Strategy

STRATEGY | MENU MATTERS

Cheese Makes The Menu

BY ROBIN SCHEMPP | SEPT 1, 2016

It’s comforting, craveable and central to our cuisine. Can cheese get even better?

STRATEGY | CONCEPT TRENDS

The Flavors of Fast Casual

BY KATIE AYOUB | AUG. 1, 2016

What’s making the fast-casual segment pull ahead? Innovation.

STRATEGY | DEMOGRAPHIC TRENDS

Forever Young

BY KATIE AYOUB | AUG. 14, 2016

Key into the flavor preferences of the hugely influential younger generations.

DEMOGRAPHIC TRENDS

Demographic Trends | Menu Matters

1.Flavor Demographics: Across the Board

by Maeve Webster | Nov 12, 2019

Appeal to multiple generations through familiar formats with changeable features

Demographic Trends

2.Influencing Flavors

by Maeve Webster | Sep 10, 2019

Trends and patterns having an impact on food and beverage preferences

MENU MATTERS

Concept Trends | Menu Matters | Strategy | Technique & Technology

1.Deep Dive: Virtual Reality

by Katie Ayoub | Apr 14, 2021

Optimizing the pathway to a thriving marketplace

Beverage | Coffee & Tea | Menu Matters | Partner Content

2.Coffee All Day, All Night

by Flavor & The Menu | Mar 8, 2021

How can a coffee program make all the difference to today’s operator?

DAYPART TRENDS

Daypart Trends | Global | Ingredients

1.Flavor Makeover: Miso

by Rob Corliss | Nov 12, 2020

Miso is poised to deliver its unique, savory earthiness to brunch

Daypart Trends | Takeaway

2.Give Me Something to Hold Onto

by Flavor & The Menu | Sep 30, 2020

With takeout and delivery in full focus, handhelds offer a practical, proven format for portability

CONCEPT TRENDS

Concept Trends | Menu Matters | Strategy | Technique & Technology

1.Deep Dive: Virtual Reality

by Katie Ayoub | Apr 14, 2021

Optimizing the pathway to a thriving marketplace

Concept Trends | Meatless

2.Plant-forward Propels Menu Innovation

by Maeve Webster | Jul 2, 2019

Five categories emerge as proving grounds for success

COMMODITY BOARDS

Commodity Boards

1.Take It Away

by Eliza Amari | Apr 4, 2021

Trend-forward inspirations for the to-go landscape

Commodity Boards | Digital-exclusive content

2.Commodity Boards: Craveable Indulgence

by Eliza Amari | Oct 25, 2020

Commodity boards serve up trend-forward indulgence

TECHNIQUE & TECHNOLOGY

Concept Trends | Menu Matters | Strategy | Technique & Technology

1.Deep Dive: Virtual Reality

by Katie Ayoub | Apr 14, 2021

Optimizing the pathway to a thriving marketplace

Menu Matters | Strategy | Technique & Technology

2.Deep Dive: SKU-ed Perspectives

by Katie Ayoub | Nov 9, 2020

Optimizing and tightening menus while keeping the innovation pipeline flowing

RECIPES

Kitchen Collaborative: Greg Basalla

Leveraging the powerful effects of gentle flavor twists

Smoky Seafood Barilla Pasta Salad

Courtesy of Chef Greg Basalla Sponsor: Barilla

California-Style Chile Rellenos con Chilaquiles

Courtesy of Chef Greg Basalla Sponsor: California Milk Advisory Board

GALLERY

English Muffins

Love & Salt, Manhattan Beach, Calif.

Photo: Andrea Bricco

English muffins are the artisan darling of the bread world. Love & Salt’s housemade muffins come with a cube of rosemary-sea salt cultured butter.

FROM OUR FRIENDS

No excerpt

Roasted Vegetable Stuffed Poblano video

Chef Scott Fogle of Treaty Oak puts a spin on traditional Texas BBQ with these 5 innovative dishes using a variety of King’s Hawaiian breads.

Using an iconic brand to elevate 6 dishes

King's Hawaiian at Treaty Oak

Developing a host of trend-forward menu items while maximizing one new SKU

Six Ways to Punch Up Flavor

This Turkey Banh Mi delivers the big flavors of the incredibly popular Vietnamese-style sandwich with the wholesomeness and approachability of turkey.

Turkey carries global flavors while keeping things familiar in modern sandwiches

World View

LATEST TAKEAWAY

Latest Takeaway

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INSTAGRAM

getflavor

@thesaltydonut’s Dallas location soaks its brioc

@thesaltydonut’s Dallas location soaks its brioche-based Horchata doughnut in housemade horchata for 24 hours before being bottom encrusted with Valrhona Caramelia chocolate and finished with a torched cinnamon meringue.

