What you need to know
2019 was the year of the underdog in ethnic cuisines, with restaurants specialising in lesser-known cuisines gaining popularity at the expense of Chinese and Indian establishments.
The rising cost of operating sit-down venues will be unsustainable for some ethnic restaurants in the long run. Instead of adding more restaurant sites, operators will focus on two areas: enhancing dining experiences at their flagship stores and expanding delivery catchment areas through partnerships with third-party delivery companies (eg Deliveroo, Just Eat).
It is important that ethnic restaurants and takeaways exercise ethical due diligence across their operations and supply chains to improve sentiment towards their brand image. Consumers are likely to prioritise food hygiene, the availability of seasonal British produce (even within ethnic dishes) and sustainable food packaging solutions when choosing an ethnic restaurant/takeaway.
Products covered in this Report
This Report examines the UK ethnic restaurant market, including restaurants and takeaways specialising in any cuisines outside Continental Europe, Russia, Australasia and North America.
The market size comprises sales turnover of dine-in and takeaways from ethnic restaurant chains as well as independents.
The following definitions apply to the various cuisines referred to in this Report.
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Caribbean
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Mexican, including Tex-Mex
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South American, eg Peruvian, Brazilian
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Moroccan
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Eastern Mediterranean, eg Greek, Lebanese, Turkish
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South Asian, eg Indian, Sri Lankan, Bangladeshi
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Southeast Asian, eg Malaysian/Singaporean, Thai, Vietnamese, Indonesian
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Japanese
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Korean
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Chinese (eg Cantonese, Sichuan) and Taiwanese
Excluded from this Report are:
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All ethnic ready meals and food products bought through retail channels, eg supermarkets.
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Ethnic meals bought in non-specialist ethnic restaurants, eg pubs, hotels, sandwich shops etc.
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All Continental European, Russian, Australasian and North American foods, with the exception of Tex-Mex.
Further research on the home delivery and takeaway sectors can be found in Mintel’s Attitudes Towards Home Delivery and Takeaway – UK, March 2020 Report.
