DISHED Senior Living Dining Innovation Awards: Brian Menzel, Executive Chef, Friendship Village

Brian Menzel, Executive Chef at Friendship Village, has been named a member of the DISHED Senior Living Dining Innovation Awards Class of 2026 by Senior Housing News.

As a Palate Pleaser Award winner, Senior Housing News recognizes Menzel for his storied culinary career and the accomplishments he has achieved since joining Friendship Village in 2019.

From earning awards like the Chef of the Year honor from St. Louis Chefs to winning the Gold Medallion of Culinary Excellence, Menzel has exhibited excellence throughout his career. He has hosted a cooking show on local television, been the Featured Chef at the James Beard House, and was even listed as one of the Top 500 Chefs in America by the International Assocation of Cooking Professionals.

When Menzel arrived at Friendship Village, the first thing he did was gain a better understanding of what type of food residents preferred. By listening to their feedback, he soon learned the culinary preference for those over 80 years of age differed greatly from those under 80. He also learned that the status quo was the enemy.

The evolution of dining at Friendship Village has been a major focus for Menzel and his culinary team. In addition to introducing new cuisines like Mediterranean-, Asian- and Indian-style dishes, they have also revolutionized the community’s vegetarian menu. And the work never stops. Menzel’s next goal is to overhaul their dessert program.

Menzel’s nominator told Senior Housing News, “While there are so many outstanding chefs and culinary experts, Brian Menzel has truly been a mark of excellence for the industry.”

Senior Housing News recent sat down with Menzel to learn what drew him to the senior housing & senior living industry, his perspective on culinary trends, his thoughts on the future of dining in senior living, and much more. To learn more about the DISHED Senior Living Dining Innovation Awards, visit https://dishedawards.seniorhousingnews.com/.

SHN: What inspired you to pursue a career in senior living dining, and what continues to motivate your work today?

Menzel: I had a friend who began working at The Friendship Village as the Food & Beverage director who reached out to me with the opportunity to join the team. After meeting with him, seeing the property, and meeting a few of the residents, I felt that it was a good opportunity to bring my years of private club experience to this beautiful new venue and help create a successful team environment.

What continues to motivate me is the constant challenge to bring a fresh quality array of global food offerings to the Friendship Village, as well as seeing the growth and gratification of the staff as they satisfy and serve the residents and guests.

SHN: What are the top three trends shaping the future of dining in senior living right now?

Menzel: The top three trends shaping the future of dining in senior living right now include:

1. Dining is becoming more of a hospitality experience and not so institutional. Residents expect the quality, flexibility, and the personal experience they receive in hotels, restaurants, private clubs and resorts. We have moved away from fixed meal times and standardized menus. We currently offer multiple dining venues with a formal dining room, bistro, diner, coffee shop and ice cream parlor. Our dining hours have been extended to an all day format. All venues offer restaurant style ordering, we have Chef driven seasonal menus and offer our residents and guests greater choice of customization.
2. Technology is becoming a larger player in senior dining. It has accelerated solutions and improved efficiency  without sacrificing hospitality. Some properties have instituted digital menus and tableside ordering. It made it easier to track nutrition and allergens. There is AI-assisted menu planning and forecasting available, inventory management systems as well as residence preference databases that remember favorite meals and dietary trends. These systems aren’t replacing staff, they are helping culinary teams spend more time engaging with the residents, and reducing labor pressure.
3. Today’s senior dining programs increasingly view food as a bigger part of a wellness strategy. The focus has evolved from meeting nutritional requirements to supporting brain and heart health and muscle maintenance using adequate protein. Also, it’s about the social connection of communal meals, and giving the residents dignity through choice.

SHN: What is the biggest barrier to innovation in senior living dining today, and how can organizations effectively overcome it?

Menzel: The biggest barrier to innovation is a limited pool of committed culinary staff to adequately attend to the rising expectations and needs of a larger and better educated and informed resident.

A way to overcome this would be better marketing of the opportunities for future employees, as well as more innovative recruiting practices. Organizations must also make a concerted effort to identify and retain motivated, loyal staff.

SHN: In one word, how would you describe the future of dining in senior living – and why?

Menzel: Upscale!

Why? Because we have the ability to procure fresh food products prepared by better, more educated staff to meet the well-traveled and educated palates of current and future residents.

SHN: How do you see technology transforming dining operations and the resident experience in the next few years?

Menzel: Technology will reshape dining in ways that will improve efficiency, creating a more satisfying and engaging resident experience.

There are a few trends that will facilitate the change in senior dining, such as AI-powered personalization, predictive operations, digital ordering, smart kitchen automation and integration across systems.

Ultimately, technology is unlikely to replace the human element that makes dining meaningful. The greatest value with technology is the automating of routine tasks, and enabling staff to focus on creating personalized dining experiences.

SHN: Reflecting on your career, if you could give yourself advice on your first day in senior living dining, what would it be and why?

Menzel: I would have told myself to do more diligence into individual residents’ dietary restrictions, allergies and health goals.

Because I came from private clubs, satisfaction and service were omnipotent. Dietary restrictions were a very small part of my responsibilities.

SHN: What qualities or leadership traits do you think DISHED Senior Living Dining Innovation Award winners must embody?

Menzel: I believe the qualities of a DISHED Senior Living Dining Innovation Award winner would be leadership, hospitality, and the ability to consistently improve residents’ quality of life.The strongest chefs combine technical excellence with compassion and operational expertise.