The top 5 ways to grow your food delivery business this summer

Our eating & lifestyle habits are evolving in summer 2026

We’ve never been more ready for a summer that feels endless, filled with late sunsets, laughter with friends, and long, sun-soaked pool days. After a few years of change, challenge, and rediscovery, summer 2026 feels like the perfect time to lean into joy, connection, and simple pleasures. Earlier this year, we dove into the biggest 2026 food and lifestyle trends, and they all point toward one thing: living fully, right now.

Explore more: After seasons of staying in our comfort zones, we’re craving new experiences: new cities, new faces, and of course, new flavors. Whether it’s a road trip or a recipe, summer 2026 is all about saying yes to discovery.

Treat yourself like it’s 2026: Every moment counts this year. Got through a tough week? Celebrate. Your friend’s cat just turned two? That’s a reason for brunch. Life’s too short not to toast to the little things, especially this summer.

Your customers are looking for ways to broaden their culinary horizons

These trends are still shaping how we eat, gather, and celebrate the season, and they’re evolving in exciting new ways. Let’s dive into what they mean for today’s food scene, how they might influence your business, and how you can tap into these movements to grow your food delivery brand in summer 2026.

After years of experimenting in our own kitchens, customers are once again eager to explore — 68% say they plan to try new restaurants this summer, and over half plan to taste dishes they’ve never had before. In 2026, we’re still embracing the classics (burgers, tacos, and barbecue aren’t going anywhere!) but with a modern twist. According to recent data from Yelp and DoorDash, foodies are especially excited about:

Bánh xèo: The crispy, golden Vietnamese rice pancake is making waves again — this time with global fusions and creative fillings. Searches for bánh xèo have jumped more than 30% this year as diners seek new cultural favorites.

Rice rolls: Once a niche comfort food, these versatile rolls — packed with veggies, crab, or even spam — are going mainstream. Mentions and orders have soared by over 60%, and you’ll find them popping up on menus from New York to Seoul.

Seafood towers: Nothing says summer indulgence like a chilled tower overflowing with oysters, shrimp, crab, and mussels. Searches for raw bars are up 25% as people look for social, shareable dining experiences that feel like a celebration.

And any reason is reason enough to celebrate with friends over food & drinks this summer

A virtual cheers will always have its place, but nothing beats clinking real glasses with friends under the summer sun. After a few unpredictable years, we’re ready to celebrate everything, from long weekends to little wins, surrounded by the people we love.

And that spirit of celebration is shaping how people order, dine, and enjoy. In 2026, nearly 60% of millennials say they’re more likely to choose a restaurant that offers to-go cocktails or alcoholic pairings, and the demand for celebration-ready meals is higher than ever. According to the National Restaurant Association, more than half of millennials (62%) and Gen Z adults (52%) report they would be more likely to pick a restaurant for take-out if they could include alcoholic beverages.

With 70% of customers planning to host more birthdays, holidays, and casual get-togethers than they did last year, there’s huge potential for restaurants to become part of those joyful moments. This summer, it’s all about picnics in the park, sunset pizza nights, backyard barbecues, and taco Tuesdays that turn into margarita Thursdays, and people are looking for brands that make it easy to keep the good times rolling.

Keeping up with the changes in customer behavior and industry trends

There are a coupld things you can do to take advantage of the changing customer behaviors mentioned above.

• Give your customers new food experiences. Same old menu feeling, well, same-old? Based on the insight that people are looking for new foods and restaurants to explore post-pandemic, consider adding new things to your menu to spice it up. When it comes to breakfast, were looking for new caffeine experiences like strawberry matcha, lavender lattes, and cold foam iced coffees. In terms of lunch and dinner fare, consider giving your menu a summertime touch with colorful salads, light, fresh dishes, and seafood towers.
• Become your customers go-to celebration restaurant. We're celebrating like it's 2026 – because it is. And we're looking for more ways to celebrate. Based on the insight that customers are more likely to order from a restaurant if it offers to-go cocktails, consider adding some new adult beverage options to your menu. According to Yelp, searches for unique cocktails like lychee martinis are on the rise, as well as a classic late-night beverage: the espresso martini. If you want to be a part of the celebration without adding alcohol to your menu, consider adding creative celebratory kits like picnic packs complete with a summer charcuterie.

The top 5 easy ways to grow your food delivery business this summer

Outside of leaning into summer 2026 customer trends, there are a few key things you can do to ensure that your delivery business stays on the sunny side this summer. Let's dig in.

1. Optimize your menu. Menu optimization is a key factor in increasing delivery orders. As you likely know, with Otter, you're able to track which menu items are (and aren't) performing well. There's a good chance that during summer, your most popular menu items might be different from your most popular menu items during winter or fall. With our Menu Manager, it's easy to update your menu across all delivery platforms to match ordering behaviors each season. In addition to considering a seasonal menu, it may be worth refreshing your menu structure to add extras and options alongside each dish. This way, whatever a customer picks for a main, you could provide them with a suggestion for a drink, side or dessert: giving your customers a complete meal, and your restaurant a bigger basket size. In taking advantage of this technique, you increase your average order value which in turn makes your restaurant more profitable.

2. Refresh your food photos and descriptions. Your food photos and descriptions make up your digital storefront. When it comes to online ordering, your first impression isn't your logo, building's exterior, or interior ambiance. It's how your food looks in your on-platform photos and how you describe the taste in a quick description. In order to stand out from the ever growing list of restaurants on delivery platforms, make sure that you're taking the best approach to shooting food photography. The top 5 things to consider in shooting food photography are light, background, time of day, brand consistency and angle. More on that here.

3. Be active on review sites. If your food photography equates to your curbside first impression on delivery platforms, your reviews (and responsiveness) equates to your customer service & attentiveness. Responding to reviews is critical in growing your delivery business. Whether a customer is satisfied or less satisfied, it's important to take a proactive approach by letting them know you understand their qualms and will find a solution that's right for them. The more often you respond to reviews, the more you'll recognize that customer satisfaction gives you an opportunity to make lasting changes that will help you grow your business.

4. Take advantage of social media. In summer 2026, we can expect the return of tourism and leisure spending. This means there are more customers to be reached and more money to be made for your restaurant. But those customers can't order from your restaurant if they don't know it exists. The key solution here is to take advantage of social media. Make sure that your social feed provides potential customers with any specials, updates, or promotions in a way that looks & feels like your brand as a whole. From there, you can increase your reach by running a social campaign to reach new customers in your area – both tourists and locals. Resulting in a new food experience for them, and more orders for your restaurant.

5. Simplify your delivery operations. As restaurants continue to reopen for in-store dining, you can expect a surge of customers ready to slide into a booth and enjoy the experience of your restaurant in real life. Even as dine-in returns, experts expect that delivery will continue to grow your bottomline, but could be a little overwhelming for your team. Protect your staff by streamlining and simplifying your delivery operations with Otter. Having all your orders, order status, and data in a single tablet ensures that your team can spend less time behind the tablet and more time interfacing with customers.

Succeed in delivery (and dine-in) this summer by taking advantage of the tips & trends above

We're all trying to make the most of summer 2026 - from new experiences to constant celebrations - your customers are overjoyed that they're able to experience a never ending summer with your restaurant. Taking advantage of customer trends and ensuring that your delivery business is in tip top shape with the 5 tips mentioned above will ensure that both your customers' and restaurant's summer is one for the books. Cheers.