FEATURED here are trends pulled out from bbcgoodfood, forbes.com and bloomberg.com. This year will see some trends that will influence the global palate, and trends from the previous year that will hang on to delight diners. Here are some random selections.
Just because it’s Pinoy. Filipino food was a global trend last year, and just because it’s Pinoy we add it to our new list of trends, this one from Bloomberg’s panelists. OK, call me biased; I bow my head with guilt.
Pinoy cuisine has gained distinction—from stir-fried seafood to adobo, lumpia to arroz caldo, it’s all there and it’s all Pinoy in flavor. The cuisine of the country explores different flavors and is the essence of centuries of being influenced by the cuisines of Spain, China, Malaysia and other Southeat Asian countries.
Loco over taco. This is considered regional food by the panel consulted by BBC and will be featured more and more in restaurants. The Mexico finger food has traveled well around the world.
Skip the alcohol. Low and non-alcoholic beverages (NAB) will be a big trend with Generation Z which, according to BBC’s expert panel, “drinks less than the generation before them.” Since there are nationally advertized brands existing already in the Philippines, it means a boost to the industry. Fresh fruit juices, herbal shots, charcoal-activated water and fruity NABs will emerge in the market, the panel bravely predicted.
Is that you, Nori? Even in local stores, shoppers can buy products based on sea vegetables. Robinsons Supermarket has widened its “Asian” section, for example, proof that people have discovered the goodness of seaweeds.
Mostly of Japanese and Korean origin, the selections include seaweed rice toppings, nori-based snacks (for example, nori strips flavored with shrimp or nori sheets embedded with almonds).
A fan of kimchi. A new keyword used by BBC is “gut health,” which fermented and pickled foods are supposed to produce. Pickles and kimchi (traditional Korean fermented vegetables) will be eaten more, BBC predicted. Kombucha will become more popular. According to wikipedia, it is “a variety of fermented, lightly effervescent sweetened black or green tea drinks.”
Food stewardship. Food sustainability actually is a trend that appeared in 2016, but Forbes predicts it will continue to influence how people will make their food decisions. Words like Halal and Kosher will be popular.
Veggie popular. Very popular in 2017 will be vegetables, according to Bloomberg’s panelists. Perhaps, the popularity of vegetable dishes owe it to the creative ways that restaurants have presented their veggie-based foods, be it beefsteak on top of a mountain of savory vegetable, or flower-decked (edible) green salad.
Still trending. A throwback from 2016 will still make it in 2017. These are zero waste; Instagram worthy food (e.g. black burger buns, rainbow cotton candy); bugs (fried insects, toasted grubs, dried grasshoppers) and healthy snacks.