New survey’s Top 2024 Trends Include Grilled And Cooked Cheeses
The line between restaurant menus and home cooking is blurring, thanks to social media like TikTok where restaurant dishes become viral sensations and in the right culinary hands popular social “food fads” are translating to menus and limited time offers, according to the National Restaurant Association’s 2024 What’s Hot Culinary Forecast. The report’s insights are pulled from a survey of 1,500 culinary professionals nationwide — its largest to date — who identified incorporating social media as one of the top 10 hottest trends in 2024.
Emerging Food Trends: International Flavors And Social Media Influence
The survey uncovered several broader menu trends to watch for next year as well as specific dishes, ingredients, flavors and condiments that are set to become favorites among consumers. Among the trends are grilled/cooked cheeses, such as Provoleta, Queso Fundido, Raclette, Halloumi and Juustoleipa, the survey found.
2024 Food Trends: From Soups To Wings
Other top trends include world stage soups and stews (birria, chicken tom kha, laksa, salmorejo and upscale ramen); global chicken wings; international BBQ; incorporating social media trends; wagyu beef; stuffed vegetables (chiles en nogada, stuffed peppers and stuffed cabbage rolls); regional menus; streamlined menus; and hot honey breakfast sandwiches.
The Influence Of Comfort, Community, And Curiosity
“This year’s trends are dominated by consumer craving for comfort and community with a healthy side of curiosity influenced by social media,” says Hudson Riehle, senior vice president of research for the association.
Comfort Food And Natural Flavors In The Spotlight
“Old favorites like BBQ are taking on new flavors, and social sharing is influencing the spread of regional fares like Nashville Hot. Even the chicken competition is going global on local menus.”
Across all the food categories, comfort foods ruled the day, with respondents pointing to soups and stews, stuffed vegetables and melty cheeses as next year’s hottest trends. In a sign of increasingly sophisticated preferences, natural flavors took center stage for alcoholic drinks, including botanicals like spices and herbs along with low-alcohol spirits, while drinks with perceived health and energy benefits led the way for non-alcoholic offerings. The National Restaurant Association surveyed more than 1,500 culinary professionals in the United States from Oct. 9-23. For more information, visit https://restaurant.org.
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Source: Cheese Market News
