I walked down the high street in Peckham recently and I simply couldn’t believe what I was looking at. Independent cafés serving grilled chicken shawarma bowls with pickled red onion, tahini and charred flatbread. Poké bars where you build your own lunch; fresh fish, rice, pickles, crunch, colour. Bento-style boxes portioned out with clear macros and genuine variety. All of it beautiful, all of it balanced, all of them packed at lunchtime.

And I thought… this is what people eat now. Not as a treat. Not as a health kick. This is just… lunch.

Of course it got me to thinking about the average golf club menu and I felt a bit uncomfortable.

I’m not here to bash anyone. Golf clubs have their own context; tight margins, seasonal footfall, small teams doing enormous amounts of work. I understand all of that, and I have huge respect for the people running these operations day to day. But there’s a conversation that needs to happen, because the gap between what your members eat on the high street and what they’re offered in the clubhouse is getting wider.

Let’s talk about what’s actually happening in the market. Bowls have overtaken sandwiches as the go-to lunch format in many urban areas. Delivery data shows that poké, salad and burrito bowls made up 40% of the UK’s top trending dishes, with poké itself taking the number one spot. In the UK, 42% of consumers already choose poké when dining out; almost half of those cite health benefits and 60% say they choose it for the taste. Health is shifting away from “low fat” and towards protein, fibre and real food; beans, legumes, wholegrains and veg are being maxed out rather than hidden.

This isn’t niche. This is mainstream… and it isn’t just younger demographics driving it either; that would be lazy to suggest. More and more people across every age group are viewing food as fuel. High-protein, “everyday healthy” fast casual is normal now; grilled chicken, lean shawarma, salmon and tofu in wraps, salads and bowls appear across QSR and coffee-shop menus up and down the country.

Fast-food operators are leaning into grilled items and “no-guilt” positioning. Grilled chicken, shawarma-style pots and bowls match this perfectly. The market has spoken; it wants food that feels like a treat but behaves like a performance meal.

So where does this leave the golf club?

UK golf clubs are primarily breakfast and lunch operations. Many General Managers and F&B teams will tell you that the traditional menu is what golfers want. A full English before a round, a burger or a toastie afterwards. And look; there’s still a place for that. I’m not suggesting you tear the menu up overnight.

However, I would argue that sticking rigidly to that thinking doesn’t reflect the industry trends. To say that golfers wouldn’t choose grilled chicken shawarma bowls, poké, bento-style lunches… that is short-sighted in my view. Your members aren’t comparing your food to other golf clubs. They’re comparing it to the independent café down the road, the good pub, the place they went for brunch last Sunday.

This is the bit that I think gets missed in these conversations. The winning formula isn’t complicated. The fast-casual and clubhouse offerings that are doing well right now are doing three simple things: start with a lean grilled protein; shawarma chicken, salmon, tofu. Pile on plants; crunchy slaws, herbs, pickles, greens. Finish with a bold sauce and smart carbs; rice, grains or legumes for fibre as well as fuel. It feels like a treat, it photographs like a dream, and for operators, it’s a profitable way to serve ‘everyday athletes’ who want to eat well without feeling like they’re on a diet.

Many will say that a new menu is risky. I would say it’s risky not to modernise.

Your menu in 2026 shouldn’t be a dirty little secret. A full English isn’t exactly Instagrammable; and it probably doesn’t meet the macros either. That’s not me being snobbish about it; it’s just honest.

Wellness is not a trend that’s going away. If anything, it’s accelerating. Clubs that recognise this have an extraordinary opportunity. Amazing menu, excellent coffee, genuine hospitality; your clubhouse becomes the place people actually want to be.

I’d urge you to look at your menu honestly and objectively… and ask… is this really what your members want? Or is it just what you’ve always done?

It’s my suspicion that golf clubs have a gap to close. Not an impossible one; not one that requires massive investment or a complete overhaul. But a gap nonetheless. Those clubs that close it first will be the ones whose members stop grabbing something on the way home… and start staying for lunch.

If your menu still thinks “healthy” means a chicken Caesar and a fruit pot, you’re leaving spend, and loyalty, on the table.

Have a great week.

Tony

If you'd like dedicated time to work through your club's F&B challenges, book a Power Hour Strategy Call. One hour, focused on your situation, with benchmarking, guidance, and a clear action plan to take away. £245 + VAT.