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NRA SHOW PREVIEW

phies, such as environmental sustainability and nutrition,” said
Hudson Riehle, senior vice president of research for the NRA.
“Also among the top trends for 2017, we’re seeing several ex-
amples of house-made food items and various global flavors,
indicating that chefs and restaurateurs are further experimenting
with from-scratch preparation and a broad base of flavors.”
According to the survey, menu trends that will be heating
up in 2017 include poke, house-made charcuterie, street food,
food halls and ramen. Trends that are cooling down include
quinoa, black rice and vegetarian and vegan cuisines.
“Chefs are on an endless quest to redefine how consumers
eat,” commented ACF National President Thomas Macrina,
CEC, CCA, AAC. “By masterfully transforming the ordinary
into the extraordinary, culinary professionals are at the fore-
front of changing the culinary landscape.”
The National Restaurant Association surveyed 1,298 Ameri-
can Culinary Federation members in October 2016, asking
them to rate 169 items as a “hot trend,” “yesterday’s news,”
or “perennial favorite” on menus in 2017.
Leading the list of top-20 Food Trends is new “budget
conscious” or affordable cuts of meat that are tender, but less
expensive than higher-end varieties: shoulder tender, oyster
steak, Vegas Strip Steak and Merlot cut.
Several emerging cooking styles, or categories, add diver-
sity and niche cuisine that can help raise customer appeal.
Street food-inspired dishes is No. 2 on the list and includes
tempura, kabobs, dumplings and pupusas.
These foods serve as a gateway to other cultures and are
an opportunity for customers to discover flavors of local foods
from faraway places, as well as inspire chefs to create their
own variations.
Signs that the influence of international cuisine is spreading
to all mealtimes are: Ethnic-inspired breakfast items at No.
6, which includes chorizo scrambled eggs and coconut milk
pancakes; Authentic ethnic cuisine at No. 8; African flavors at
No. 10; and Ethnic spices at No. 11, which includes harissa,
curry, peri peri, ras el hanout and shichimi.
Ethnic dishes add variety to the breakfast menu, which
is not just for morning meals, but is increasingly available
throughout the day. Dishes featuring Asian-flavored syrups
or items like chorizo scrambled eggs or breakfast burritos
are among favorites.
As clusters of populations from cultures around the world
grow bigger, the cuisine from that area becomes established
and more commonly available. Once under-explored, African
flavors and ingredients increasingly make their way onto menus
across the country or are being adapted by chefs into dishes
rich in whole grains, beans, vegetables and exotic spices.
Also considered increasingly popular are restaurants featur-
ing craft-made menu items created by chefs in-house. These
include house-made charcuterie, or cured-meat items, condi-
ments, sausage, pickles and ice cream. Chefs prepare it from
all cuts of meat, and can potentially lower their food costs.
Whether it’s a special type of sriracha or a made-from-scratch
ketchup, mustard or mayonnaise, house-made condiments are
experiencing center-of-the-plate popularity.
The chefs participating in the survey also see growing
popularity for restaurants emphasizing local sourcing, natural
ingredients, and environmental responsibility.
Restaurateurs and consumers also are giving greater con-
sideration to the environmental impact of seafood on menus,
as well as learning more about the fish they buy, cook and

22 MILITARY CLUB & HOSPITALITY | APRIL 2017