Filipino cuisine, maitake mushrooms, experiential dining, and nostalgia with a modern twist are among the restaurant trends with strong momentum heading into 2023, according to the predictions of marketing and communications firms af&co and Carbonate.
Their 2023 Trends Report also cited new twists in plant-based menu items and the growth of international influences from Nigerian, Japanese, and Nikkei cuisines as trends to watch in the year ahead.
“We are very excited that the infusion of Asian flavors continues,” said Andrew Freeman, president and founder of af&co, in announcing Filipino as the cuisine of the year during a webinar on Wednesday.
Restaurants offering everything from Filipino street foods to fine-dining fare have been gaining traction, he said, citing as an example Abaca, a widely acclaimed new San Francisco restaurant that blends Filipino and California culinary elements. The report also cited Kasama, a Filipino restaurant and bakery in Chicago that opened during the pandemic and recently garnered a Michelin star, and Lasita in Los Angeles, which offers casual Filipino fare and a selection of natural wines.
The report also named maitake mushrooms as the dish of the year, noting that the craggy texture and earthy flavor have helped the fungus gain traction as a meat alternative, following in the footsteps of portabella mushrooms.
“It doesn’t taste exactly like meat, which isn’t that important anymore,” said Freeman. “It just tastes delicious.”
Chefs are preparing maitakes in a variety of ways, including battered and fried as a substitute for chicken in fried-chicken style sandwiches.
“Plant-based and vegetarian/vegan lifestyles are now not just for vegans and vegetarians,” Freeman said. “There are great opportunities for chefs and restaurants to really get creative.”
The report also named Austin as the food city of the year, citing new restaurants such as Canje and Nido, as well as the rapid population growth of the city.
New iterations of seafood cocktails were named the drink of the year, and baked Alaska was the dessert of the year.
“Older people might see this as nostalgia, but younger people see it as something delicious,” Freeman said of baked Alaska, noting that the indulgent dish offers a stunning presentation ideal for social media sharing.
Among the report’s food trend predictions for 2023 was another social media favorite, ube, the purple tuber that gained attention as an ingredient in Filipino shaved ice desserts.
Ube is now appearing in both savory and sweet applications, and even in drinks, said Leith Steel, senior strategist at Carbonate.
“Something that once seemed foreign is now very approachable,” she said.
Other food trends the report cited included:
• Fermentation—An increasing number of restaurants and specialty food markets have zeroed in on fermented products as a featured offering, including Aeden Koji Kitchen in San Francisco, which specializes in small-batch fermentation, and DayTrip in Oakland, California, a wine bar that also describes itself as a fermentation-driven restaurant. Koji, the fermentation process used to make miso, is being applied across an increasing variety of ingredients, according to the report.
• Nigerian food—Part of the trend toward interest in West African cuisine, Nigerian foods began appearing in pop-up restaurants, some of which have become permanent. Dept. of Culture is a New York city Nigerian pop-up named one of the 50 best new restaurants in the country by Bon Appetit; and Tatiana, from celebrity chef Kwame Onwuachi, has also won acclaim. In Sacramento, Naija Boy Tacos incorporates Nigerian foods in an approachable Mexican-style format.
Nigerian cuisine is rich and varied, the report noted, often featuring aromatic spices and chilis. Jollof rice, made with tomato, onion, spices, and scotch bonnet chilis; pepper soup, and suya—grilled spiced meats on skewers—are among the Nigerian dishes appearing on menus.
• Nikkei cuisine—This blend of Peruvian and Japanese cooking styles and ingredients gained recognition through restaurants such as Nobu, but it is expanding rapidly, according to the report. “The blending of these flavors is fantastic,” said Freeman. “They are bright, they are fresh.”
• Japanese influence—Tangential to the Nikkei cuisine trend, Japanese influences on other cuisine types are also becoming more widespread. For example, O by Kissaki in East Hampton, New York, is an “Itameshi” restaurant that blends Italian and Japanese cuisines with dishes such as spaghetti with dashi—a Japanese soup stock—and sesame breadcrumbs. At MÄS in Portland, Oregon, the restaurant bills itself as offering “Cascadian cuisine,” but its preparations and presentations show a strong Japanese influence, according to the report.
• Lower-priced tasting menus—Some restaurants are seeking to appeal to consumers’ tight budgets by offering tasting menus under $100, or even under $50. It can be done with tight controls on costs, Freeman said, and by offering optional extras.
• New sources for plant-based foods—Consumers are seeking more healthful plant-based meat alternatives, and products have emerged made from ingredients such as mushroom roots and seaweed. MyForest Foods offers MyBacon made from mushroom roots, for example, and Umaro Foods has a plant-based bacon made from red seaweed. “People are looking for healthier and more natural alternatives that weren’t produced in a science lab,” said Steel.
• Vegan gets more convenient—The increasing popularity of plant-based diets has led to new specialty concepts that make it easy for consumers to adopt vegan lifestyles. These include Maciel’s Plant Based Butcher & Deli in Los Angeles, the DC Vegan deli in Washington, D.C., and Hangry Planet in San Bruno, California, a vegan convenience store offering snacks, frozen foods, vegan breakfast sandwiches, and more.
• Za’atar flatbreads—Known as manuche, manakish, and other similarly spelled names, these Middle Eastern pizza-like dishes consist of a flaky, leavened bread that can be topped with a za’atar seasoning blend and other ingredients.
• Corn ground in-house—Chefs around the country are adopting the practice of grinding corn in house, often sourcing non-GMO corn from local farmers and using a process called nixtamalization. Examples include Los Félix in Miami, Nixta Tacqueria in Austin, and La Diabla Pozole y Mezcal in Denver. “We are seeing chefs returning to these ancient traditions, and foregoing the convenient alternatives,” said Steel.
• Kuih desserts— Also spelled Kue or Kueh, these bite-sized, colorful desserts—common in China, Indonesia and Malaysia—are usually made using rice flour, tapioca or other glutenous ingredients, and have strong visual appeal as well as interesting flavor profiles. “As we see more Southeast Asian cuisine in restaurants and in specialty shops, we do expect to see these taking hold,” said Steel.
• Three-tiered presentations—Restaurants are generating some on-the-spot buzz by bringing back tiered dessert and appetizer trays, seeking to foster an enhanced, shared experience for diners. “People want to come together again to socialize, and be a part of just being together,” said Freeman.
• Sharing the credit—Restaurants have increasingly sought to give recognition to staff members other than the chef. Dirt Candy in New York was a pioneer in this trend, the report noted, by acknowledging the contributions of sous chefs to individual dishes. Other restaurants have taken to listing the names of everyone on their staff on the menu.
The report also delved into drink trends, design trends, and hotel trends. Among the drink trends were:
• The growth of large-format cocktails such as shared punch bowls;
• Vegan fat-washed cocktails that use coconut, olive oil, or peanut butter instead of bacon fat or dairy butter;
• Innovative ingredients such as avocado, pandan, and salted egg yolk;
• Non-alcoholic spirits—restaurants should offer an variety of these, and avoid the word “mocktail,” said Freeman;
• Drinks prepared tableside to enhance the customer experience, and
• Coffee that incorporates added fruit, an offshoot of the bubble tea trend.
Related: SFA Trendspotters Name 2023 Trends; Whole Foods Forecasts 2023 Trends.