One thing you can count on is new restaurants popping up in response to our changing tastes. Here are some trends identified by
Nation's Restaurant News along with a great story from our archives for each one:
1. Pie! Pie bakeries are now following on the heels of cupcake shops.
2. One-ingredient restaurants. Following on the several-year trend of gourmet burgers, the trend is extending to grilled cheese sandwiches, hot dogs and sliders.
3. Mini everything: mini portions, mini desserts.
4. Multi-purpose spaces. Eataly in New York is an example.
5. Minimal menus. “A couple of years ago, we found a lot of people were getting very wordy and descriptive in their jargon on their menus,” says Andrew Freeman, who consults on marketing for restaurants and hotels nationwide.
6. “Hearth”-healthy fare. Wood-fired ovens are being used to roast vegetables and larger cuts of meat.
7. Hot dog and sausage shops, like Brats Dogs & Weiners in New York.
8. Fried vegetables. “Dreaded” vegetables like Brussels sprouts, cauliflower and turnips are getting crispy-crunchy makeovers.
9. Soft-serve. Chefs are using soft-serve ice cream machines to produce savory flavors as well as more exotic flavors, such as the coconut-water soft serve with brownie bites at Belly Shack in Chicago.
10. High-end junk food. “I feel like that munchies we grew up on are going to show up with interpretations done by chefs in really the most unique ways,” Freeman said, suggesting house-made Cheetos, Bugles, Slim Jims and jerky.