On the wedged heels of last week’s "The New Generation of Faces" Fashion Show, I couldn’t help but think about what’s happenin’ now on the food and dining scene. Whether you’re looking to spice up date night, entertain out-of-towners, or bring the latest food fashions into your own culinary repertoire, keep these hot tasty trends in mind:
#1 Hyper Local – According to this year’s National Restaurant Association “Chef’s Survey”, local is being taken to the next level. It’s no longer enough to procure your produce from your shared side of the
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Just as home cooks are increasingly including backyard gardening into their skill set, so too are the poshest and purest of chefs exploring their agrarian side. Look for more salads coming from restaurants’ very own veggie patches while your various loins and shanks and such are butchered in house.
#2 Healthy Kids Meals – PLEASE resist the temptation to stop reading here. Even swinging singles can benefit from this trend. Bowing to rising pressure from patrons and government officials to offer kid-friendly, calorie-sane options, more and more restaurateurs are including balanced, healthy meals on their kids’ menus. This may be a lucky break for adults equally interested in making more responsible (but still enjoyable) choices while dining out, especially when the “adult” side offers slim slimming options.
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Peruse the Juniors section and you might just find reduced-fat mac and cheese, whole wheat spaghetti, veggie burger sliders, or mini vegetable pizzas. Swap your fries or mashed potatoes for kids’ sides like edamame or fruit kabobs. Think built-in portion control and guilt-free comfort foods! Bonus: You’ll also up your chances of getting a color-in placemat! Yessss.
#3 Vegetarian Entrees – The aforementioned “What’s Hot” survey listed vegan entrees as being a top-selling item and fast-growing trend amongst all diners – omnivores most certainly included. The New York Times also recently ran a piece on the artfully crafted variety of veggie burgers now burgeoning across menu pages everywhere.
Luckily, an increasing number of dining establishments is taking the ethical burden off of your shoulders and serving only sustainably caught or raised seafood. If you fancy yourself a trendsetting gastronome, however, you can be proactive and fork-forward by getting your own sustainable seafood app from
#3 Vegetarian Entrees – The aforementioned “What’s Hot” survey listed vegan entrees as being a top-selling item and fast-growing trend amongst all diners – omnivores most certainly included. The New York Times also recently ran a piece on the artfully crafted variety of veggie burgers now burgeoning across menu pages everywhere.
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At last, those looking for a meatless meal have more to choose from than a garden salad or hippie meat in gravy-ish secret sauce.
#4 Sustainable Meat & Seafood – True, we’re all supposed to start eating more fish. But while the USDA is all, “Hey, you should be eating 8 to 12 ounces of fish per week, and you’re barely eating that much per month!”, Greenpeace is like, “Uh guys, our appetite for fish is exceeding the oceans' ecological limits with devastating impacts on marine ecosystems!” What to do??
Luckily, an increasing number of dining establishments is taking the ethical burden off of your shoulders and serving only sustainably caught or raised seafood. If you fancy yourself a trendsetting gastronome, however, you can be proactive and fork-forward by getting your own sustainable seafood app from Monterey Bay.
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Oh yeah, also goat meat! Apparently goat meat is making its way into more mainstream menu items, as it’s a surprising eco-friendly meat choice. Learn more about the wonders of the goat at treehugger.com.
Tune in later this week for six more food trends to spot this season!
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