The restaurant industry is preparing for an aging customer base, which could create new opportunities for operators willing to rethink their approach to hospitality.
People aged 65 and older are projected to account for 18% of U.S. restaurant spending by 2030, up from 10% in 2025, according to Technomic data cited by Restaurant Dive. At the same time, experts caution that restaurants shouldn't think about older guests solely as a separate demographic.
For Back of House consultant Spencer Michiel, the key is understanding that older customers are still restaurant customers. They want to go out, enjoy a meal, have a drink, and receive good service.
What may change is how they interact with a restaurant, and how much friction they're willing to tolerate.
That distinction can help you cater to older diners without turning the experience into something overly specialized or making guests feel singled out because of their age.
One of the biggest mistakes restaurants can make is assuming older guests want a fundamentally different dining experience.
Spencer has seen the opposite. When he goes out with his parents, he said, they aren't necessarily looking for the newest or trendiest restaurant, but they still behave like regular diners when they do go out.
“They’re just regular diners whose appetites may be smaller, but they still want to go out,” he says. “They’re going to get a glass of wine or a beer. They’re going to have a full meal, pay with a credit card, and tip. And if they get good service, they’ll tell everyone about it.”
That means senior dining preferences shouldn't automatically be treated as a list of limitations. A smaller appetite doesn't mean a guest doesn't want a satisfying meal. A preference for a familiar restaurant doesn't mean a diner isn't interested in quality or experience.
It also means employees should avoid making assumptions about what an older guest will order.
Spencer recalled an early experience as a server at a steakhouse, when an older couple came in, and he assumed they might want something relatively simple. Instead, they ordered a jug of Canadian beer. “I thought, ‘Oh yes, you're immediately my favorite table now,’” he recalls.
The lesson is simple. Don't confuse age with a specific set of tastes.
Restaurants have increasingly turned to QR-code menus, online reservations, digital loyalty programs, and other technology to streamline operations. Those tools can make sense for both restaurants and guests, but not every diner wants to use them.
The answer doesn't necessarily mean abandoning digital tools. Instead, restaurants can give guests another way to interact with the restaurant.
Spencer says older diners are generally less likely to embrace digital tools, which can mean restaurants collect less customer data from an important segment of their customer base.
“They're not as stuck to their smartphones as those of us in Gen X and younger,” Spencer says. “Using your phone is not something like, ‘Oh, I'll just use my phone. It's simple and easy.’ It's not. That's not their go-to.”
The operational solution can be remarkably simple — give guests another option.
That might mean:
“We do menus on your phone if you want, but I can 100% grab you physical menus,” he says. “If you say, ‘Yeah, we want physical menus,’ I’ll be right back. No problem.”
The same principle applies to reservations. If a restaurant offers online reservations, that doesn't necessarily mean phone reservations should disappear.
“If they call to make a reservation and you've got an online-only system, you should still have a way to help them,” Spencer says. “It's still hospitality, right? So you need to say, ‘Okay, no problem. I'll enter it for you.’”
The point isn't to hold restaurants back from modernizing, but rather to give customers options.
Restaurants don't necessarily need a completely separate menu to accommodate older guests. In many cases, smaller portions may be enough.
Spencer suggests that casual restaurants, pubs, and bar-and-grill concepts could offer smaller versions of existing dishes at a lower price.
“You just do your normal food because they're not children,” he says. “They're not going to be picky eaters, but they just have a smaller portion for less money.” The goal isn’t to create a separate menu of simpler foods, but to give older diners the same choices in portions that better match their appetites.
That approach can address both appetite and value without creating a dining experience that feels patronizing. It may also appeal to other diners with smaller appetites, including those taking GLP-1 medications, who may find that standard restaurant portions are more than they want or need.
Restaurants can also use existing menu categories to their advantage. An appetizer, for example, may already provide an appropriately sized meal for someone with a smaller appetite.
Restaurants may also want to reconsider dishes they have dismissed as outdated.
Spencer pointed out that older customers may have developed their food preferences during different eras than younger diners. A dish that feels like an old trend to you could still be something a longtime customer wants to order.
“Maybe it’s something they ate in the ’90s or 2000s that they still want,” he says. “You might be able to bring it back, keep it on the menu, or offer a senior-sized version.”
Understanding that history can help restaurants see older diners' preferences as more than a list of “senior” foods — they're shaped by the restaurants and food trends of their generation.
Accessibility often brings to mind ramps, parking spaces, or mobility accommodations. Those considerations matter, but restaurants can also make their experiences more accessible through relatively simple operational choices.
Physical menus and staff willingness to help can make a meaningful difference.
The larger goal is to make those accommodations feel routine rather than exceptional.
That mindset also helps restaurants avoid treating older guests as though they need to be handled differently. “When I've served an older crowd, it's always about making them feel as if they're not any different,” Spencer recalled. “You get the same level of excellent service, just like anybody else.”
That can be an important distinction. Restaurant accessibility doesn't have to mean creating a special experience for one age group. It can mean removing unnecessary barriers so more people can comfortably participate in the same experience.
Restaurants also shouldn't assume that every market has the same opportunity, or the same needs.
A restaurant in a retirement-heavy community may need to think differently about its customer experience than one in a college town or a neighborhood with a broad mix of age groups.
Spencer pointed to Palm Springs, California, where he previously lived, as an example of a market with a large older population. In a market like that, operators may have more reason to preserve practices that make the restaurant comfortable for older customers.
That makes understanding the local customer base an important part of restaurant marketing for seniors. Restaurants can:
The same principle can apply to loyalty programs. A restaurant that wants to collect customer information doesn't necessarily have to require every guest to download an app.
Spencer suggested offering physical loyalty cards or allowing customers to sign up on paper and letting restaurant employees enter the information into the database.
“You can still have that option,” he says. “And a lot of the loyalty programs that are digital offer a non-digital version of what they're doing.”
That gives restaurants the customer data they need while giving guests a choice in how they participate.
Ultimately, attracting older diners isn't about creating a separate “senior” strategy. It's about making the restaurant easy and comfortable to use:
Restaurants can continue adopting technology without losing the human touch at the heart of hospitality.
For older diners, the best experience may simply be one where they can walk in, sit down, order what they want, and get the help they need without feeling like an exception.
As the population ages, that kind of flexibility could become less a special accommodation and more a standard part of restaurant hospitality.
From technology and customer experience to labor and costs, restaurant operators face new challenges every day.
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