SheeFood

Chipotle Leads the New Year

To start off 2023, I think I’ll hand a golden lettuce leaf to Chipotle. It’s gone way beyond the typical BFY New Year’s menu LTO.

But first, let me say that when Brian Niccol took the Chipotle CEO reins from Steve Ells nearly five years ago, I didn’t think he had to do much to improve the menu or the marketing.

Back in the not-so-distant past, Chipotle and Panera Bread pioneered the fast casual foodservice segment. Everyone wanted to “be them” for the buzz they created for assembling fresh food in front of guests who could customize their dish on the spot. It was probably that feat alone that kept Chipotle as popular as it was for so long. The novelty wore off—or diffused as more operators went to that model.

Then the chain became stale, introducing a new item about once a year at best, and it was inconsequential. For marketing, its message only swirled around sustainability issues. In that regard, it pioneered wokeness before that was even a term. But I don’t think you can call wokeness a restaurant marketing virtue. I actually found it to be sanctimonious.

Fast forward to this month as Chipotle’s New Year’s fireworks burst of a combination of innovation, health-focus and technology. Look at the headline on the chain’s New Year’s press release: “Chipotle inspires fans to maintain New Year’s resolutions with new augmented reality experience on Snapchat and Lifestyle Bowls.”

The new menu items (there are 7) demonstrate smart marketing by virtue of the names of the bowls. Actually, the chain has had lifestyle bowls for awhile. Previously it attached role models to the bowl names. Now the chain incorporates BFY buzzwords that GenZ and Millennials would appreciate. They don’t hide this generational grab. The first bullet point in the press release says Chipotle kicks off 2023 with new Lifestyle Bowl menu inspired by GenZ and Millennial wellness trends. Get a load of these names:

• Balanced Macros Bowl
• Veggie Full Bowl
• Wholesome Bowl
• Grain Freedom Bowl
• High Protein Bowl
• Plant-Powered Bowl
• Go Half Veggie Bowl

Naming dishes according to consumer values goes a long way marketing wise. Of course, the dish must be craveable. But I like what I’m seeing on menus that moves away from naming dishes according to the diet of the day (Keto, Whole30, etc.)

Moving past Chipotle, here are some other recent dish names worth a nod:

• Skinny Biscuit from Biscuitville Fresh Southern. It’s around 180 calories because about 1/3 of the middle is removed, making it thinner.
• Longevity Bowl from Tender Greens. It features slow-cooked black lentils with fennel, dried pears, roasted purple and yellow cauliflower, baby kale salad, and choice of roasted maitake mushrooms or grilled trout.
• Detox Bowl from Vitality Bowls. It is made up of a blend of açai, strawberries, banana, kale, spirulina, flax seed, and almond milk topped with banana, blueberries, almonds, goji berries, and honey
• Praeger’s Veggie Bowl at Flat Top Grill. It touts Dr. Praeger’s plant-based “chick’n,” garlic, water chestnuts, red and green bell peppers, baby corn, signature Flat Top Grill spice blend, and barbecue sauce over steamed white rice.

Mindful menu development benefits from mindful dish names. It makes promotional elements much easier, paving the way to a turnkey marketing campaign. It’s the stuff that the food media loves.

Jody

Hello Type 2 Diabetes

We’re into the last lap of 2022, and I wonder if I’m the only one who notices that end-of-the-year LTOs are refining the sugar industry. I would be more worried about the onslaught of stuffed and stacked cookies, ice cream, cakes and donuts, but we all know that diet-friendly January is around the corner. Healthy specials will be the stuff of restaurant press releases soon enough.

But until then, look at some of these new glycemic index overloads that give American desserts the “too sweet” reputation they have among internationals.

