-to-go trends report is available from February 12, priced at GBP1,000 (excluding VAT), or GBP1,750 (excluding VAT) to include a one hour online presentation session from Gavin. Email gavin@foodfuturesinsights.com.

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Join our (free) London food-to-go insights & meet up session on March 3? Email gavin@foodfuturesinsights.com to reserve your place.

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