As we rapidly approach the winter months, what better time than now to look at what food trends we have seen developing and what we might expect to see in the New Year.
Food trends and High Street foods are imperative to contract caterers such as ours, to inspire our menus and give us insight into what our customers’ needs and wants are, along with what will create footfall in our clients’ restaurants.
In 2016 we saw an abundance of international twists on comfort food such as the burger. Coconut was in and oatmeal was on the rise! Taco fever hit the ground running in 2017, along with Asian Fusions and of course a wealth of protein! The internet has been swamped with juicy and vibrant pictures of nutritious meals and snacks and the health benefits behind them, so where do we go from here?
We can be certain of one thing, it is all about variety and spicing up your diet. We also know that healthy eating trends will continue to dominate food trends, as there will always be a large proportion of society looking for healthy foods and a healthier way to live.
Plant based diets are a big discussion point in the media at the minute, with an increasing number of vegan dishes appearing on restaurant menus. ‘Grab & Go’ is on the rise too, with consumers wanting the top-quality food they receive from their favourite restaurants but in take-away form. Breakfast and brunch is also growing in trend, set to become a big deal in 2018; experts are predicting that we will see an influx of restaurants adopting more inspired and varied all day breakfast options.
One thing is for sure, there is an ever-growing demand for fresh, local and seasonal produce being on offer, with consumers demanding to know where their ingredients come from and how it was grown or raised, which is fantastic news! At abm catering, we predict this trend will keep on growing and will be in the limelight in 2018, this is encouraging news for fresh food caterers such as ourselves, who rely on our local and responsibly sourced produce.
Finally, we predict an increase in online food trends; with recipe Vlogs rapidly growing and becoming ever more popular, showing an astounding amount of hits and social media output of vibrant, innovative and tantalising dishes. One thing is for sure, we are looking forward to seeing what 2018 throws our way in the contract catering sector.