• A hot Mrs. Fields cookie alone is tough to resist, but how about a sizzling rendition in a mini-skillet topped with M&Ms or chocolate chips, a scoop of ice cream and chocolate sauce? Way. It’s on the menu at Acapulco Restaurant y Cantina at least through February.
• Through the first week of January, Chuck E. Cheese is bringing it with the icing. Its Polar Bear Cupcake touts a large vanilla cupcake filled with vanilla frosting, all rolled in white sprinkles with candy ears, eyes and nose.
• I have a feeling this one isn’t going away anytime soon. KFC has tested and now is expanding its Funnel Cake Fries, which are funnel cakes shaped like French fries dusted with powder sugar. Pick your poison!
• Krispy Kreme is trying for a mashup with its Sugar Cookie Doughnut. That is one of its popular glazed doughnuts with sugar cookie icing topped with a sugar cookie sprinkle blend. It will only be around through the holidays, but good job tapping into the traditional holiday handheld crunchy dessert. 
• This one from Native Foods has an apt title: Glazed and Confused. It’s a chicken sandwich, but not really. It’s plant-based fried chicken with candied jalapeno pepper slices and non-dairy maple butter—but it’s on a glazed doughnut! Either the doughnut guilt is erased with the plant-based chicken, or the doughnut provides the entry point to those who otherwise couldn’t get over the plant-based chicken ick factor.
• Waffle LTOs easily turn into desserts. This season it’s The Toasted Yolk Café with its Double Stuffed Oreo Waffle. They describe it as a warm chocolate waffle stuffed with sweet cream cheese and Oreo filling, topped with caramel sauce, whipped cream and Oreo crumbles. That, my friends, takes the waffle cake.

 Of course, these are just LTOs. The industry knows we will get back to our better selves soon enough. In fact, chefs have their eye on better-for-you dessert tweaks. The National Restaurant Association’s What’s Hot 2023 Culinary Forecast is out. In this chef survey, respondents rank alternative sweeteners as the No. 1 dessert trend. That would be the likes of maple sugar, coconut sugar, etc. Well, perception is reality, you know? For better or worse, Paula Deen’s famous quote of yesteryear comes back to roost. “Honey, I’m your cook. not your doctor.”

Jody

2023 Food Trend Reimagined

It’s time to start crystal-ball gazing into what’s up for 2023 on menus. Whole Foods has already come out with its top-10 food-trend list. One stands out as a solid repeat for the past few years, but with a revised name. Nostalgic foods. We’re not calling them comfort foods anymore because we’ve all moved past the pandemic. We’re done with comfort. But we still love foods reminiscent of “the old days.”

Breakfast cereal and mac and cheese encapsulate nostalgic foods, per Whole Foods. I can see that. Guaranteed, if you work those in, your customers will lose their minds.

Cereal

If you need some inspiration, Lolli-Waffles at London House Chicago presents what I think is the best spin on cereal. Picture buttermilk waffles on a stick covered with maple syrup and whipped cream rolled in a choice of Lucky Charms, Count Chocula, Boo Berry, Frankenberry or Cap’n Crunch. Can you say sugar coma? Actually, that’s worth a comment. Our better selves are trying to pay attention to things like the keto diet, plant-based foods, clean label, locally sourced, blah blah blah. But we’re human, after all. Bring on the Cap’n Crunch.

Corn flakes offer a specific value for the crunch factor. For example, Wishbone in Chicago serves Crunchy French Toast—made that way by dredging challah bread in corn flakes.

Cereal can also make it to the dessert menu as it does at Greenleaf Chop Shop in Beverly Hills, California. It describes its Gluten Free Summer Camp dessert as gooey, chewy and krispie! Made with caramelized rice krispies, marshmallows and brown butter chocolate chips.

Cereal also works on the lunch menu at Picasso on Paseo Restaurant in Oklahoma City. The Fried Avocado Wrap features corn-flake crusted avocado, spicy mayo, napa cabbage slaw and tomato.

You can even bring cereal to the entrée menu. Magnolias at the Mill in Purcellville, Virginia, uses corn flakes as part of the Fried Green Tomatoes meal featuring corn-flake crusted tomatoes, cheese, tomato jam, Sriracha aioli, pork belly, pistachio butter and an add-on of blackened shrimp for an upcharge.