Marketing Manager Kae Roffman says, “Horchata is a very specific taste that we think anyone can pick up on immediately. But there’s a very specific way to make horchata, and if you’re not honoring that, then why do it at all?”

More at getflavor.com.

With consumers seeking out bolder menu offerings o

With consumers seeking out bolder menu offerings on breakfast menus, operators are pulling popular, comfort-centric lunch and dinner meats into breakfast.

Expanding the all-day eats approach, they’re featuring satiating, craveable proteins like brisket, as the protein of choice for winning handhelds.

Brisket at breakfast makes a lot of sense today, marrying several trends including the allure of barbecue-centric slow-cooked breakfast meats, the blending of modern with traditional sandwich builds, and the continued hankering for comfort food.

This Breakfast Brisket Bun, with peppered jelly and citrus slaw, gives diners a taste of barbecue dressed up for morning menus.

View our stories to see menu sightings for flavor inspiration and visit getflavor.com for more.

Foodservice meal kits are flourishing, as operatio

Foodservice meal kits are flourishing, as operations have been adapting their menu strategies and people are appreciating the value of packaged restaurant meals. Menu developers are innovating within the unique context of their signature styles to appeal to a variety of consumer tastes and lifestyle needs.

Comfort, convenience and chef-driven flavor experiences drive meal kit success.

This spice-dusted crunchy-fried chicken is marinated in spiked buttermilk, then served with “pickled” ranch.

More at getflavor.com.

Asian noodle inspiration: As a blank canvas, noodl

Asian noodle inspiration: As a blank canvas, noodles offer an excellent opportunity for diners to explore new and less familiar global flavors and menu concepts.

Chinese Sichuan dandan noodles traditionally feature a spicy sauce of preserved vegetables, chile oil, Sichuan pepper, minced pork, and scallions.

At the newly opened @chewologykc in Kansas City, the Dandan (Spicy Peanut Ramen) is an umami-rich build of pork, peanut, chiles and peppercorn topped with green onion and cilantro.

View more at getflavor.com.

A cheesy ending: Stephanie Izard’s Cheez-It Crun

A cheesy ending: Stephanie Izard’s Cheez-It Crunch Cake, available at her Sugargoat bakery in Chicago, features an entire box of Cheez-It crackers in every cake, including a Cheez-It-and-shortbread crumble in between layers and Cheez-It crackers on top.

More big cheese flavor forward ideas at getflavor.com 🧀

One of the quickest roads to successful flavor int

One of the quickest roads to successful flavor introductions is through global cuisines that your diners already feel connected to. Mexico serves up familiar territory with fertile ground. Enter horchata, the creamy beverage from south of the border that is gaining influence and making an impact on everything from nonalcoholic drinks and cocktails to pastries, snacks and desserts.

Menu developers can look at horchata as a flavor system that can be used as a base or inspiration for menu items well beyond the beverage category.

Black Sheep in Las Vegas tops its Horchata Crème Brûlée with a scoop of vanilla bean ice cream and candied rice puffs.

Read how more restaurants are including horchata in their menus at getflavor.com.

Aaron Brooks of Edge Steak & Bar in Miami pairs hi

Aaron Brooks of Edge Steak & Bar in Miami pairs his South American anticuchos with sauces that star aji amarillo and aji panca.

They drive home a Peruvian narrative, while delivering memorable flavors that appeal to adventurous diners.

More flavor inspiration at getflavor.com!

There is a marked rise in new Filipino restaurant

There is a marked rise in new Filipino restaurant openings.

Chefs are mashing up Filipino flavors with American comfort foods, pulling Filipino ingredients into a range of dishes throughout the dayparts.

Kasama’s Filipino Breakfast Bowl is a hearty combination of longaniza and house-cured barbecue tocino, served alongside white sticky rice, a sunny-side egg and a nest of the pickled papaya and carrot salad known as atchara.

Read more from our 2021 Flavor Expedition at getflavor.com.

As Culinary Project Manager for @hellofresh, the m

As Culinary Project Manager for @hellofresh, the meal kit subscription service provider, Brandon Hudson is attuned to maximizing a pantry and generating complex flavor dimension from simple ingredients.

This expertise is front and center in the three recipes Hudson developed for Kitchen Collaborative.

“One of my favorite Spanish dishes is Galician octopus with red potatoes, dressed with olive oil and smoked paprika,” says Hudson. “I remember loving the simplicity of the dish. I wanted to elevate it in my own way and let the red potatoes shine.” The result, Idaho® Red Potato Salad With White Anchovy Dressing, is a modern take on an American classic, imbued with a Spanish influence.

