Smaller, shorter, simpler menus at restaurants. With food costs up, I’m already seeing places cut down thier offerings, likely to simplify work in the kitchen, and to reduce the chance of food waste.
How close are we to seeing prix fix menus in midrange places?
I always think of Schmidt in New girl.
“Jess, you can have whatever you want on the menu. They got pizza, gelato, Tikka Masala. A raw bar? This place is doing too much. They can't be doing all this right.”
This is how I’ve always felt.
Like yeah if you can make good pulled pork then I imagine you can handle other bbq staples, but if I see sushi on the next page and pizza on another
then I’m pretty confident that most of your food just isn’t that great.
Just screams "chain restaurant" and "everything is microwaved or fried from frozen".
And don't get me wrong, sometimes I'm ok with that. Sometimes you just want to walk into a place without much thought and know that whatever you order it will be edible.
Places like Cheesecake Factory or chilis are good for this. They don’t really have anything that’s standout but anything you order will be reasonably good.
unlike most other chains, I bet they actually churn enough customers they don't have much of an issue with waste
one of few chains like it that hasn't completely gone to shit. olive garden, cheddars, and roadhouse are the only few others that come to mind
But Olive Garden adjusted things a year or two ago and "went back to their roots". They simplified and reduced their menu as part of that. Roadhouse is pretty limited in their menu, I don't think it has changed much over the years. They do it well, have done it well for years, and at this point they are still on solid ground. No Cheddars around me, and I've never been to one. Cheesecake Factory... I've been once a couple years back and don't think I'll go again.
I noticed this too (the leaner). And I gotta say, the quality is really good. The chicken cutlet is actually flavorful, crispy, and not dry. Added it to my 5 cheese ravioli, and I was actually surprised how well it hit the spot.
The dry chicken is solely on the cook. I can be given everything needed to succeed and still over cook your chicken if I'm slammed. You had a competent cook xD
I am absolutely FERAL for Texas Roadhouse green beans and that’s all I’m here to say lol. We make jokes that one day we’ll go and I’m eventually going to order a veggie plate with all green beans
man it's crazy because where I live, all the mid-range chain restaurants are basically fading away. Applebee's closed down and Chilis seems so desolate every time i drive by it. the only reason Buffalo Wild Wings still exists is because they cater to the college kids who want to watch sports
and then randomly they spent a year and a half building entirely from scratch what ended up becoming a Texas Roadhouse. I remember thinking what a stupid idea and waste of resources...but it's become pretty successful haha
Cheesecake Factory, even though the decor is cheesy, they stillmake everything from scratch and have a ton of dietary-specific choices (keto, sugar free, gluten free, low carb, dairy free). If you're in an area with limited food options, it's not that bad.
Fresh, local ingredients, yes ? Simple, interesting preparations to keep it moving and keep the quality up. A few really good signature dishes is all you need to get that word of mouth going, yes ? Even a monkey can come in early and make some fresh pasta; you’re right next to the fucking sea - a lunchtime shrimp pasta, 40 covers and another 30 to go - bosh. That 950k bank loan is on its way down.
> Smaller, shorter, simpler menus at restaurants.
I think there's incentive beyond price. Too many things on a menu is usually a tell-tale sign that a restaurant has no real focus and is likely mediocre. Simplifying a menu is always a good move and can help turn a struggling restaurant around.
I think that's a very good thing.
The fewer dishes a place is likely to prepare, the better the likelihood that those few dishes will be much better.
Never go to a restaurant that has more than a 1 page menu (unless it's a diner).
Or a Chinese restaurant. With different shelf-stable seasonings and the same ingredients, you can make a wide variety of different dishes. Waste is still pretty low.
There's a good Jim Gaffigan riff on that, a few years old now. Something like this:
>Uhm, excuse me waiter. What is this "burrito" on the menu?
Why, thats our best beans wrapped in a tortilla with cheese.
>...and this "enchilada"?
That's our cheese, wrapped in a tortilla with beans.
>I'm afraid to ask about the "taco"... is it...?
Why yes, beans, meat and cheese in a folded tortilla.
>Do you have anything more American? Like, you know, fried food?
Might I interest you in our chimichanga?
My local Thai restaurant has a 6 page menu. Each page is dedicated to a specific noodle (udon, glass, wide, etc) with a half page for appetizers and drinks at the front. I've had almost every dish and the quality has been rock solid. The Italian joint down the street with a 3 page menu on the other hand... Olive Garden has them beat unfortunately.
this reminds me a lot of the early episodes of Kitchen Nightmares, both the UK and U.S. version
completely DIFFERENT shows in terms of presentation and quality lol but one thing they almost all had in common was a consistent pitfall that the restaurants were trying to offer way too many fucking things instead of just keeping things simple but great
I don’t mind this one if it means I can get fresh yuzu at my local Asian or specialty market. I’ve been growing a yuzu tree for the past two years and I’m crossing my fingers this is finally going to be the year it fruits.
I bought about 12 from WF a few years back and they yielded ~100 seeds. They were very easy to germinate. I now have three happy trees that I am hoping will fruit in the next few years!
I just googled it, and apparently yuzu are known to grow "true from seed". Most tree fruits are propagated by cuttings, and trees grown from seed will be significantly inferior. Grocery store vegetables are generally hybrids of two different varieties, and plants grown from those seeds will be somewhat smaller, but basically fine.
Wish I could even get it where I live just to try it. Living rural has wonderful things but also drawbacks. I do agree with you though! If it tastes good I hope it becomes more popular!
I’m in a city, but not even a coastal one, and I think hot honey is already a bit passé in the foodie scene. When it leaves the interesting, creative restaurants and permeates the more mainstream menus, I know my favorite places are moving on soon to new ideas.
Depending on where you live in the country, trends show up at very different times. I split my time between the west coast and Midwest, and it’s funny to see stuff become popular in the Midwest months to years after it is a thing in LA or SF. I think this effect used to be much more pronounced before the internet etc, but it still exists
also a big difference if we're talking about food trends in restaurants or in people's homes because there's trends that come and go in dining scenes in big cities before they take over grocery shelves
Facts. We stayed at a hotel in Corte Madera, in Marin County, in 2016. Expensive, but no more so than SF, and none of the traffic. Spectacular view from the balcony too. We walked across the street to a Pacific Rim place, and I had my first poké bowl. We live on the Texas Gulf Coast, and it was 2 or 3 years before our restaurants started offering poké.
Hey have you heard about *gochujang*? It's Chinese or Japanese or something you probably haven't heard about *gochujang*! I had some *gochujang* truffle salt fries at a small batch bicycle bar-to-table concept.
Yeah...like yuzu? That was popular 10 years ago. Short, small menus? Come to New York! We have those everywhere. Burrata? Every Italian place has that as an appetizer.