Mac and cheese

Before I make the full-on transition to mac and cheese, what if you could combine cereal with mac and cheese? Talk about nostalgic with a twist! Hello Deep South Mac and Cheese at Addison, Texas-based Bar Louie. Get a load of this description: Creamy four-cheese (cheddar, mozzarella, provolone and pimento) mac and cheese with southern fried chicken, house-made spicy candied bacon, Parmesan, scallions and spiced rice krispies.

Lately, operators have been featuring mac and cheese as a burger topping. And why not, after all? Back Yard Burgers has done that. In the theme of toppings, mac and cheese is also a pizza topping at Green Mill Restaurant and Bar with headquarters in St. Paul, Minnesota.

There are certainly more opportunities to take mac and cheese off the sides menu and place it square in the center. Black Eyed Pea offers Buffalo Mac and Cheese that it describes as creamy mac and cheese topped with marinated grilled chicken, bleu cheese crumbles and drizzled with spicy buffalo sauce.

I’ll bet the ever-experimenting Dallas-based Velvet Taco chain has done mac and cheese tacos. Mac and cheese soup would have great potential. So would mac and cheese chili and mac and cheese chili-loaded fries. Mac and cheese nachos, anyone? Because it’s such a kid favorite, I can also picture fried mac and cheese sticks.

Point is, if you’re looking for an LTO prospect that commands attention and nostalgia, start noodling mac and cheese ideas. Add cereal and see what happens.

Tell me what you think.

Jody

What in the World is Going on With Doughnuts?

In the world of menu item mashups, I think the cronut may have been the first one to catch my attention. Dominique Ansel is credited with wedding the croissant with the doughnut in 2013 at his New York bakery. That may have been when the mashup term was coined in the culinary domain. Incidentally, another baker wanted to make and promote his version, but found cronut was trademarked. So, he named his doughssant. And then there was the Zonut… same thing, but created by Australia pastry chef Adriano Zumbo. And so on.

But the doughnut has a lot more to give, and mashups continue. Earlier this month (September), Krispy Kreme launched a first-of-its-kind mashup between churros and doughnuts, calling them ChurrDoughs. The LTO special treats come in three flavors: Cinnamon Sugar, Cookies & Kreme and Dulce de Leche.

It’s the fall, so other chain operators are attempting to take doughnuts where they don’t traditionally go. Shake Shack just launched an Apple Cider Donut Shake: An apple cider doughnut frozen custard spun and topped with whipped cream and crunchy cinnamon doughnut pieces.

Voodoo Doughnut is taking a play from the beverage industry with an over-the-top indulgent doughnut designed to draw major attention on social media. Remember when shakes combined ice cream, cake, cookies, whipped cream, candy and more? Voodoo Doughnut’s fall special is the Mix-A-Lot Doughnut smothered in chocolate frosting and covered with pretzels and M&Ms with a peanut butter drizzle.

But there’s another “who could have imagined” mashup that crossed doughnuts with beauty products. On March 31, 2022, Dunkin announced its collaboration with E.L.F. Cosmetics for a doughnut- and coffee-inspired “wake up and makeup” makeup collection. I won’t list all six products, but one was The Dunkin’ Dozen: 12 shades of eyeshadow inspired by such flavors as strawberry frosted with sprinkles, chocolate frosted with sprinkles and Boston kreme. Another was Donut Forget Putty Primer, a “glazed-up” primer with a smooth texture and a doughnut scent. And how about the Glazed for Days Lip Gloss Set featuring a sheer, glossy duo of iconic colors that also smell like doughnuts. TikTok star Mikayla Nogueira was the promotion ambassador who hosted a live shopping event on her channel in April to walk fans through the makeup collection.

So, here we’ve seen that doughnuts have staying power, otherwise, there wouldn’t be national brands dedicated nearly exclusively to the treat. Now, while global cuisine is such a foodservice industry talking point, the next doughnut stars could likely originate from other cultural cuisines.

