Sip, Snap, Repeat: Why Gen Z’s Drink Obsession Is Shaking Up QSR Strategy

By Terry Young

If the early 2000s had the “lipstick index,” then 2025 has its pastel-green successor: the “matcha index.” As younger consumers tighten their budgets but still crave moments of indulgence, they’re reaching less for beauty buys and more for mood-lifting beverages, particularly the photogenic kind.

Across the UK, matcha sales in cafés have soared, doubling over the summer months and generating millions in revenue. For Gen Z, the drink is more than a caffeine fix; it’s a wellness badge, a lifestyle cue, and crucially, a social media prop. Brands like Blank Street have ridden this wave to cult status, while others, from salad bars to chicken shops, are racing to catch up.

One such early mover is The Salad Project, which recently debuted a dedicated matcha bar at its Notting Hill site. The pairing of antioxidant-packed matcha with a health-forward menu is a natural fit. But for QSR stalwarts like McDonald's, Wingstop and KFC, the matcha moment is trickier to translate.

Their challenge? Crafting beverage lines that are equally alluring to Gen Z without straying too far from their core identity.

KFC’s answer is Kwench, a bold, technicolor drinks brand launched earlier this year. The line-up reads like a dessert bar meets a TikTok feed: Caramel Krunch Shakes, Cherry Poppin’ Refreshers, hot honey mango lemonades, and now boasts its first standalone Kwench bar at KFC’s new Liverpool restaurant. It’s a signal of intent: KFC wants Gen Z’s attention, and it’s willing to build an entirely new sub-brand to get it.

This isn’t unfamiliar territory. McDonald’s attempted something similar in the US with CosMc’s, a drinks-and-snacks spinoff that pushed the boundaries of flavour innovation: sour cherry energy bursts, churro frappes, blueberry-ginger boosts. The menu was essentially engineered for Instagram. But despite early buzz, CosMc’s fizzled out within two years, with McDonald’s eventually folding select drinks into its main menu.

The cautionary tale highlights the paradox of Gen Z. As PwC notes, they spend less but expect more. They’re digitally native yet drawn to physical experiences, brand-loyal yet quick to jump ship, thrifty yet readily swayed by emotional purchases, in other words: high maintenance, high opportunity.

And opportunity is exactly what most QSR beverage menus are missing. Many still rely on the old guard, such as Coke, Fanta, and Sprite, while offering little in the way of novelty. Even McDonald's UK, with its underdeveloped McCafé ICED range, feels underpowered compared with the experimental swagger of CosMc’s. A dash more innovation could go a long way with a generation that loves to discover and share, something new.

Five Guys, meanwhile, cracked the code with its Coca-Cola Freestyle machines. With more than 100 customisable drink combinations, the machines offer the personalisation and playfulness Gen Z craves, at a price point that still counts as an “affordable treat.” By comparison, rivals like Burger King and McDonald's appear almost austere.

So do brands really need entirely new beverage spin-offs to win over younger diners? Probably not. But they do need to take drinks seriously. The rise of bubble tea, the staying power of matcha, and the viral potential of everything from colour-change lemonades to textural add-ons prove one thing: drinks are no longer an afterthought. They’re a battleground.

For QSR operators, levelling up the beverage offer may be one of the most accessible and impactful ways to turn Gen Z’s fickle habits into loyal footfall. After all, in the age of the camera-first customer, a great drink isn’t just a menu item. It’s a magnet.