Maybe I’m just too Minnesotan, but I feel like dill pickle is having a huge moment right now and still gaining momentum. I see dill pickle pizza on Reddit a lot, which is cute but we had dill pickle lemonade at our state fair last year.
Have you heard of a "pickle back"? It's when you take a shot of whisky or similar and chase it down with a shot of pickle juice. I'm not a fan of whisky, but pickle juice is damn delicious.
> pickle juice is damn delicious
Some is. Some isn't.
For instance, I've had some very bad pickle juice but those crunchy Claussen kosher dill pickles you get in the refrigerated section...that juice is excellent, imho.
We need a global pickle juice regime to create a ranking system and do pickle juice competitions. Imagine buying pickles with a "rated 92 points by pickle juice connoisseur magazine" tag.
They are the best pickles and no one can convince me otherwise. They're perfect, texture and flavour. I do like Grillos too, but Claussens are superior
Not just Minnesota. In Canada I’ve seen pickles being used in a lot of new or limited edition items at fast food places. Off the top of my head, Harvey’s has a pickle poutine and A&W has a spicy dill pickle burger.
Texas here. There’s a Trent of “cheeseburger pizzas” that is happening. Topped with dill pickles and a drizzle of mustard. Beef, cheese, onion, tomato.
It’s not bad.
Edit. Trent = trend
I grew up in the middle of nowhere Montana and our little local pizza place was serving this 30 years ago. I have fond memories of eating cheeseburger and bacon cheeseburger pizzas.
I am 95% certain that pandan will be the new ube in the next 3-5 years. One of the cornerstones of southeast Asian desserts, easy to incorporate into western desserts, and already popping up in New York cafes and bakeries.
This is so wild to me. My family is malaysian and pandan is just a normal thing. My grandma adds a leaf whenever we make rice so it has a subtle flavor.
Heh my answer was mie goreng and laksa. I moved from California to Australia and SE Asian food is really popular here. I could see it being a trend in the states, like build your own laksa bowls akin to ordering at Chipotle or Subway. Would be perfect takeout on a cold day.
I mean, my pasty white self had no idea that pandan existed before I was introduced to it by my Indonesian ex, and my life is richer for it. Culinary cultural exchange is a good thing. My current boyfriend is Thai, and vividly recalls how people went crazy for apples from the global north when they first went on sale in markets there in the early '80s.
Tinned fish has been huge in Brooklyn fro a few years - I credit trendy fish brands and trendy grocery stores selling them (Fishwife) and restaurants like Popina, whose chef [wrote a whole book](https://www.popinanyc.com/store/product/magic-of-tinned-fish/) about tinned fish.
I could see this trend spreading as millennials realize it's an affordable way to eat something that feels fancy but accessible!
Thank you. I bought 3 tins of Fishwife smoked salmon for my nephew for Christmas and it came to $45 for 3 5oz. tins. Not that it's not worth every penny (I assume, I didn't get to taste it but I heard it was good!) but the bougie stuff isn't cheap
FWIW Fishwife is widely considered overpriced and you can get similar quality for much less. They do not actually own any processors so every one of their products can be found from alternate sellers. Check out r/CannedSardines they often discuss the exact dupes for whatever product you like.
A lot of chefs are tired of the industry and commercial real estate is fucked, so I don’t expect the pop-up explosion to die down anytime soon. Chefs are able to focus in on just a few things passionately, build a social media brand and many are selling direct to consumer packaged goods or even merch now too lol. I think the mid range restaurant is going to eventually be extinct because no one wants to deal with that overhead and margins. You’ll have casual or more upscale where the transaction volume or margins respectively are better, but few options in between.
The zero proof/NA beverage industry is embedded into the broader health and wellness industry that isn’t going anywhere.
I was just about to say the same thing about pop ups. I think it's going to go further with shared restaurants, not just shared commercial kitchens.
I work in food and a lot of my coworkers/friends are trying to get stuff of our own going by doing regular pop ups at our places of work.
There's already a place near me that shares 3 separate "restaurants"- they had their own individual food trucks and pooled for a brick and mortar to rent. Idk how they make it work but they do.
Another is a biscuit place in the am and a chicken place in the pm.
I think it's pretty cool honestly. There's a ton of crazy talent and passion in the industry that's been hidden by depressed wages and the monetary barrier to starting your own physical restaurant.
It's rewarding to see friends get to flex creativity, and it's usually mutually beneficial to everyone in the area. Pop ups and shared spaces are small enough that you can only use local suppliers due to order $ minimums with the bigger guys. Your buddy from an old job does desserts, someone else does your small plates, everyone benefits. It's a nice little fuck you to all the greedy owners of mediocre mainstays that have dominated since the 70s/80s.
That's what my wife started: a small takeaway Filipino place where she serves her grandmother's recipes. Very traditional, very specific, only open two days a week. We share a kitchen and counter space with a pizza place that specializes in neopolitan style pizza.
Makes a killing.
Generally agree, but ain't nothing new about spinach & artichoke dip. It was around prevalently in the 70's/80's.
Speaking of 80's trends that are coming back/I wish would come back - fried mushrooms. Yeah, you can get them at Japanese place as tempura, but man I used to *love* fried mushrooms.
I was about to say-I see them all the time. Had some last week.
Course we fry damn near everyhting. I had some fried artichoke hearts last week. Now if you have not had those, go find some. A taste slightly similar to fried pickles.
> I’m seeing more African influence as well
My wife randomly bought me a tajine for Christmas and we use it constantly. I'm hoping to see more North African influenced restaurants in the future
Especially during Ramadan and for Eid, Nowruz, and the winter solstice. Soooo many middle eastern flavors and African flavors!
Honestly, I'm kinda excited that it's happening because a lot of people just say "halal" as in the flavors you get from a halal food cart; while delicious, it absolutely doesn't represent Middle Eastern food as a whole. It's nice seeing Persian food get its own moment to shine, in addition to other cultures as well.
I'm also midly apprehensive because I'm waiting for the food trend people to essentially bastardize it or worse, hyper-correct it due to not knowing cultural and geological differences in flavor accessibility (looking at you, falafel), despite knowing many will do it completely unintentionally.
Can't speak for African food, since I know none who are from there.
Pistachios on everything that used to almond.
Dates are peaking again.
I think the next trends maybe Indian pickles (ie sweet lime pickle), carrots, and bergamot or kumquat replacing yuzu
In three different fine dining experiences recently I've seen granola used in unexpected places (on carrots with coffee grounds, for example).
Beyond that, the Korean craze is in full swing. Food is finally catching up to music and film with gochujang, kimchi, and bulgogi getting worked in to a lot of menus and recipes.