I live on Kauai where the population of 72,000 is made up of a few predominant ethnic groups, one of which is Portuguese. Thus, tourists will find delight in what has become a Hawaiian doughnut version taken from the Portuguese playbook—malasadas. It’s my favorite dessert on the menu at Tidepools at Grand Hyatt Kauai Resort & Spa.

Malasadas are reminiscent of doughnut holes, but more doughy/pastryesque. A plate of seven (rolled in a cinnamon/sugar mixture) comes with three dipping sauces: chocolate, mango-passionfruit coulis and koloa spiced rum pineapple caramel sauce. We order ice cream to go with it, so we cut open the round pastries, top them with ice cream and drizzle the sauces over the top.

Malasadas are a delicious part of Hawaiian cuisine—something tourists can experience that is typically not featured on the mainland. But it could be. It’s out there for the discovering!

Tell me what you think!

Jody

Spicy is the "it" Thing

The food world woke up around August 12, 2019. That was the day Popeyes launched its spicy crispy chicken sandwich. Now, that wouldn’t be so noteworthy, except they ran out of them in two weeks. Completely. R&D chefs arose. We are still seeing  “me-too” launches daily.

The takeaway from that wake-up moment was twofold: consumers love crispy chicken sandwiches. But they also love spicy sandwiches. Arby’s is my favorite recent example of a chain that applied that learning in the extreme earlier this year. It promoted its Diablo Dare Crispy Chicken Sandwich as the spiciest sandwich on the market with five sources: ghost pepper jack cheese, fiery hot seasoning, fire-roasted jalapenos and Diablo BBQ sauce, served on a red chipotle bun. To underscore the spicy factor, it warned the sandwich “is so spicy, we had to include a free vanilla shake to cool your mouth down between bites.”

Other R&D chefs have expanded in other directions

• Wendy’s launched a Hot Honey Chicken Biscuit Breakfast Sandwich earlier this year to not only spice up the breakfast menu, but to tap into sweet-and-heat sensibilities. Hot honey is super trendy right now.
• Consider The Velvet Elvis Sandwich at Pinky’s Westside Grill. It’s crunchy peanut butter, spicy honey, cream cheese, banana and bacon on Texas toast.
• Which Wich offers ZA’WICH. That’s pepperoni, spicy capicola, marinara, provolone and hot pepper mix.
• Burgers, take notice. Bad Daddy Burger Bar is running an El Poblano Loco special, which is beef patty, pepper Jack cheese, pico de gallo, fried poblano peppers and chipotle ranch on a bun. Those fried poblano peppers? You can also order a side of just those with chipotle ranch.

This love of spicy food is fairly recent. When I started researching and writing about food more than 25 years ago, spice levels were much lower, and chefs weren’t eager to push the limits. Today’s generation is much more daring, plus our country has a different demographic makeup. There’s research on this spicy topic. According to one report, “only 15% of consumers believe they can tolerate their food at a ‘very spicy’ level, but 37% still consider themselves to be a ‘spicy food aficionado.’ Nearly half of Americans (43%) admit they like to ‘test their limits’ when it comes to trying spicy foods.”

Back to the Arby’s Diablo Dare Crispy Chicken Sandwich promotion. How brilliant was it to combine a vanilla shake with the sandwich? Yes, it was a gimmick that garnered a LOT of free press/buzz, but it was probably also necessary!

Tell me what you think.

Jody

What is the Perfect Appetizer?

As long as there are potatoes, there’s still profit-building potential for inflation-struggling restaurants. And not just QSRs, but all segments. From an operator’s perspective, French fries are an easy snack, side, bar menu, appetizer. 

But you need to see these skinny spuds from the consumer point of view. Fries have no barriers to overcome. They are comfort food. They are also affordable, and for that, fries need a closer menu examination. For example:

• Run periodic LTOs on unique loaded-fries iterations.
• Pick a different ingredient to name “fries” (as in churros or any dried/chip vegetable.)
• Offer a few choices of loaded fries ingredient combos for a customized snack/appetizer order, perhaps rotating now and then.
• Introduce global-flavor dipping sauces.

