The evolution of meatless patties in the last few years has been so rapid that they have quickly found their place on various restaurant menus. Restaurants chains are not the only ones jumping on the bandwagon, though. There has been a surge in wanting to make these items available on the menus of several hotel chains as well.
As the meatless burgers continue to wow consumers from meat-eating as well as vegetarian communities alike, the purpose of the hotel chains is to feed this rising demand by partnering with meatless burger pioneers. Let us look at how the meatless patty has proliferated among major hotel chains worldwide.
The Rise of Vegan Tourism
Before delving into the big hotel names that have begun serving vegetarian burgers to their customers, it is important to understand why there has been a spike in the demand for such burgers. Tourists all over the world are now a mixed bag. There are plenty of visitors in many countries across Asia, Europe, and the Americas, who care only for vegan food.
Additionally, there has been an upswing in vegan tourism as well. Several tourists now plan their vacations for healing and wellness and believe veganism is one way to achieve that. To cater to this need, premium hotels and resorts are creating complete packages that offer a completely vegan lifestyle. Enter meatless burgers on the hotel menu.
Hotel Giants Taking The Leap
Early in 2018, when pioneers Beyond Meat had begun ramping up their marketing strategies for their meatless burgers, a Ritz-Carlton Hotel in Hong Kong became the first to adopt these patties on their menu. Beyond Meat’s rivals, Impossible Foods soon followed suit by partnering with three other Hong Kong’s top hotels, namely, Hotel ICON, Grand Hyatt, and InterContinental Grand. These hotels now serve almost every option by Impossible Foods.
Back in the US, where these revolutionary meatless burgers were born, Interstate Hotels & Resorts debuted Beyond Burgers across its hotel chains in the country. Courtyard by Marriott Hotels added the Beyond Burger to its Bistro Bar in 2019. Hilton, Peninsula, and others soon followed Marriott’s footsteps. It did not take long for the change to take place in Europe, either. Scandic Hotels were one of the first chains in Europe to introduce the Beyond Burger on the menus of some of their Finnish and Swedish hotels.
Variety and Availability
The availability of meatless patties does not end at traditional hotel and resort chains. Nor is it only through partnership with meatless meat giants that hotels are serving vegan options to travelers. Tourists planning a vegan cruise can also now breathe easy. While Regent Severn Seas Cruise now serves the Impossible Burger, Royal Caribbean cruise offers three-course vegan meals. Other cruise lines such as Carnival Cruise and Celebrity offer their unique veggie burger options.
Coming back to the land, Asian cities such as Bangkok and Phuket have begun offering vegan burgers at their curated, healing resorts. One such resort is the Green Tiger House, which claims itself to be a plant-based hotel. The idea of these resorts is to provide a holistic vegan living experience to visitors, with vegan food, of course, taking the cake. Theme parks are another way these meatless burgers are being offered to travelers, with Disney taking the lead in partnering with Beyond Meat.
Enjoy Your Vegan Stay!
With the number of vegan tourists on the rise and the variety of meatless patties available throughout the world, more and more hotels and resorts are likely to incorporate veggie burgers on their menus. A recent survey by Kimpton hotels showed that 51% of the respondents thought that plant-based options will become mainstream through 2020.
Even though most hotels are closed in the current times of the COVID-19 pandemic, they are all expected to gear up and make their complete menu available once businesses start to open up. Tourism will gain traction again and plant-based options will find their way back into the travelers’ lives through these hotel chains.