I didn't see this here, but all things gut and microbiome focused. This is starting to pop, so I am thinking lactofermented whatever with particular strains to help with whatever ails someone. Things in the adaptogenic corner to make people "feel good". I've seen salads with CBD in LA. It's something in that area like the modern up sell of truffles. Starbucks with an addition to make it accessible but unique or fancy, but health. It probably has spirulina or some adjacent instagram worthy look, because that sells.
Usually Trader Joe's jumps on the bandwagon, so suburbanites can feel cutting edge. Yuzu, gochujang, ube have been done. It has to be something somewhat not mainstream, but still enough so that people will think it's exotic and try it. Middle eastern Ottolenghi tangent things are big.
I've noticed that everything labeled as "vegan" is now being called "plant based". I feel like this is just a marketing move to make vegan foods sound less "woke" and "soy boy" so that more people are open to it.
A little while back, my sister excitedly told me to try this new “plant-based” milk that she had found. She kinda sounded like she was trying to evangelize me to the entire concept of non-dairy milk substitutes. I already use soy milk, which I told her. Her response was, “Yeah, well this is PLANT-BASED!”
Soy milk just isn’t trendy enough anymore, I guess.
I don't hate it because it is a better description, that doesn't need explanation. "Ok this is made of plants" as opposed to having someone have to "unpack" the difference between vegan and vegetarian.
Spinach and Artichoke dip? From 2005…?
I don't think you're even caught up to recent trends lol.
Cauliflower rice?
Were you in on the brown butter craze?
Green Goddess Salads?
I’m still in on brown butter personally. If I’m baking, that butter is getting browned. I just made Rice Krispie treats for a trip last week with brown butter, a splash of vanilla, and an extra pinch of salt. And brown butter CCCs? Sign me tf up
I’ll never understand this. I see TikTok videos where someone rips up burrata over a salad or something and it just makes no sense. The entire appeal of burrata to me is getting it in a whole piece so you get to pop it yourself.
Ugh I never got the love for burrata. I can’t taste it. Same as paneer. I’m sure it’s supposed to be marinated but my husband has begun cutting off a chunk and eating it plain. He said, “this tasteless cheese is growing on me”
I get what you are saying, but I will mention that burrata needs to be seasoned. A little salt, some real good olive oil, maybe a little pepper.
Also the freshness of it is a huge factor. Trader Joe's is nice and cheep, but it doesn't hold a candle to fresh (not that TJ is bad, I get it all the time)
It really doesnt taste like much, it's more of a texture/ flavour mellower for salt and acid. If you're eating it by itself I can see why it is unappealing, and imo a large burrata is not my favorite, to much squishy insides for me- but having it as a part of caprese salad instead of fresh mozzarella works well, especially if you have a balsamic glaze, and prosciutto, and some bread. Its plain creamy taste helps to balance those out.
gochujang
labneh
sesame/tahini everything
birria
mochi
editing to add: i already commented this below to a reply, but i misread the post and thought it was asking about current food trends, not future ones. please stop telling me i'm wrong holy shit, i know they are already popular, i just don't know how to read
I think birria has spread as far as it can. It was the “hot taco” around the time you posted. And has gotten repeated enough that it’s been created poorly and people are starting to lose the appeal of birria done the right way.
I feel like gochujang is still on the rise. There are still a lot of people that have never heard of it, but will love it when they try it. I think it has the potential to become mainstream, like buffalo wing sauce did years ago.
I'm 1000% on board the sesame/tahini train. Love that stuff in everything, sweet and savory.
I'd like to add miso to the list. Seeing it everywhere now, especially popping up in dessert recipes.
I feel like all these things listed are if not fading, very current trends. At least in Europe.
I think that the next hot thing is to hire a private chef for a special occasions. I see this becoming more and more mainstream and available for average Joes.
Even for middle class people in the US, there’s a near substitute in the form of hiring a food truck for an event, often a taco truck on the West Coast. Even for relatively well off people like attorneys, we get excited when the firm brings out a taco truck for a firm party.
Fermented foods are having a huge uptick (homebrewed wine and mead, bread recipes) and i've seen a lot of "naturally carbonated" sodas in a lot of videos. I'm waiting for it to hit the restaurant scene soon.
I'm seeing a lot of corn desserts, burnt basque cheesecake done with savory toppings, kebabs, labneh, "health" lattes like giner turmeric and lavender honey, lavender ice cream.
And for some reason every happy hour right now has a pan con tomate.
lol did you see the reel of “my Korean parents test Trader Joe’s Korean food” where the sweet older couple are so polite about the food and you think they’re okay with it until they try the bulgogi and then they start dipping everything into bulgogi and one of them says “thank god”
I hope this means hot honey will become both cheaper and more readily available. I’d put it in or on everything if I could. I love cooking chicken, bell peppers and chorizo just in a big sqodge of hot honey, and it’s divine…
Okay, I think:
-Aji Amarillo, the Peruvian yellow and green sauces will be more popular but also using AAs in a bunch of new ways/dishes
-Berbere spice, like berbere spiced wings and fries, etc.
-Cuban and Peruvian food, as well as the continued growth of Korean and Vietnamese
-More varieties of citrus, not just yuzu and ube
-Hot honey on vanilla ice cream; Starbucks has an affogato with hot honey and I can see more ‘hot honey’ dessert-like items taking off
-Adobo (Filipino) becoming more mainstream
-The continuation of the gimmick combo; things like the ‘smashburger taco’ tend to take a while to trickle down and fade away, and there’ll always be stuff taco-fied
Interesting take, I'd love to see some of these become more popular. I feel like hot honey has already come and gone though. Also ube is a yam, not a citrus haha.
People keep trying to make insect protein a thing and haven't really succeeded yet, so maybe 2025 is the year our many legged friends will trend as food.
They’re efficient sources of protein, but not that tasty. I’ve eaten several different preparations of grasshoppers and crickets. They’re just underwhelming.
One thing that would help is if processors removed their legs, which are definitely the most irritating part of whole insects.
I did research on acceptability of insects as a protein source for my undergrad. Viewed significantly more favorably if you present the insects as a processed food ingredient rather than the centerpiece of a dish. Ultimately went a step beyond that and extracted the protein from the cricket powder into a broth that I formulated to be reminiscent of beef stock.
People need to get past the ick factor, and this does not only apply to insects. You don't look at eggs and all purpose flour as delectable when they're raw, but look at a cake and you might get a little hungry. Same concept applied to my cricket broth lol present it in the finished, ready to eat form and hide the creepy crawly nature of the protein source and people love it
Most of these "new" trends have been around in restaurants for more than a decade. Spinach and artichoke dip was widely available at most chain restaurants 10 years ago, truffle has always been popular at high end restaurants, and avocado and bacon on everything has been around for longer. The two that stand out are Ube flavors and hot honey. Ube has a unique flavor but it's the outstanding color that gets people. Hot honey has been wildly popular on pizza in the NE for a while now but I can see it being added to other dishes and reaching a wider nationwide audience.
