We cast our expert eye over the grab and go market and make our top food trend predictions for the year.

Plant Life

Free-from, vegan, vegetarian and other health and / or plant focused dietary options are ‘growth markets’ (see what we did there), not just amongst the food to-go sector but across the entire out of home market - even dine-in wants in on the action. Take one grain-based dish (Buddha bowls are a fine place to start) then go bigger and brighter with it than anything you’ve seen before. Nutritious, rainbow colored delights and oh so Instagram-able because the more people consuming your foods through social media, the more will come and try them for real. To up your eco credentials and help reduce food waste you might also want to consider implementing ‘root to stem’ cooking. Whole roasted cauliflowers are an excellent place to start as their sweet, nutty flavor blends so well with many of this year’s top global cuisine trends (see below).

The Real Deal
When developing new food concepts, the authenticity of the cuisine on offer - as well as the diners experience in general - has never been so important. The dish being served needs to be the real deal – to tell a story and say something about the provider and their brand. We’re not saying you have to be Thai to serve Pad Thai noodles, but consumers want to be ‘taken on a journey’ with quality ingredients and / or a passion for where that dish originated.

The Real Deal


Local Hero
In 2018 locality is everything and this applies in two separate ways: to the provenance of produce and to the regionality of the recipes being prepared. Provenance has become an ever growing concern for many American’s and ‘buying local’ is one way to help ensure better farming practices and a lower carbon footprint. However this year ‘local’ is set to become all the more important as we seek to further safeguard the quality and sustainability of the produce we consume. Where once a country or even a continent provided enough overarching inspiration, the most on-trend food providers are increasingly localizing their food offering to specific regions which also serves to underpin the authenticity of their fare (see The Real Deal above). Little towns over Mexico, China and Peru are now poised to become some of the coming years most popular ‘destinations' - for taste buds at least.


Take a Bao
2017 was the year of the noodle and while noodle concepts remain immensely popular, pho is starting to plateau. Meanwhile the reign of umami-centric ramen continues somewhat unabated though we predict an imminent dry spell – quite literally speaking – as some of the most cutting edge providers add no-broth ramen to their menus. Meanwhile Asian cuisines continue to top the foodie charts in general (though in a more localized way – see Local Hero above) with Korean and Chinese offerings stealing the show. Korean-wise this ranges from the addition of a Korean condiment to a more western offering such as a hot pot. Bao buns and dumplings – such as dim sum – are also big 2018 news, most Asian countries have their own take on these delicious little parcels of joy and we can’t recommend enough that you find the ones that work best for you.


Noodle and while noodle



More Foodie Movers and Shakers
What’s Hot: ‘Local’ Korean, Filipino, Chinese, Peruvian and Mexican foods remain on the up and up.



What’s Not: Pulled pork (and other pulled meats) are losing their animal magnetism with plant-based alternatives (such as pulled seitan and root to stem plant practices), now taking their place.

We offer compostable Street Food boxes ideally suited to a wide range of on-trend offerings.


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