Top Three Dining Trends of 2017
by Katie Crowley
Baum + Whiteman, the international food and restaurant consultancy just released their annual food trends list. For 2017, Baum + Whiteman predict 13 hot food and beverage trends taking over the restaurant scene, with about 30 or so additional trends squeezed in, in the form of innocuous bullet points. So what does the famed list have in store for the international food scene? We’re giving you a basic rundown with the top five dining trends of 2017.
The Uberization of Food
Not surprisingly, Baum + Whiteman predicts a continued deluge of tech-related food companies in 2017, but it’s more than just online ordering. Many restaurants are forgoing the standard seating arrangement all together. Indie restaurateurs and heavyweights alike are opening commercial kitchens in rough, low-rent locations staffed by professional cooks. But, these new chains have a catch: no seats. They are delivery only locations, providing high-end food to customers who want to stay in.
Momofuko’s David Chang now has two delivery-only locations in New York, and Green Summit in New York, has eight phantom restaurants, all fed from the same two kitchens. Meanwhile, more and more companies are partnering with delivery services like Ubereats to provide what people really want: great food without a line.
As far as tech-related food trends go, Baum + Whiteman also mention AirBnB services, where diners can enjoy a meal in a home cook’s dining room, as well as drones, and the ever present meal delivery boxes like Blue Apron and Green Chef. Needless to say, tech is a trend in more ways than one.
Breakfast All Day
Apparently, when McDonald’s started serving breakfast all day the world took notice, and their competitors upped their game. It may have started with McDonalds, but the all breakfast all day trend, can be found in more than just the fast casual chains.
Breakfast sandwiches are having a moment, as millennials are on the lookout for high-protein and portable options. Smaller chains and independents are creating heartier versions of our favorite breakfast foods that qualify as round-the-clock meals. Baum + Whiteman also noted a shift away from standard breakfast textures: fluffy eggs, creamy French toast, light pancakes, to more substantial options: fried chicken, crispy chorizo, coarse-whole-grain cereal, and of course avocado smeared on toasted baguettes of every order.
Vegetables and Bowls
In a sentence Baum + Whiteman are calling vegetables the new comfort food. For many top restaurants meat has become a garnish or side, and vegetables are taking top billing. Call it a growing consideration for the dangers of the meat packing industry, or a millennial resolution to finally heed their parent’s advice and eat their vegetables. Whatever the reasoning, there’s no doubt that vegetables are on the rise.
In fact, vegetables are so on-trend that formerly vegetable free fares, are being re-imagined to include more hearty greens. Pizza is now being made from cauliflower, chickpeas are taking the place of meat protein, beets are transformed into chorizo. And faux-meat foods are on the rise as well, with burgers made entirely from vegetables, even carrots disguised carefully as a rack-of-ribs.
Another trend to boot is an on-going adoration of any food item in a bowl: ramen, smoothies, poke, vegetables. With a dismissal of carb-heavy foods like sandwiches, this new generation of diners is looking for whole grain alternatives that just happen to be best served in bowls. Baum + Whiteman also suggest the rise of the bowl is in a large part due to our sudden obsession with ramen. In any case, vegetable bowls delivered via an app seem to be, in a nutshell, the 2017 food trend.
What food trends do you hope stick around or go away? Let us know by commenting below. As always, stay up to date with all Chop news by following us here or on any of the social media outlets. For questions, comments, or concerns feel free to reach out via our Facebook or Twitter.