IMO the next big food trends will be a fusion of foods from other cultures, specifically Peruvian and Filipino food.
Sea Moss is popping up more in LA (think Hailey Beiber smoothie). Sounds gross but I wouldn't be surprised if it starts making it's way into appetizers etc.
Sushi Burritos are found at trendy places in Southern Californiana and Vegas, maybe they will start becoming more mainstream.
Lavender/honey desserts and coffee drinks.
I love sushi and I love burritos, but I think sushi burritos are an abomination and every time I've ordered one it has come with side dishes of regret and self-loathing.
Tinned fish, on the other hand...that's a very welcome arrival for me. SO many great options.
Sushi Burritos are old news. Like 10-12 years ago in the Bay Area. So old they fizzled out already and the once popular truck/chain, Sushirrito is in contraction.
Broadly, I see a lot of restaurants moving towards a small/shareable plates menu. I'm also seeing places embrace a more robust/sophisticated mocktails menu.
As for more specific foods, I'm seeing:
- Croissant mods (Crookies, flat croissants)
- Gourmet breakfast sandwiches
I am hoping for Nigerian cuisine to come to more parts of the US. I've only ever had jollof rice that I've made, and I loved it but I have no idea how close to authentic it was.
I wish fire-roasted tomatoes or fajita veggies would have a big moment. Or slow-roasted veggies.
With all the emphasis on plant-based eating, there's too many "meat alternatives" and not enough palatable ready-to-eat vegetable options.
When poverty food attains mainstream acceptance and attention, it will make the poverty foods the new elite foods. Just like when cooks "discovered" flank steak, ox tail, beef shanks, short ribs, and others, those were the go-to for the poor because those cuts were the cheap tough cuts.
With spicy/hot food having gone mainstream (hot wings, nuclear sauces, sriracha, peri-peri, chili crisp, heck, even a greater diversity of chiles available), I hope that sauces/condiments like gochujang and sambal lead to more interest in Korean and Indonesian foods. Purely selfishly- I need more of those in my life.
I hope it’s Greek Salad. It was on every single restaurant menu a decade ago. Now it’s strictly at Greek restaurants around me. I miss being able to order it anywhere I went.
There is bubbling going on with a lot more small batch fermentation going on. As that research keeps evolving expect to see some crazy pickles, sauces, misos, and even meat replacements.
I was watching something on youtube about 2024 food trends and what I remember is functional beverages (drinks that do more than just hydrate and have things like turmeric in them), other sources of protein/plant power, non alcoholic drinks at bars, caviar bumps, and something about fermentation.
Smaller, shorter, simpler menus at restaurants. With food costs up, I’m already seeing places cut down thier offerings, likely to simplify work in the kitchen, and to reduce the chance of food waste. How close are we to seeing prix fix menus in midrange places?
I always think of Schmidt in New girl. “Jess, you can have whatever you want on the menu. They got pizza, gelato, Tikka Masala. A raw bar? This place is doing too much. They can't be doing all this right.”
This is how I’ve always felt. Like yeah if you can make good pulled pork then I imagine you can handle other bbq staples, but if I see sushi on the next page and pizza on another then I’m pretty confident that most of your food just isn’t that great.
Just screams "chain restaurant" and "everything is microwaved or fried from frozen". And don't get me wrong, sometimes I'm ok with that. Sometimes you just want to walk into a place without much thought and know that whatever you order it will be edible.
Places like Cheesecake Factory or chilis are good for this. They don’t really have anything that’s standout but anything you order will be reasonably good.
Cheesecake Factory actually makes their food. Their menu is so big because they use the same ingredients a bunch of different ways
Like taco bell
Would you like beef, lettuce, and cheese in a tortilla, a shell, a Dorito shell, on some nachos, in a bowl, or just smeared on something?
Courtesy of Sysco, same as the place down the road. TV dinner reheated for 20 bucks.
I agree with Schmidt here. I like small menus.
Cheesecake Factory in shambles
unlike most other chains, I bet they actually churn enough customers they don't have much of an issue with waste one of few chains like it that hasn't completely gone to shit. olive garden, cheddars, and roadhouse are the only few others that come to mind
But Olive Garden adjusted things a year or two ago and "went back to their roots". They simplified and reduced their menu as part of that. Roadhouse is pretty limited in their menu, I don't think it has changed much over the years. They do it well, have done it well for years, and at this point they are still on solid ground. No Cheddars around me, and I've never been to one. Cheesecake Factory... I've been once a couple years back and don't think I'll go again.
I noticed this too (the leaner). And I gotta say, the quality is really good. The chicken cutlet is actually flavorful, crispy, and not dry. Added it to my 5 cheese ravioli, and I was actually surprised how well it hit the spot.
The dry chicken is solely on the cook. I can be given everything needed to succeed and still over cook your chicken if I'm slammed. You had a competent cook xD
I am absolutely FERAL for Texas Roadhouse green beans and that’s all I’m here to say lol. We make jokes that one day we’ll go and I’m eventually going to order a veggie plate with all green beans
It’s all about the buns at roadhouse, but I’m the same way for Fridays green bean fries.
man it's crazy because where I live, all the mid-range chain restaurants are basically fading away. Applebee's closed down and Chilis seems so desolate every time i drive by it. the only reason Buffalo Wild Wings still exists is because they cater to the college kids who want to watch sports and then randomly they spent a year and a half building entirely from scratch what ended up becoming a Texas Roadhouse. I remember thinking what a stupid idea and waste of resources...but it's become pretty successful haha
Cheesecake Factory, even though the decor is cheesy, they stillmake everything from scratch and have a ton of dietary-specific choices (keto, sugar free, gluten free, low carb, dairy free). If you're in an area with limited food options, it's not that bad.
If it's from scratch likely not hard to expand the menu to hit those requirements with minor adjustments to prep.
Gordon Ramsay has been pushing that concept on kitchen nightmares for over a decade already
Fresh, local ingredients, yes ? Simple, interesting preparations to keep it moving and keep the quality up. A few really good signature dishes is all you need to get that word of mouth going, yes ? Even a monkey can come in early and make some fresh pasta; you’re right next to the fucking sea - a lunchtime shrimp pasta, 40 covers and another 30 to go - bosh. That 950k bank loan is on its way down.
> Smaller, shorter, simpler menus at restaurants. I think there's incentive beyond price. Too many things on a menu is usually a tell-tale sign that a restaurant has no real focus and is likely mediocre. Simplifying a menu is always a good move and can help turn a struggling restaurant around.