Read on by visiting the link in our bio.

Naan and flatbreads are the perfect platform for m

Naan and flatbreads are the perfect platform for modern menu innovation, thanks to their broad consumer embrace, their ease in menu maneuvering, and their ability to hold well through takeout and delivery applications.

Read on at getflavor.com ✨

📷 @stonefirenaan

When a classic cocktail is introduced to hard selt

When a classic cocktail is introduced to hard seltzer, the sparks fly.

Merging timeless with new isn’t so much about creating something different or replacing menu mainstays. It’s about tapping into one of the hottest beverage trends as a way to offer new experiences and appeal to tastes of younger customers.

Here, the paloma gets a youthful upgrade with grapefruit hard seltzer, which steps in for the grapefruit soda.

More smart, seamless and impactful hard seltzer swaps in cocktail menu mainstays at getflavor.com.

From Pastry Chef Andrea Coté, the Banana Cream Na

From Pastry Chef Andrea Coté, the Banana Cream Napoleon is the menu star at @rpmseafood —a best seller that separates shingles of crispy phyllo with banana filling and vanilla whipped cream.

A warm caramel sauce that Coté describes as ”caramelized bananas Foster” is poured over the dessert tableside.

“The flavor experience is punctuated with sweet, salty and bitter components, alongside the crunchy and smooth textures, making it a balanced dessert,” she says.

It took a pandemic and a year of quarantine restri

It took a pandemic and a year of quarantine restrictions to unexpectedly inject new life into one of the most socially focused menu items: the charcuterie and cheese board.

Many chefs seeking that all-important pandemic pivot developed new takes on over-the-top boards, responding to customer demand for cheesy comfort foods and fun options to mark special occasions at home.

Patrons ordered them in droves, often showing off the decadent, artfully arranged boards on Instagram and TikTok.

More on creative upgrades to ensure cheese continues to shine as a star ingredient at getflavor.com.

Photo credit: Ngan Tran

Trend-forward sandwiches combine craveable layers

Trend-forward sandwiches combine craveable layers of big flavor that answer modern demand for well-constructed builds, where each component is carefully considered and well crafted. As a counter to the influx of plant-based introductions, meat-centric features that deliver approachable yet premium experiences have a solid standing on menus.

@meltbargrilled’s Cuban War Pig is created with honey ham, citrus mojo-glazed pulled pork, fried pickle spears, sweet mustard, Swiss and a French/Italian loaf hybrid bread to grab menu attention.

More menu trends at getflavor.com!

📸 @meltbargrilled

Coming in hot: chile crisp—the Chinese condiment

Coming in hot: chile crisp—the Chinese condiment we didn’t know we needed, but increasingly are finding it hard to live without.

Here, savory, smooth yogurt gets a blast of heat and a crunchy counterpoint with the colorful addition of chile crisp.

Discover more innovative ways to include chile crisp in your menu build at getflavor.com.

Whether it’s smashed, stuffed or shrunk, #Nation

Whether it’s smashed, stuffed or shrunk, #NationalCheeseburgerDay is the perfect opportunity to explore trend-worthy ways to create craveable burgers in @mikekostyo’s Flavor in Focus: Burger Time.

Check it out by visiting the link in our bio 🍔

Burgers are indeed a fan favorite and a menu mains

Burgers are indeed a fan favorite and a menu mainstay, but the protein choices that consumers are looking for today extend past the traditional beef patty.

Turkey burgers offer a lean, healthy alternative, providing diners with a meaty, satisfying option. The turkey burger’s other “super power” is its ability to take on flavors, giving chefs a fantastic canvas for menu innovation.

This Mediterranean Turkey Burger is juicy and flavorful, set over grilled pita slathered with tzatziki and roasted peppers, then topped with grilled halloumi cheese and a bright parsley salad.

📷 Butterball Foodservice

Brisket for breakfast? Absolutely—especially whe

Brisket for breakfast? Absolutely—especially when it’s served in a handheld that packs in other craveable flavors.

Smoke inspired the Texas Brisket-Egg Sandwich, an LTO at @einsteinbros Bagels, part of the Coffee & Bagel Brands family.

“We wanted to bring smoke flavor into the breakfast daypart and thought, ‘What better way than to pair 10-hour smoked brisket with eggs on a breakfast sandwich?’” says Chad Thompson, Head of Culinary Innovation R&D with Bagel Brands.

More flavor inspiration at getflavor.com

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