Appetizers, Desserts Absorb Menu Price Hikes

Menu price hikes are landing where guests are least likely to notice — on appetizers, desserts, and non-alcoholic beverages, not the entrees that drive visit decisions, according to Datassential’s Menu Price Tracker report.

In June, limited-service restaurant appetizers rose 18.8% year over year, followed by desserts at 12.7% and non-alcoholic beverages at 11.4% — against just 3.4% for entrees and 2.5% for sides. The report notes those peripheral-item figures likely reflect menu-composition shifts, with new or repriced items entering the mix, rather than same-item price increases.

Within limited service, price increases for appetizers, desserts, and non-alcoholic beverages skewed toward quick-service restaurants, while fast casual raised prices most on sides.

Price hikes at full-service restaurants were more restrained, with all five menu categories falling in a narrow band, from 3.1% for appetizers to 4.8% for desserts.

At the segment level, the picture was far less uniform. Midscale chains raised prices more than their full-service peers on appetizers (5.4%), entrees (5.5%), and sides (6.8%), while casual dining led on desserts (6.1%) and non-alcoholic beverages (5.2%). Upscale casual went the other way on entrees, cutting average prices 3.1%, to $20.74 from $21.41.

Average posted menu prices rose 2.6% across the industry, with full-service restaurants up 5.6% and limited-service up 2.5% — figures the report notes reflect menu-mix weighting rather than flat menu boards. The Bureau of Labor Statistics, which tracks consumer prices rather than posted menu rates, put full-service inflation at 3.7% and limited-service at 3.1% in June, against 3.5% for all-items consumer inflation.

The report characterized the pattern as strategic: operators are protecting the items guests weigh most when choosing where to eat, while pushing increases onto add-ons and beverages, where there is more room to move without standing out.

“For operators, the read is that the easiest pricing right now sits in periphery offerings rather than core entrees,” the report said.