I think that's a very good thing. The fewer dishes a place is likely to prepare, the better the likelihood that those few dishes will be much better. Never go to a restaurant that has more than a 1 page menu (unless it's a diner).
Or a Chinese restaurant. With different shelf-stable seasonings and the same ingredients, you can make a wide variety of different dishes. Waste is still pretty low.
Or Mexican. You can use a lot of the same ingredients to make a lot of different dishes.
There's a good Jim Gaffigan riff on that, a few years old now. Something like this: >Uhm, excuse me waiter. What is this "burrito" on the menu? Why, thats our best beans wrapped in a tortilla with cheese. >...and this "enchilada"? That's our cheese, wrapped in a tortilla with beans. >I'm afraid to ask about the "taco"... is it...? Why yes, beans, meat and cheese in a folded tortilla. >Do you have anything more American? Like, you know, fried food? Might I interest you in our chimichanga?
Indian spots are a lot like that as well. One base curry with a bunch of variations.
My local Thai restaurant has a 6 page menu. Each page is dedicated to a specific noodle (udon, glass, wide, etc) with a half page for appetizers and drinks at the front. I've had almost every dish and the quality has been rock solid. The Italian joint down the street with a 3 page menu on the other hand... Olive Garden has them beat unfortunately.
this reminds me a lot of the early episodes of Kitchen Nightmares, both the UK and U.S. version completely DIFFERENT shows in terms of presentation and quality lol but one thing they almost all had in common was a consistent pitfall that the restaurants were trying to offer way too many fucking things instead of just keeping things simple but great
Ah, that's why! We were in my favourite Chinese yesterday and wondering how they keep the food so good with a massive menu.
On a similar note, many prepared vendors have removed or cut down their specialist dietary offerings, probably for the same reason.
I’ve been seeing a lot of yuzu.
I don’t mind this one if it means I can get fresh yuzu at my local Asian or specialty market. I’ve been growing a yuzu tree for the past two years and I’m crossing my fingers this is finally going to be the year it fruits.
I bought about 12 from WF a few years back and they yielded ~100 seeds. They were very easy to germinate. I now have three happy trees that I am hoping will fruit in the next few years!
I just googled it, and apparently yuzu are known to grow "true from seed". Most tree fruits are propagated by cuttings, and trees grown from seed will be significantly inferior. Grocery store vegetables are generally hybrids of two different varieties, and plants grown from those seeds will be somewhat smaller, but basically fine.
Calamansi. You heard it here first.
Trader Joe’s had calamansi and mango sorbet recently
I’d kill for Calamansi to become popular so I can get fresh ones. The only ones I can get are pickled :(
I bought some yuzu hot sauce. It’s really good but it’s just a sweet heat and honestly it kind of tastes like lime/grapefruit.
I love Yuzu Ponzu sauce.
I think yuzu peaked a year or two ago.
I worked in the Cannabis industry for a while and a couple years ago all they wanted to do was make yuzu gummies and yuzu drinks and yuzu everything.
looooots of yuzu
Wish I could even get it where I live just to try it. Living rural has wonderful things but also drawbacks. I do agree with you though! If it tastes good I hope it becomes more popular!
Most of the trends in this thread are way past
Spinach and artichoke dip was a thing in the 90s.
Applebee's spinach and artichoke dip is the single most 90's appetizer I can think of
Seriously. It strikes me as a very 80s/90s appetizer.
Totally. I was thinking happy hour apps at this Friday's in the 90s and early 2000s. Super dated.
I feel that way about OP's examples. Except for ube and hot honey, the listed trends are all at least 20 years old.
I’m in a city, but not even a coastal one, and I think hot honey is already a bit passé in the foodie scene. When it leaves the interesting, creative restaurants and permeates the more mainstream menus, I know my favorite places are moving on soon to new ideas.
Depending on where you live in the country, trends show up at very different times. I split my time between the west coast and Midwest, and it’s funny to see stuff become popular in the Midwest months to years after it is a thing in LA or SF. I think this effect used to be much more pronounced before the internet etc, but it still exists
also a big difference if we're talking about food trends in restaurants or in people's homes because there's trends that come and go in dining scenes in big cities before they take over grocery shelves
Facts. We stayed at a hotel in Corte Madera, in Marin County, in 2016. Expensive, but no more so than SF, and none of the traffic. Spectacular view from the balcony too. We walked across the street to a Pacific Rim place, and I had my first poké bowl. We live on the Texas Gulf Coast, and it was 2 or 3 years before our restaurants started offering poké.
Poke, Korean food, roasted cauliflower, orange wine, mezcal, even non alcoholic cocktails. It all flows inward from the coasts
Yes. I feel like almost no one has actually answered the question.
Right like why am I seeing cauliflower wings being reported as trendy
Hey have you heard about *gochujang*? It's Chinese or Japanese or something you probably haven't heard about *gochujang*! I had some *gochujang* truffle salt fries at a small batch bicycle bar-to-table concept.
Small batch bicycle bar-to-table concept has me rolling
I thought to myself: what would an AI say here? (Also PS thanks for getting the joke)
Because I imagine a lot of people on this subreddit are enthusiastic home cooks and not necessarily people that go out eating a lot.
Yeah...like yuzu? That was popular 10 years ago. Short, small menus? Come to New York! We have those everywhere. Burrata? Every Italian place has that as an appetizer.
Maybe I’m just too Minnesotan, but I feel like dill pickle is having a huge moment right now and still gaining momentum. I see dill pickle pizza on Reddit a lot, which is cute but we had dill pickle lemonade at our state fair last year.
I would 100% try dill pickle lemonade. And probably love it.
Have you heard of a "pickle back"? It's when you take a shot of whisky or similar and chase it down with a shot of pickle juice. I'm not a fan of whisky, but pickle juice is damn delicious.
> pickle juice is damn delicious Some is. Some isn't. For instance, I've had some very bad pickle juice but those crunchy Claussen kosher dill pickles you get in the refrigerated section...that juice is excellent, imho. We need a global pickle juice regime to create a ranking system and do pickle juice competitions. Imagine buying pickles with a "rated 92 points by pickle juice connoisseur magazine" tag.
Claussens are the only pickles i eat and the jar always get emptied.
They are the best pickles and no one can convince me otherwise. They're perfect, texture and flavour. I do like Grillos too, but Claussens are superior
Sounds horrifying and intriguing at the same time. I'd love to try a dill pickle lemonade.
Not just Minnesota. In Canada I’ve seen pickles being used in a lot of new or limited edition items at fast food places. Off the top of my head, Harvey’s has a pickle poutine and A&W has a spicy dill pickle burger.
There's a huge pickle festival in Pittsburgh called Picklesburgh, I've not gone yet but I know it keeps getting bigger every year.
