New Survey Reveals What's Hot on Restaurant Menus
National Restaurant Association survey of more than 1,000 chefs shows the hottest food and beverage
JANUARY 4, 2007. Chefs create new and exciting dishes for the nation's 935,000 restaurants every day and lead the way when it comes to food and beverage trends. The National Restaurant Association's newly released "What's Hot and What's Not" chef survey reveals that bite-size desserts, locally grown produce and organics top the list of trendy items, while Scandinavian cuisine, starfruit, and organ meats/sweetbreads are less popular.
"As Americans' interest in celebrity chefs, television cooking shows, and popular restaurants continues to grow, foods and beverages seen on restaurant menus become the hottest new culinary trends," said Steven C. Anderson, president and chief executive officer of the Association. "Chefs are tuning into diners' tastes and desires, and find new and innovative ways to incorporate them into their menus."
The Association surveyed 1,146 chefs (members of the American Culinary Federation) to have them rate items as "hot," or "cool/pass'e." The survey reveals that the hottest menu trends for the coming year are bite-size desserts, locally grown produce, organic produce, bottled water, flatbread, specialty sandwiches, Asian appetizers, espresso/specialty coffees, whole grain bread, and Mediterranean cuisine. Additional items rated as hot include pan-seared items, fresh herbs, Latin American cuisine, exotic mushrooms, grilled items, salts, grass-fed items, pomegranates, aged meat, and blue/gorgonzola cheese.
Topping the list of items receiving less interest are Scandinavian cuisine, starfruit, organ meats/sweetbreads, Ethiopian cuisine, kiwi, edible flowers/rose petals, blackened items, low-carb dough, soda bread and fruit soups. Other items on the non-trendy list include German cuisine, taro, low-carb items, foams, okra, vichyssoise, meat salad, consomm'e, catfish and cold soups.
The survey, conducted in October 2006, also shows that the most significant influences on food trends are seasonality/availability, the growing diversity of the population and ethnic cuisines, adding new twists on tradition, and nutritional and dietary needs/preferences. When asked where they learn about new food items, recipes and trends, the majority of the chefs surveyed cited trade magazines as their number one source, followed by trade shows, Web sites and consumer magazines.
The National Restaurant Association Restaurant, Hotel-Motel Show(R) provides a valuable opportunity to experience these trends first-hand, as well as explore new ones. The Show's nearly 2,100 exhibiting companies offer a window to the future of the restaurant industry, including traditional and unusual food and beverage items; the most innovative equipment on the market that allows chefs to experiment with preparation and presentation; technology that can help the cooking process, as well as customer service and the dining experience; educational opportunities to learn from experts and peers on how to expand and improve current menus and businesses; and much more. The 2007 Show will be held May 19-22 at McCormick Place in Chicago. For more information, visit www.restaurant.org/show.
The Association's research on food trends "provides a perfect mirror of what's hot today," said Nancy Kruse, president of The Kruse Company in Atlanta, which analyzes restaurant-industry trends. The hot items "all address key consumer demands/expectations: ethnic foods (Asian, Pan-Asian, Mediterranean, Latin), premium products (bottled water, upscale coffees, exotic mushrooms), products perceived to have a healthful benefit (locally grown, organic, grass-fed and free-range, pomegranates, bite-size desserts), flavorful foods (fresh herbs, salt, pan searing and grilling), and convenience (specialty sandwiches)," she said. "These are all long-term trends, not fads, and will impact menu research and development well into the future." Kruse will lead an educational seminar at the 2007 Show.
The American Culinary Federation Inc., established in 1929, is the premier professional organization for culinarians in America. With more than 19,000 members spanning 240 chapters nationwide, ACF is the culinary leader in offering educational resources, training, apprenticeship and accreditation. In addition, ACF operates the only comprehensive certification program for chefs in the United States. The ACF is home to ACF Culinary Team USA, the official representative for the United States in major international culinary competitions, and also holds the presidium for the World Association of Chefs Societies, the largest international network of chef associations with more than eight million members globally. For more information, visit the ACF Web site at www.acfchefs.org.
For full "What's Hot, What's Not" survey results - and other consumer and menu trends - visit the Association's Web site at www.restaurant.org/research/forecast.cfm.
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