In 2024, the restaurant and food business is thriving, bursting with fresh ideas and innovative answers to modern customer wants and trends. Growing concerns about climate change, as well as a strong emphasis on sustainable methods and locally sourced goods, are the primary drivers of food trends in 2024. Consumers are making significant decisions about food and beverages that not only benefit their own health but also that of the world. Not only do customers want to be recognized as making a positive change this year, but so do well-known corporations.
Here are the top 7 expected food and restaurant menu trends for 2024.
Here are Some of the Biggest Food Trends of 2024
1. Avocados
Avocado oil has been quietly finding its way onto our shelves for years, in the shape of mayonnaise, aioli, potato chips, and ready-to-eat meals, but it appears that 2024 will finally be the year that avocado oil becomes popular.
Avocado oil’s popularity is due to its multiple health benefits over other oils such as canola and safflower. Avocado oil contains a high concentration of oleic fatty acids, has a mild flavor, and has a high smoke point, making it suitable for practically all cooking applications.
2. Furry Treats
Pet food aisles are loaded with all kinds of new gourmet delicacies, from bone broth to ice cream, canine beers, cat wines, and even meal subscriptions developed just for your furry friends. The restaurant industry has taken notice, as evidenced by the rise of restaurants offering special doggie menus that include everything from simple sweet potato fries and steak and eggs to downright decadent imaginative creations like grilled bacon soy ice cream, organic BBQ chicken and wild rice, homemade biscuits and gravy, and even a quarter pounder and fries.
3. Super Food
This year, nutrient-dense superfoods continue to be popular, but customers are looking for even more sustainable, environmentally friendly solutions. And the hottest superfood trend for 2024 is expected to originate from the seas. We’re not talking about fish and shrimp; 2024 is the year of superfood microgreens and seafood plants.
In an age of environmental consciousness, embracing the incredible advantages of ocean plants makes perfect sense. Kelp in its natural state can absorb carbon from the atmosphere, making kelp farming more vital than ever. It also grows quickly, does not require freshwater or extra fertilizers, and is highly nutritious and adaptable.
4. Experimental Eating
With life finally returning to normal, customers are looking for eateries that provide engagement, excitement, and a bit of entertainment to compensate for three years of dining on the couch.
Food with extra flare and a bit of a show, such as baked Alaska desserts and cocktails finished tableside with a puff of smoke or a change of color, is expected to be one of the most popular food trends in 2024. Food and music will also merge in new ways, such as updated versions of the old-school piano bar, and warm casual communal table dining will return in full force as everyone prepares to socialize again.
5. Mood Food
The concept of mood food has evolved much beyond the simple definition of healthy organic nuts and berries. No, in 2023, mood food is the word used to designate cannabis-infused foods that will undoubtedly improve your mood.
After all, who doesn’t want to feel good after eating? With 21 states already legalizing cannabis, the movement is expected to skyrocket by 2024.
What began with brownies and gummies has now expanded into an entirely new domain of cannabis cuisine. Chefs are adding marijuana to stocks, roasting it with veggies, and churning it with butter.
6. Tinned
This development may surprise some, but with inflation increasing and customers managing their budgets more closely than ever, while still looking for new culinary experiences, it makes logical that tinned fish is gaining popularity.
If you want to get into the tinned fish trend, simply browse the canned fish aisle of your local grocery store. Once you get past the numerous cans of tuna, you will find a wide variety of tinned mackerel, oysters, mussels, sardines, and anchovies to add to anything from frittatas, pizzas, fish tacos, or even an Instagram-worthy tinned oyster stew.
7. Sweet and Spicy Food
Just as umami was the current cuisine buzz word in 2018,’swicy’ is the new foodie buzz term flowing from everyone’s mouths in 2024. This is the gastronomical phrase describing the combination of sweet and spicy ingredients in a single entrée, dessert, or side. The surge in popularity of South Korean foods has served to cement the term swicy on restaurant menu trends to watch in 2024, as Korean cuisine include a variety of swicy alternatives, such as strawberry jam-infused hot sauce poured over fried chicken.
