• Romanians in large cities order food at home or at the office more often than they go out to restaurants. According to the Hospitality Culture Research 2025 study, delivery already represents 27% of the total urban HoReCa market, surpassing classic table-service restaurants (26%).
HoReCa market in Romania, estimated at EUR 7.3 billion in 2024
In the last six months, over 80% of Romanians in large cities have ordered home-cooked food at least once, with the average bill reaching 61 lei/person. In Bucharest, the average delivery order is 61.9 lei/person, while the average restaurant order is worth 82.7 lei/person, according to Hospitality Culture Research study.
"Delivery has become the growth engine of the urban HoReCa industry. We are no longer talking about a secondary channel, but about the one that redefines the relationship between brand and customer – from menu choice, to packaging and to loyalty. In 2026 we will start a new syndicated study because we want to go further and understand what value means for the consumer in the current economic context", declares Florin Maxim, founder of Hospitality Culture Institute.
Two complementary studies for a complete picture of the market
Hospitality Culture Institute launches the syndication process for two complementary research projects to be implemented in 2026:
- Hospitality Culture Research 2026 – the annual edition of the largest U&A study in the HoReCa industry, which measures consumption frequency, market size and satisfaction indicators.
- The new complementary study - "The HoReCa Consumer 2026", dedicated to understanding customer behavior in a difficult macroeconomic context, marked by tax and food cost increases, pressure on the workforce, inflation and decreased traffic in restaurants.
The new study dedicated to understanding customer behavior will aim to:
- How do consumers react to price increases and where is the threshold at which a product becomes "too expensive";
- What compromises do Romanians make when their budget decreases (do they give up on their frequency, dessert, or favorite restaurant?);
- The impact of staff shortages on the customer experience;
- The level of openness to technology, AI and digitalization in restaurants;
- The real factors of loyalty in an increasingly competitive market.
Call for unionization: Invitation for industrial companies
Hospitality Culture Institute invites companies operating in HoReCa, food retail, distribution, production or technology to join the project as unionized partners.
Partners will benefit from:
- Full access to detailed data and exclusive insights from both research,
- The ability to add their own questions relevant to their business,
- Participation in interpretation and strategy workshops, where the direct application of results in commercial, marketing or product decisions is discussed.
"At a time when we are all feeling cost pressures and consumer volatility, real customer data is becoming the most valuable resource. Our goal is to provide the industry with a common tool for understanding and decision-making – based on research, not assumptions", adds Florin Maxim.
About Hospitality Culture Institute
Hospitality Culture Institute is the leading research, education and networking platform dedicated to the hospitality industry in Romania. Since 2017, the Institute has been coordinating the implementation of the annual Hospitality Culture Research study. Among the brands that have become syndicated partners of the study, benefiting from full access to the research, are: Coca-Cola, Pepsi, Red Bull, 5 to go, City Grill, Jerry's Pizza, Trenta Pizza, Sphera Franchise Group, Fratelli, Metro, Macromex, Albalact, Auchan, Wolt, Rompetrol.
Press release Hospitality Culture Institute
Read on White Art and: Trends in Romanian food consumption: between financial prudence, health and sustainability
