Matcha mentions rise 3.6% on menus

Nation’s Restaurant News reported on May 21 that mentions of matcha on restaurant menus increased 3.6% from a year earlier, citing Technomic data highlighted during the 2026 National Restaurant Association Show in Chicago. The publication said much of the growth came from matcha lattes, iced teas, bubble teas and drink toppings, as operators pushed the powdered green tea into sweeter and colder beverage formats. The annual trade show at McCormick Place ended on May 19, after several days of product sampling and presentations focused on menu development. The result was a clearer picture of how matcha is moving from a niche tea ingredient into a broader café and beverage category. ### Where is the menu growth showing up? Technomic’s data, as cited by Nation’s Restaurant News, showed the growth was concentrated in drinks rather than food, especially lattes, iced teas, bubble teas and toppings. Nation’s Restaurant News described “matcha with cold foam” as one of the drink trends that stood out on the show floor, where exhibitors were pairing the ingredient with fruit, oat milk and sweetened add-ons. (nrn.com) The May 21 article said those combinations were helping make matcha more mainstream on menus. The piece was written as a show-floor trends roundup rather than a company earnings or sales report, but it pointed to a specific shift in how restaurants are presenting matcha to customers — less as a straight tea and more as a customizable beverage base. (nerest.com) ### Why were cold foam and iced drinks part of the conversation? Nation’s Restaurant News said cold foam and iced applications were among the formats driving the increase in menu mentions. The publication tied that to what exhibitors were serving at booths across McCormick Place during the National Restaurant Association Show, where drinks were a large part of the sampling and product demonstrations. (nrn.com) Bar & Restaurant, in a separate March report on coffee and tea trends, also said matcha iced lattes were becoming a staple in bars and restaurants serving younger consumers looking for alternatives to traditional coffee. That report attributed the appeal to flavor flexibility and to wellness-related marketing around sustained energy and antioxidants. (nrn.com) ### Is this a new trend or an extension of an existing one? Nation’s Restaurant News had already reported in August 2025 that matcha was appearing in a growing number of drinks and desserts and was drawing younger, health-conscious consumers. That earlier report said operators were using matcha’s color, perceived health halo and visual appeal to attract customers across beverage and bakery menus. (barandrestaurant.com) Technomic’s own 2026 global foodservice trend predictions also pointed to matcha as part of the coming year’s restaurant landscape, though in that report the firm framed the category more broadly as one of several ingredients restaurants were still finding ways to adapt. Read together, the two reports suggest the 2026 menu increase is building on an existing adoption cycle rather than emerging from nowhere. (nrn.com) ### Which chains are already expanding matcha offerings? Starbucks said in February that it was adding two new matcha beverages — Iced Double Berry Matcha and Iced Banana Bread Matcha — to its menu, alongside other seasonal drinks. The company described those drinks as part of a broader push around flavored green tea lattes. (technomic.com) That kind of rollout matches the formats highlighted by Nation’s Restaurant News in Chicago: cold, flavored and visually distinctive drinks that can fit both café menus and limited-time promotions. The National Restaurant Association Show’s 2026 run ended on May 19, and Nation’s Restaurant News’ menu-trends coverage remains one of the clearest published snapshots of where matcha is showing up next — in lattes, iced teas, bubble teas and cold-foam builds. (about.starbucks.com) (nrn.com)