I just saw dill pickle Heinz ketchup at the store last week!
The first time I saw a dill pickle pizza was at Guy's in Kansas City. They call it their "dill dough" pizza.
I just bought some dill pickle cashews and they are insanely good. I’m all for the pickle renaissance.
Texas here. There’s a Trent of “cheeseburger pizzas” that is happening. Topped with dill pickles and a drizzle of mustard. Beef, cheese, onion, tomato. It’s not bad. Edit. Trent = trend
I grew up in the middle of nowhere Montana and our little local pizza place was serving this 30 years ago. I have fond memories of eating cheeseburger and bacon cheeseburger pizzas.
Disney World had a dill pickle milkshake last year.
I am 95% certain that pandan will be the new ube in the next 3-5 years. One of the cornerstones of southeast Asian desserts, easy to incorporate into western desserts, and already popping up in New York cafes and bakeries.
This is so wild to me. My family is malaysian and pandan is just a normal thing. My grandma adds a leaf whenever we make rice so it has a subtle flavor.
The global north does like "discovering" our ancient culinary favorites. That's the answer to OP's question.
Heh my answer was mie goreng and laksa. I moved from California to Australia and SE Asian food is really popular here. I could see it being a trend in the states, like build your own laksa bowls akin to ordering at Chipotle or Subway. Would be perfect takeout on a cold day.
I mean, my pasty white self had no idea that pandan existed before I was introduced to it by my Indonesian ex, and my life is richer for it. Culinary cultural exchange is a good thing. My current boyfriend is Thai, and vividly recalls how people went crazy for apples from the global north when they first went on sale in markets there in the early '80s.
Tinned fish selections in seafood restaurants seems to be a thing now.
Tinned fish has been huge in Brooklyn fro a few years - I credit trendy fish brands and trendy grocery stores selling them (Fishwife) and restaurants like Popina, whose chef [wrote a whole book](https://www.popinanyc.com/store/product/magic-of-tinned-fish/) about tinned fish. I could see this trend spreading as millennials realize it's an affordable way to eat something that feels fancy but accessible!
Except the best quality tinned fish is not affordable.
Thank you. I bought 3 tins of Fishwife smoked salmon for my nephew for Christmas and it came to $45 for 3 5oz. tins. Not that it's not worth every penny (I assume, I didn't get to taste it but I heard it was good!) but the bougie stuff isn't cheap
FWIW Fishwife is widely considered overpriced and you can get similar quality for much less. They do not actually own any processors so every one of their products can be found from alternate sellers. Check out r/CannedSardines they often discuss the exact dupes for whatever product you like.
You probably are on to something here. Just this week I've suddenly got videos about using canned meats/seafoods to make proper recipes.
A lot of chefs are tired of the industry and commercial real estate is fucked, so I don’t expect the pop-up explosion to die down anytime soon. Chefs are able to focus in on just a few things passionately, build a social media brand and many are selling direct to consumer packaged goods or even merch now too lol. I think the mid range restaurant is going to eventually be extinct because no one wants to deal with that overhead and margins. You’ll have casual or more upscale where the transaction volume or margins respectively are better, but few options in between. The zero proof/NA beverage industry is embedded into the broader health and wellness industry that isn’t going anywhere.
I was just about to say the same thing about pop ups. I think it's going to go further with shared restaurants, not just shared commercial kitchens. I work in food and a lot of my coworkers/friends are trying to get stuff of our own going by doing regular pop ups at our places of work. There's already a place near me that shares 3 separate "restaurants"- they had their own individual food trucks and pooled for a brick and mortar to rent. Idk how they make it work but they do. Another is a biscuit place in the am and a chicken place in the pm. I think it's pretty cool honestly. There's a ton of crazy talent and passion in the industry that's been hidden by depressed wages and the monetary barrier to starting your own physical restaurant. It's rewarding to see friends get to flex creativity, and it's usually mutually beneficial to everyone in the area. Pop ups and shared spaces are small enough that you can only use local suppliers due to order $ minimums with the bigger guys. Your buddy from an old job does desserts, someone else does your small plates, everyone benefits. It's a nice little fuck you to all the greedy owners of mediocre mainstays that have dominated since the 70s/80s.
That's what my wife started: a small takeaway Filipino place where she serves her grandmother's recipes. Very traditional, very specific, only open two days a week. We share a kitchen and counter space with a pizza place that specializes in neopolitan style pizza. Makes a killing.
Generally agree, but ain't nothing new about spinach & artichoke dip. It was around prevalently in the 70's/80's. Speaking of 80's trends that are coming back/I wish would come back - fried mushrooms. Yeah, you can get them at Japanese place as tempura, but man I used to *love* fried mushrooms.
The local bar / restaurant just added them to the menu so Sysco has them.
This is the best news I’ve heard all day. Delicious little fried brains.
the sysco specific fried mushrooms are honestly a delicacy
Those are ok, but they're even better if the restaurant makes them from scratch
Fried mushrooms never went anywhere in the Deep South! Delicious and readily available everywhere since forever.
I was about to say-I see them all the time. Had some last week. Course we fry damn near everyhting. I had some fried artichoke hearts last week. Now if you have not had those, go find some. A taste slightly similar to fried pickles.
Bennigans use to have these fried mushrooms with a horseradish sauce and shaved cheese on top. It was out of this world
I miss their Monte Cristo.
Foraging
Only way to keep food prices down 😂
Oh for sure, but when I do it it's called dumpster diving.
"Urban foraging."
Middle eastern flavors are definitely having a moment, and likely to continue for a bit. And I’m seeing more African influence as well
Here in New Orleans, African is definitely seeing an uptick.
> I’m seeing more African influence as well My wife randomly bought me a tajine for Christmas and we use it constantly. I'm hoping to see more North African influenced restaurants in the future
Especially during Ramadan and for Eid, Nowruz, and the winter solstice. Soooo many middle eastern flavors and African flavors! Honestly, I'm kinda excited that it's happening because a lot of people just say "halal" as in the flavors you get from a halal food cart; while delicious, it absolutely doesn't represent Middle Eastern food as a whole. It's nice seeing Persian food get its own moment to shine, in addition to other cultures as well. I'm also midly apprehensive because I'm waiting for the food trend people to essentially bastardize it or worse, hyper-correct it due to not knowing cultural and geological differences in flavor accessibility (looking at you, falafel), despite knowing many will do it completely unintentionally. Can't speak for African food, since I know none who are from there.
Someone on TikTok is going to pretend to eat Chicken Tartare and thousands of people will end up in the hospital
Pistachios on everything that used to almond. Dates are peaking again. I think the next trends maybe Indian pickles (ie sweet lime pickle), carrots, and bergamot or kumquat replacing yuzu
indian pickles are truly slept on - the mango ones esp!!
