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A New Direction For Mash-ups

A New Direction for Mash-Ups
Whether we call it the global mash-up, eclectic cuisine or even throw it back to “fusion,” we are firmly in the era of borderless cooking. It’s not a trend. It’s a movement and a strategy that guides much of today’s menu innovation. But once in a while, a seismic shake-up redirects a movement to a different course, one that can offer new pathways for creative flavor play.
Trend Insights: Mash-Ups
Exploring a more nuanced approach to culinary innovation

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The Hi-Lo Road

The Hi-Lo Road
Sometimes a trend takes off that utterly captures the zeitgeist, defining a cultural mood. Enter the hi-lo phenomenon. Perfectly reflecting the sensibility of today’s diner, it combines the opulence of high-end ingredients with the approachability of low-brow items.
Playful Indulgence
Leveraging luxury in fun, accessible formats
Trend Insights: Hi-Lo
Culinary insights on leveraging the hi-lo approach in menu development

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A Soft Sell on Handhelds

A Soft Sell on Handhelds
The rise of globally inspired bakeries and cafés is fueling a wave of creativity in the sandwich world, particularly when it comes to Asian-inspired builds. This goes beyond clever flavor combinations, though that is an indisputable part of the story. The trend today is about innovative uses of techniques that deepen flavor and boost textural play.
Pressing On
Make sandwiches stand out with textural techniques
Trend Insights: Handhelds
Further opportunities with modern handheld innovation

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Guava Gains Ground

Guava Gains Ground
Get ready for guava, the tropical fruit perfectly poised to move deeper onto American beverage menus. Its flavor game is impressive, evoking a floral aroma with a taste profile best described as a blend between strawberry, mango and pear, sometimes with a hint of citrus. A versatile fruit with global roots—grown in Latin America, the Caribbean, India and Southeast Asia—guava also plays comfortably in any number of cuisines.
9 Ways to Go Guava
Creative ideas showcasing sweet, savory and versatile potential
Trend Insights: Guava
Further ideas and inspiration with this tropical fruit

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The Casualization of Pasta

The Casualization of Pasta
Pasta is a menu mainstay, a best bet, a beloved classic. It carries trends deftly, offering a familiar, satisfying base for in-demand flavors and ingredients. That hasn’t changed. But today, we’re clocking a shift in how pasta is coming to market—with huge support from enthusiastic diners.
Trend Insights: The Casualization of Pasta
Highlighting today’s opportunity with pasta

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Dumpling Discovery

Dumpling Discovery
It could be argued that dumplings hold the title as one of the world’s first comfort foods, spawning a glorious cross-cultural bounty of replication, interpretation, translation and reinvention—all finding favor thanks to a simple truism that dough-encased morsels of savory goodness are the epitome of craveability.
Dumplings Around the World
A quick primer to seven of our favorite dumplings from cultures across the globe
Trend Insights: Dumpling Discovery
Further insights and opportunities with dumplings

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The Jang Gang

The Jang Gang
One of the most exciting elements of menu development is the drive to “What’s next?” in flavor innovation. Thankfully, inspiration is everywhere, waiting to be discovered in pantries both near and far. Chefs in the U.S. have been exploring Korean flavors for a number of years now, opening up a brave, new world for many American diners.
Trend Insights: The Jang Gang
Further thoughts on this foundational flavor

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Dive Bar Culture

Dive Bar Culture
Most of us have stories to tell about our favorite dive bars, even those not visited since our misspent youth. And although each dive serves up its own eclectic, moody personality, they share a common theme of community and familiarity that generates collective reflections of warmth and nostalgia. Today, there’s a new wave of dive bars capturing the hearts of consumers.
The Bar of Tomorrow
Back-of-house beverage prep is table stakes today
Trend Insights: Dive Bar Culture
The drivers and opportunities within this trend momentum

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Global Pastries On the Rise

Global Pastries on the Rise
There’s a big, beautiful world of scrumptious baked goods to explore beyond ubiquitous go-tos like the American donut or French croissant. This is not breaking news, but what is striking today is the proliferation of both large chain and smaller concept global bakeries across the country.
Trend Insights: Global Pastries
Drivers and opportunities in global baked goods

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Experience Coffee

Experience Coffee
Drinking coffee is a deeply ritualized experience for many consumers, from the eye-opening morning routine to the daily afternoon pick-me-up. But today, we’re witnessing a profound shift in how we consume coffee drinks. Coffee is now being served up as an experience.
Trend Insights: Coffee Experiences
Drivers behind the modern coffee moment