Epicurious has come out with their predictions for the top food trends for 2011. I guess they have a bit of a leg up on the rest of us as they have access to chefs, suppliers, etc and their new trends before the rest of us. The trick is to see if the public will follow and embrace these trends.
Let's take a look at the predictions:
Food Halls
Will America follow in the footsteps of the food halls of Harrods of London and Paris' La Grande Épicerie with the opening of Eataly (Mario Bataly and the Bastianich family), Food Hall in the Plaza Hotel (Todd English), and L'Épicerie Market (Thierry Perez)?
Korean Cuisine
The Kogi BBQ truck in L.A is wildly popular. Is Kimchi and Galbi in our near future? Although this isn't a new trend here in Honolulu, will mainland restaurants jump on this bandwagon too?
Macarons
Have cupcakes seen better days? Are macarons the next "it" dessert? I know of at least one macaron shop that has opened near me and of course you can order from Gesine Confectionary. Considering that they are gluten free and melt-in your-mouth-good I can see this trend catching on.
Meatless Mondays & Tofu Thursdays
First we saw eating snout to tail, and while meat is still king, many people are switching up their menus to bump up vegetable and other non-meat product consumption. The idea of Meatless Monday's is to encourage U.S. consumers to cut their meat consumption by 15 percent for the betterment of our health and the planet. Will Meatless Mondays and Tofu Thursdays take off?
Foraging
Mushrooms and truffles were once the items that people foraged for. Now berries, nuts, and wild greens are being sought after. Will the Philadelphia Food Harvest Map be a precursor to new maps produced by foodies "wild crafting"?
Tiki Bar Cocktails
Well this one is right up my alley, although I can't really say this is a trend for me. It is more a way of life considering my geographic location. There are a list of Tiki Bars at Tiki Central. Will people start falling for tropical juices and rum all over again?
Pop-Up Cafés
It started with food trucks, but now chefs are looking at small, pop-up cafes where they can try out new menus, drum up publicity, and save a little on capital outlay. Chef Tommy Halvorson's Eat Restaurant hold's monthly dinners in different locals that are very popular. Are insta-restaurants the thing of the future?
Sweet Potatoes
There is no denying that sweet potatoes are both good for you and very versatile, as they can be used in both sweet and savory dishes. This falls crop was estimated to be a staggering two billion pounds so it is no wonder that they are appearing more and more on dinner tables, both at home and at restaurants. Even Costco is selling frozen sweet potato fries. Are they the next big thing or just a flash in the fry-pan?
Urban Wineries
More and more oenophiles are learning the process of making and then bottling their own wine. Do you dream of seeing your face on a wine bottle?
Pimentón de La Vera
I have no idea what the trends will be - but the tiki bar sounds good!
ReplyDeleteThe Kogi BBQ truck is wonderful! I'm all for that trend.
ReplyDeleteAnd bring on the Tiki.
Will be interesting to see which of these trends actually takes off. Thx for sharing.
Actually home made wine can be very good :D That's what should become popular
ReplyDeleteSmall plates are the next big thing. Tapas aren't just for Spanish food anymore. It's crossed over into all different cuisines and people love sharing and trying more than one dish.
ReplyDeleteWell they got it right with Whoopie pies in 2010. They were everywhere. It will be interesting to see what 2011 brings. Do the trends happen because Epicurious says they will or do they happen all by themselves?
ReplyDeleteI'm thinking my top food trends will be: local wines and ciders, Northern Euro foods, more vegetable side dishes, all things pasta, sourdough breads, cooking game, sandwich cookies, and ice creams.
ReplyDeleteI'm all about the sweet potatoes and the macarons. We're eating our way through Paris, trying to decide which patisserie has the best macaron! lol! And yes- it rocks that they're GF!
ReplyDeleteWhat a fun post! I secretly love tiki bar cocktails, does that mean I'm a trend setter??? ;)
ReplyDeleteGreat post Felice! I remember the NY Times saying that whoopee pies were going to be huge and I tried making some and whilst they were nice, I didn't know about taking iver the omnipresent cupcake! :) Im hoping the food trucks make it over here! :)
ReplyDeleteSavory cupcakes...now that's an idea! Hm...sardines, lemon peel, and thyme cupcakes? Sounds like a winner to me! LOL
ReplyDeletePossible food trends... Who knows? But I would vote for sweet potatoes. What a great trend! They are so incredibly tasty; I love 'em baked in foil...
ReplyDeleteHow did you ever find the Philly wild food folks?! Great post.
ReplyDeleteGreat, thought-provoking post. Savory cupcakes? Are they cupcakes turned into muffins? :)
ReplyDeleteI do like the idea of cafes where chefs try out new menus, but I don't necessarily like the idea of insta-restaurants.
Thx for a great post and reminding me that I haven't even opened F&W's Jan issue yet. Happy New Year's to you!
Great post and very interesting! Whatever the trend may be, bring it on, I enjoy all tasty food!
ReplyDeleteMeatless Mondays & Tofu Thursdays sound like great trends to me! I feel like sweet potatoes were also a 2010 trend, and they should continue to stay trendy. :)
ReplyDeleteVery interesting compared to last year...hmm...
ReplyDeleteI had a Korean taco at the FoodBuzz festival and have been hooked ever since. I totally support that as a trend for next year. My mind's not made up on the whole macaron craze though.
ReplyDeleteI'd love to see Korean food rise in popularity. After living there for a year, I now crave those familiar tastes once in a while and it's much more difficult to find good Korean food than Thai or another Asian cuisine.
ReplyDeleteI love these trends! Especially the Korean food and foraging... fun! It would also be interesting to see more food halls around, but lets see what 2011 brings. Happy new year!
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