Just bought pistachio cream on Amazon because a popular chef on Instagram used it on French toast. Needless to say it's amazing.
In three different fine dining experiences recently I've seen granola used in unexpected places (on carrots with coffee grounds, for example). Beyond that, the Korean craze is in full swing. Food is finally catching up to music and film with gochujang, kimchi, and bulgogi getting worked in to a lot of menus and recipes.
I didn't see this here, but all things gut and microbiome focused. This is starting to pop, so I am thinking lactofermented whatever with particular strains to help with whatever ails someone. Things in the adaptogenic corner to make people "feel good". I've seen salads with CBD in LA. It's something in that area like the modern up sell of truffles. Starbucks with an addition to make it accessible but unique or fancy, but health. It probably has spirulina or some adjacent instagram worthy look, because that sells. Usually Trader Joe's jumps on the bandwagon, so suburbanites can feel cutting edge. Yuzu, gochujang, ube have been done. It has to be something somewhat not mainstream, but still enough so that people will think it's exotic and try it. Middle eastern Ottolenghi tangent things are big.
Wasn't gut health stuff really big in the 2000s? I remember all the yogurt commercials on the tv back then talking about it.
Food as medicine- I think you are onto something!
I've noticed that everything labeled as "vegan" is now being called "plant based". I feel like this is just a marketing move to make vegan foods sound less "woke" and "soy boy" so that more people are open to it.
Sometimes the “plant-based” foods aren’t vegan any more, for extra fun.
Plant-Based^^Meat-Finished
This describes Mapo Tofu is and it's a phenomenal dish.
People were 3X as likely to select a meal labeled as plant based vs an identical one labeled vegan vs a control with meat.
Where'd you read that?
I think it might also be to make the foods seem more healthy than they actually are.
A little while back, my sister excitedly told me to try this new “plant-based” milk that she had found. She kinda sounded like she was trying to evangelize me to the entire concept of non-dairy milk substitutes. I already use soy milk, which I told her. Her response was, “Yeah, well this is PLANT-BASED!” Soy milk just isn’t trendy enough anymore, I guess.
Well yeah, vegan connotes a moral philosophy attributed to diet. Plant based just refers to diet.
I don't hate it because it is a better description, that doesn't need explanation. "Ok this is made of plants" as opposed to having someone have to "unpack" the difference between vegan and vegetarian.
Well, time is cyclical, so I think the time for jello salads will soon be thrust back upon us.
poor people who love goofs and irony are so ready to show up to every picnic this summer with a "green salad" ahahaha (im poor people)
Spinach and Artichoke dip? From 2005…? I don't think you're even caught up to recent trends lol. Cauliflower rice? Were you in on the brown butter craze? Green Goddess Salads?
Bacon on everything was a meme in like 2009 too
Spinach and artichoke dip from the 70s when my Mom made it in a pumperknickle bowl!
I’m still in on brown butter personally. If I’m baking, that butter is getting browned. I just made Rice Krispie treats for a trip last week with brown butter, a splash of vanilla, and an extra pinch of salt. And brown butter CCCs? Sign me tf up
Don’t forget sriracha in or on everything and Nashville hot chicken.
Nashville hot chicken is really good and deserves to be permanent, not a trend.
Burrata instead of mozarella
That’s already long been a trend.
I’ll never understand this. I see TikTok videos where someone rips up burrata over a salad or something and it just makes no sense. The entire appeal of burrata to me is getting it in a whole piece so you get to pop it yourself.
Ugh I never got the love for burrata. I can’t taste it. Same as paneer. I’m sure it’s supposed to be marinated but my husband has begun cutting off a chunk and eating it plain. He said, “this tasteless cheese is growing on me”
I get what you are saying, but I will mention that burrata needs to be seasoned. A little salt, some real good olive oil, maybe a little pepper. Also the freshness of it is a huge factor. Trader Joe's is nice and cheep, but it doesn't hold a candle to fresh (not that TJ is bad, I get it all the time)
It's like peoppe saying tofu tastes bad after they try a bite of it raw. Chicken doesn't taste good without seasoning and salt either.
Oooh, and so good with a drizzle of balsamic reduction.
I don't know why but "this tasteless cheese is growing on me" is really funny.
It really doesnt taste like much, it's more of a texture/ flavour mellower for salt and acid. If you're eating it by itself I can see why it is unappealing, and imo a large burrata is not my favorite, to much squishy insides for me- but having it as a part of caprese salad instead of fresh mozzarella works well, especially if you have a balsamic glaze, and prosciutto, and some bread. Its plain creamy taste helps to balance those out.
Is your husband generally a Food Texture guy? I’m a Food Texture gal and I love paneer in all forms.
this has already been a food trend for a couple of years
gochujang labneh sesame/tahini everything birria mochi editing to add: i already commented this below to a reply, but i misread the post and thought it was asking about current food trends, not future ones. please stop telling me i'm wrong holy shit, i know they are already popular, i just don't know how to read
Birria explosion happened 3 years ago. At least that how it felt in the South Bay after Tacos El Goloso expanded beyond one location.
I think birria has spread as far as it can. It was the “hot taco” around the time you posted. And has gotten repeated enough that it’s been created poorly and people are starting to lose the appeal of birria done the right way.
Gochujang, mochi, and tahini i feel like have already hit their moment and are in for a decline the others on this list though. spot on haha
I feel like gochujang is still on the rise. There are still a lot of people that have never heard of it, but will love it when they try it. I think it has the potential to become mainstream, like buffalo wing sauce did years ago.
I feel like it’s the new sriracha
I'm 1000% on board the sesame/tahini train. Love that stuff in everything, sweet and savory. I'd like to add miso to the list. Seeing it everywhere now, especially popping up in dessert recipes.
Man I love gochujang but it really messes my intestines up for some reason
I feel like all these things listed are if not fading, very current trends. At least in Europe. I think that the next hot thing is to hire a private chef for a special occasions. I see this becoming more and more mainstream and available for average Joes.
A kid I went to HS with does this. I follow his chef FB and he does beautiful work. The homes I see him working in are lovely but not riiiiiiich RICH.
Even for middle class people in the US, there’s a near substitute in the form of hiring a food truck for an event, often a taco truck on the West Coast. Even for relatively well off people like attorneys, we get excited when the firm brings out a taco truck for a firm party.
Fermented foods are having a huge uptick (homebrewed wine and mead, bread recipes) and i've seen a lot of "naturally carbonated" sodas in a lot of videos. I'm waiting for it to hit the restaurant scene soon.