Fries work for both operator and customer from an economical standpoint. You do know that customers are a hairbreadth away from opting out of eating out, don’t you? According to a Nation’s Restaurant News article, 37% of consumers say they are spending less of their disposable income on restaurants compared to last year. Additionally, 40% believe they are getting less value from restaurants, and 82% blame higher prices. To cope, 34% say they are choosing less expensive items on the menu. This is where French fries come in.

Applebee’s is using appetizers, including its new Brew Pub Loaded Waffle Fries, as a way to get guests in the door for late-night hours by offering “Late Night Half-Priced Appetizers.” First, the crispy waffle fries are topped with a combination of melted cheddar cheeses (Blue Moon white cheddar beer cheese is one!) and applewood-smoked bacon—served with buttermilk ranch dressing. The loaded fries are already one of the cheapest appetizers on the menu—and then to offer them half price during a specific daypart—shows that Applebee’s knows how to leverage fries.

That half-price appetizer brings it close to the price of Taco Bell’s spring 2022 LTO of Steak White Hot Ranch Fries. That is seasoned fries topped with warm nacho cheese sauce, marinated grilled steak, diced tomatoes, a three-cheese blend, sour cream and a sauce made with buttermilk and ghost chili peppers. Notice how both Applebee’s and Taco Bell brought on some sexy bold flavors.

Other operators have a different attention-grabbing play when it comes to “fries.” I’m referring to Wings & Rings’ summer Strawberry Shortcake Funnel Fries. That is funnel cake sticks topped with strawberries, powdered sugar, strawberry sauce and whipped cream. Or how about Sonic’s summer Pickle Fries? They are fries-shaped dill pickle slices, battered, fried and served with a side of ranch dressing.

Fries can even be elevated as they are at Rusty Pellican in Key Biscayne, Florida, with its Caviar Frites. Nation’s Restaurant News describes them as Yukon gold potatoes fried and tossed in ranch dressing powder. They are plated and squirted with vodka crème fraîche made by combining two parts crème fraîche to one part sour cream along with a splash of vodka and seasoned with cayenne pepper, lemon zest and salt. But we’re not done. They place bowfin caviar around the sides of the fries and salmon roe on top. It’s served with a side of ranch dressing—all for $23.

The winning combo for any operator is fries with whatever makes sense (and is readily on hand) in your building. You know, I’ve said before that if a restaurant could only offer one dessert, for the sake of the greatest number of guests, let it be chocolate. Here I will say that if an operation can only offer one appetizer, for the greatest number of guests, let it be fries.

Tell me what you think.

Jody

Cool Tamales

I wish I could have titled this Hot Tamales, but I see no evidence that tamales are hot right now on American menus. But strangely, they are hot here on the island of Kauai—not in restaurants, but along the road from food trucks, roadside stands and from front yards next to busy roads. And these aren’t microwaved Costco frozen tamales.

As near as I can tell, tamales on mainland American menus is only a “thing” around Christmas as traditional Hispanic holiday fare. But that doesn’t account for the year-round abundance of tamales along the road in Kauai—especially considering the Hispanic population here is miniscule.

The population on Kauai runs about 72,000, not counting tourists, of which there are more than 100,000 in any given month. Therein may be the key. Tourists spend their hard-earned nickels and dimes on expensive vacation necessities like airfare, car rental and lodging, which leaves them to their ingenuity to forage for economical meals between excursions. In that case, all these roadside tamale stands make a lot of convenient, cheap, portable sense. (There are far more tamale stands than McDonalds here.)

But back to the mainland and the potential for tamales outside of the holidays. Tamales simply fly under the radar. Maybe they do best at such convenience locales as ball parks and fairs and festivals—lumped in with funnel cakes and corn dogs—which are one-off purchases.

