So many events and trends have emerged in the year 2016, from the surprise win in the US elections, the mannequin challenge to sourdough bread’s popularity. All of these have left a mark in our lives, but as 2017 is fast approaching, why not focus on the good side and see what the New Year has in store for us. Baum + Whiteman, an international food and restaurant consulting firm, have provided something to look forward to in the next year, the hottest food & beverage trends for 2017.
1. Cooked fresh from home
Local chefs are under the spotlight as they are given the chance to showcase their cooking skills. There are apps that give this opportunity to home cooks such as Yuma in Montreal, an app that lets locals order food from local chefs, and Feastly app, which is already operating in five states in the US, reserves you the best seat in town, the cook’s dining room.
2. Virtual restaurants
“Delivery hubs” are being created by startups and chain restaurants to be able to deliver chef-prepared meals to homes. These delivery hubs are commercial kitchens that are rented by these professional cooks. Momofuko chef David Chang already has two delivery-only brands in New York City named Maple and Ando, On the other hand, Munchery delivers ready-to-heat meals within San Fransisco, Los Angeles, Seattle and New York.
3. Drones: “Delivery!”
Drones have been a buzz in 2016 and it will revolutionise delivery service. Google has paired up with Chipotle to deliver burritos on the Virginia Tech campus.Other examples are 7-Eleven Slurpee deliveries in Reno, Nevada and Domino’s in New Zealand, both using drones.
4. More veggie meat
Veggie meats are now getting the buzz after a quarter of Americans are doing their best to eat less meat. There are three San Francisco chefs who have placed a veggie burger on the menu and a vegetable “butcher shop” has opened its doors in Minneapolis and Toronto. Well, more meatless burgers, sausages, meatballs, and ribs for us, please!
5. Veggies take center stage
Vegetarian and vegan restaurants are getting attention as veggies take center stage in 2017. Some of the restaurants who are getting the attention are Ladybird and Nix, both in New York. Creating meals with veggies has just gotten wider since dishes such as lasagna and macaroni can be created with vegetables.
6. Hello “butcher-to-table”
Not only veggies get the spotlight, butchers also get some of it. Some artisan butchers are offering a butcher-to-table strategy wherein their shops have a dine-in area where freshly cut meat is cooked. Shank Charcuterie offers this and serves steak and eggs and house sausages on the spot.
7. Chicken for breakfast
Chicken is slowly conquering bacon’s throne and taking over the morning meals kingdom. Restaurants are offering these meals such as Astro Donuts in DC with their honey-butter fried chicken served in a donut, Hominy Grill in Charleston with their Big Nasty Biscuit topped with fried chicken, cheddar, and sausage gravy, Empire Stat South in Atlanta with their chicken biscuit topped with pimento cheese, bacon marmalade and scrambled eggs and Free Range in Los Angeles with their tempura chicken, honey, Sriracha and scrambled eggs.
8. Seaweed over Kale?
Kale has already reached its peak in consumer packaged goods. According to Whole Foods’ former grocery coordinator, kale “continues to disappear from snacks while sea vegetables find new formats.” A reason behind of the rise of seaweed is because of the “ramen explosion” wherein seaweed is the foundation of many broths and its umami flavour. Since kale has no place in the “waste-not” economy, chefs are looking at alternatives in the “waste-not” greens section, such as turnip, mustard greens, beets, chard and carrot tops.
9. Wild milkshakes
Milkshakes are getting an upgrade to a “freakshake” – according to Baum + Whiteman, a freakshake is a “freestyle milkshake topped ice cream, as much sauce and whipped cream as possible and then surmounted by insane quantities of cake, cookies, donuts, ice cream sandwiches and various candies until the concoction threatens intellectually and physically to topple.” The curious can order a crazy freakshake at Black Tap in New York, The Original Dinerant in Portland, Oregon, Burger Republic in Nashville, The Boston Burger Co. in Boston and at Lunchbox Laboratory in Seattle. In Australia, one can get a hefty order in Patissez.
10. From Thailand with love
What a delectable concoction this rollup ice cream innovation is. The rollup, which originated from Thailand, is a treat that is composed of frozen thin layers of liquid ice cream that are then rolled and garnished in a cup. This treat can be ordered at 10Below Ice Cream in New York, Chelo Creamery in Los Angeles, Ice Land in Philadelphia, 8 Fahrenheit Ice Cream in Atlanta, Holla Mode in Austin, Texas and Scroll in Victoria, Australia.
11. Unexpected competitors
Restaurants are facing an unexpected competitor, their suppliers. These restaurants that are opening their doors are Kellogg’s cereal restaurant in Times Square and Chobani Yogurt in Soho. This does not end here, even retailers are stepping in the ring. Guess Corp. just introduced their Guess Bread Company, which offers soups, salads, sandwiches, desserts and wine. Another one is Macy’s, who is adding Martha Stewart Cafes in their department stores.
As these trends are slowly penetrating the market and igniting the masses’ curiosity, business brokers in Victoria should watch out and know how to incorporate such trends in their businesses. These trends, some already existing, can help aid in sales and popularity towards customers.