I'm seeing a lot of corn desserts, burnt basque cheesecake done with savory toppings, kebabs, labneh, "health" lattes like giner turmeric and lavender honey, lavender ice cream. And for some reason every happy hour right now has a pan con tomate.
I've been seeing Victorianesque desserts and drinks. Rose, lavender, violet, pistachio etc
Miso everything Korean Flavors are already popular but my bet is we will see a lot more mainstream Gochujang, Kimchi , Bulgogi stuff
Those gochujang cookies from the last New York Times cookie week were definitely an indicator of a trend.
I mean, can you have too much bulgogi though?
lol did you see the reel of “my Korean parents test Trader Joe’s Korean food” where the sweet older couple are so polite about the food and you think they’re okay with it until they try the bulgogi and then they start dipping everything into bulgogi and one of them says “thank god”
I have just recently started seeing them and yes, I've seen that one. I love the parents!
Hoping to see more root veg variety. Taro, Yuca, kohlrabi, etc. AND more love for the mundane roots like radishes.
I hope this means hot honey will become both cheaper and more readily available. I’d put it in or on everything if I could. I love cooking chicken, bell peppers and chorizo just in a big sqodge of hot honey, and it’s divine…
Nduja. Seen it a lot lately, can see it starting to get put on everything
Okay, I think: -Aji Amarillo, the Peruvian yellow and green sauces will be more popular but also using AAs in a bunch of new ways/dishes -Berbere spice, like berbere spiced wings and fries, etc. -Cuban and Peruvian food, as well as the continued growth of Korean and Vietnamese -More varieties of citrus, not just yuzu and ube -Hot honey on vanilla ice cream; Starbucks has an affogato with hot honey and I can see more ‘hot honey’ dessert-like items taking off -Adobo (Filipino) becoming more mainstream -The continuation of the gimmick combo; things like the ‘smashburger taco’ tend to take a while to trickle down and fade away, and there’ll always be stuff taco-fied
Interesting take, I'd love to see some of these become more popular. I feel like hot honey has already come and gone though. Also ube is a yam, not a citrus haha.
People keep trying to make insect protein a thing and haven't really succeeded yet, so maybe 2025 is the year our many legged friends will trend as food.
They’re efficient sources of protein, but not that tasty. I’ve eaten several different preparations of grasshoppers and crickets. They’re just underwhelming. One thing that would help is if processors removed their legs, which are definitely the most irritating part of whole insects.
I did research on acceptability of insects as a protein source for my undergrad. Viewed significantly more favorably if you present the insects as a processed food ingredient rather than the centerpiece of a dish. Ultimately went a step beyond that and extracted the protein from the cricket powder into a broth that I formulated to be reminiscent of beef stock. People need to get past the ick factor, and this does not only apply to insects. You don't look at eggs and all purpose flour as delectable when they're raw, but look at a cake and you might get a little hungry. Same concept applied to my cricket broth lol present it in the finished, ready to eat form and hide the creepy crawly nature of the protein source and people love it
Most of these "new" trends have been around in restaurants for more than a decade. Spinach and artichoke dip was widely available at most chain restaurants 10 years ago, truffle has always been popular at high end restaurants, and avocado and bacon on everything has been around for longer. The two that stand out are Ube flavors and hot honey. Ube has a unique flavor but it's the outstanding color that gets people. Hot honey has been wildly popular on pizza in the NE for a while now but I can see it being added to other dishes and reaching a wider nationwide audience. IMO the next big food trends will be a fusion of foods from other cultures, specifically Peruvian and Filipino food.
Starvation, if the current rate of price increases persist.
Sea Moss is popping up more in LA (think Hailey Beiber smoothie). Sounds gross but I wouldn't be surprised if it starts making it's way into appetizers etc. Sushi Burritos are found at trendy places in Southern Californiana and Vegas, maybe they will start becoming more mainstream. Lavender/honey desserts and coffee drinks.
I love sushi and I love burritos, but I think sushi burritos are an abomination and every time I've ordered one it has come with side dishes of regret and self-loathing. Tinned fish, on the other hand...that's a very welcome arrival for me. SO many great options.
Sushi Burritos are old news. Like 10-12 years ago in the Bay Area. So old they fizzled out already and the once popular truck/chain, Sushirrito is in contraction.
birra🙄 mfs making birra pizza now lol
Birria? Birra is Italian for beer lol
Beer Pizza you say? 👀
Broadly, I see a lot of restaurants moving towards a small/shareable plates menu. I'm also seeing places embrace a more robust/sophisticated mocktails menu. As for more specific foods, I'm seeing: - Croissant mods (Crookies, flat croissants) - Gourmet breakfast sandwiches
I wish they'd leave the damn croissants **alone**!!!
I am hoping for Nigerian cuisine to come to more parts of the US. I've only ever had jollof rice that I've made, and I loved it but I have no idea how close to authentic it was.
More and more diverse African cuisine would be awesome.
Sun dried tomatoes are overdue for a comeback.
I wish fire-roasted tomatoes or fajita veggies would have a big moment. Or slow-roasted veggies. With all the emphasis on plant-based eating, there's too many "meat alternatives" and not enough palatable ready-to-eat vegetable options.
Posh poverty dishes.
When poverty food attains mainstream acceptance and attention, it will make the poverty foods the new elite foods. Just like when cooks "discovered" flank steak, ox tail, beef shanks, short ribs, and others, those were the go-to for the poor because those cuts were the cheap tough cuts.
With spicy/hot food having gone mainstream (hot wings, nuclear sauces, sriracha, peri-peri, chili crisp, heck, even a greater diversity of chiles available), I hope that sauces/condiments like gochujang and sambal lead to more interest in Korean and Indonesian foods. Purely selfishly- I need more of those in my life.
I can’t escape smash burgers
This is one I'm hoping stick around. Smash >>> foot tall 2x 1/2 patty nightmare burgers.
If you can't get your mouth around it, I don't want it. A burger is not meant to be eaten in installments. I should get every component in a bite.
I hope it’s Greek Salad. It was on every single restaurant menu a decade ago. Now it’s strictly at Greek restaurants around me. I miss being able to order it anywhere I went.
There is bubbling going on with a lot more small batch fermentation going on. As that research keeps evolving expect to see some crazy pickles, sauces, misos, and even meat replacements.
I was watching something on youtube about 2024 food trends and what I remember is functional beverages (drinks that do more than just hydrate and have things like turmeric in them), other sources of protein/plant power, non alcoholic drinks at bars, caviar bumps, and something about fermentation.
Dates and date syrup. One local restaurant went full date on their menu, some good and some weird.
Not what I think but what I hope : anything black sesame flavored PLEASE
I'm not sure realistically, but my hope and dream is that it's beets! They're so slept on.
beet + goat cheese salad has been literally unavoidable for like 15 years whatre you talking about