Food experiences have become a key component of incentive travel events and offsite meetings. Executive chefs and culinary experts at Benchmark, a global hospitality company, identified top dining trends for 2019.
The tea party – While three cups of tea are consumed worldwide for every cup of coffee, here in the U.S., coffee drinkers are dramatically becoming “cuppa” fans. This is not a new trend, but what is new is how people are beginning to think of tea with the same reverence as coffee due to its many varieties, applications and benefits. Craft tea blending, nitro tea on tap and even tea cocktails will start to proliferate.
Farm to table 2.0 – The farm to table movement has taken a new path: the chef/farmer movement of custom farming in regard to specifying what seeds are being planted for new menu development. Benchmark’s Willows Lodge has partnered with a farm in their valley, which is helping to cultivate a new type of a relationship that will change the way each supports the other to sustain farming inside their community, ultimately, saving the small, sustainable farms for generations to come.
The vegetarian factor – What was once seen as the random individual that a restaurant chef or an event manager had to appease has become more than a minority in the way chefs approach menu offerings. With today’s diners increasingly aware of their “macro diets,” combined with culinarians applying unique and creative takes on mom’s succotash, menus will soon see a large portion dedicated to vegetarians and what is plant-based and coming from the ground. Dishes are even becoming vegetable focused, with proteins as the complement. Even vegetarian tasting menus are quickly becoming the staple in many accredited establishments.
Tastes like crickets! – As food costs continue to rise, chefs are looking for new sources of protein. Insects appear more and more as a sensible choice on many levels. They exist in large quantities and can be found everywhere. In fact, 80 percent of the world consumes insects — low in fat and three to four times as much protein as beef, insect powders can enhance your cocktails and even cricket flour can be used to make breads and pastries. Their products will soon flood the shelves of grocery stores and restaurants alike.
Food and the greater good – With a global focus on the natural disasters humanity faces, the collective culinary community is starting to put its food where its mouth is, and put greater efforts behind charities that provide sustainable support. Chefs are beginning to make more meaningful connections around food — less about social media and more about taking on the deeper issues and how food is involved.
No substitutions please – Chefs are ready for a remix of the typical ingredients diners have become all too familiar with. Citrus is a widely used component in many dishes and libations, but soon we will see regular cameos by unique and eclectic relatives to the lime and lemon — citron, kumquat and shaddock. Kale has outlived its welcome and will soon be replaced by such wild weeds as sorrel, dandelion greens and amaranth. Finally, put away the honey and agave as life will become a bit sweeter with derivatives from sources like carrot, sweet potato, golden beet, butternut squash and corn.
Dietitian, the new celebrity chef – Professional dietitians will rank alongside celebrity chefs, as the benefits of understanding nutrition combined with leveraging technology will allow consumers to personalize their food experiences. Personally assigned nutrition will become commonplace and a major influence on diet.
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