For restaurants, of course tamales make the most sense among those that specialize in Mexican/Southwest cuisine. Here are some versions I’ve seen on menus for a little inspiration:

• Chili Cheese Tamales: Tamales topped with chili, shredded cheddar cheese, sour cream and cilantro (Del Taco)
• Spicy Chicken Tamale: Comes with Guajillo sauce, avocado balm and salsa fresca (Border Grill)
• Vegetarian Tamale: Calabacitas, queso de Oaxaca, mole Amarillo (The Coyote Café)
• Short Rib Tamale: Comes with black bean salsa, ancho chili sauce and crème fraiche (Hot and Hot Fish Club)
• Hola Hemp Tamales: Plant-based hemp seed, flax, nopales and quinoa tamales served with vegan arroz blanco, tomatillo sauce and frijoles charros (El Charro Café)
• Tamale Boat: Tamales smothered in chili and topped with sharp cheddar cheese and onion (Al’s Beef)

On Kauai, I’d call tamales “familiar comfort” for the tourists. You don’t see roadside stands selling traditional Hawaiian fare. Tourists wouldn’t likely stop for poke, musubi or lau lau, for example. “Eat local” is kind of out the window when you’re on vacation between waterfalls, hikes, sunset photo ops and monk seal sitings!

Jody

Wait Until You See the Next Sustainable Wave

Ethical raising of food is a thing, as you know. Some food-producing options beg the question, just because you can, should you? I believe robots in the kitchen fell under that for a minute. Some cried “foul!” at the potential of taking a job away from an employee. Then came COVID and the labor crisis, and now, who can remember why we didn’t want robots?

My career in food and foodservice editorial dates back to the days when folks thought irradiation of produce was a crime against humanity. Food watchdogs put that aphid-killing procedure in their crosshairs, perhaps not realizing that irradiation was the only way to get tropical fruit into the mainland in a still-edible form. I haven’t heard the word irradiation in years. It’s a non-issue.

The next one up that you may not see coming now is cell-cultured meat. Back in the day, it would have fallen under the category of “Frankenfood.” But I think it will bypass that stigma in the current “save the planet” ethos. Someday, lab-grown meat will reach a production level that will put the price on par with traditional meat. The reason it will evade the negative spotlight is because of the global issues it addresses: animal welfare, land use and green-house gas reduction. As the R&D speeds forward, other issues and perceptions must be overcome: flavor/texture, nutritional equivalence and price for sure.

As with anything, education and marketing will be key, starting with how it is produced. A sample of the animal muscle is extracted, then cut into small pieces and separated into cells that go into a culture. There they merge and grow, eventually into strands. With enough strands, a meat patty can be formed.

The government actually backs the development and production of cell-based meat. In 2021, the USDA granted Tufts University $10 million to found the Center for Cellular Agriculture and Cultured Meat. Israel is ahead of the U.S. in the development of cell-cultured meat. Google Future Meat Technologies. It’s been fast at work on cell-cultured meat and announced in December 2021 that it was already producing cultivated chicken breast for $7.70 per pound, down from $18 per pound just 6 months earlier. The goal is to get it under $4 per pound.

The big food companies are all over this. That’s why you’re suddenly going to see cell-based food. You see, chicken and burgers are just the start. Cultivated dairy is also on the horizon. Google Perfect Day Company. It is replicating milk protein in an animal-free way. It can be done, and General Mills is working on a vegan cream cheese with the same technology. And then, imagine cell-cultured honey that doesn’t involve bees. Google MeliBio to learn about that.

All this will be here before you know it, and who will oppose it? Once the taste and price are on par with “the real thing,” the food supply will be transformed in a sustainable, ethical way. And you didn’t know how close we are.

Tell me what you think.

Jody

Biggest 2022 Food Trend

As I look at future food trends—2022 and beyond—I think plant-based meat and dairy alternatives have the most legs. Some trends are consumer driven. But plant-based adds a sustainability layer that investors are keen to finance to the finish. Oh, and BTW, consumers are along for the ride. I also think that with technology we barely grasp right now, the further-out future will bring competitively priced cell-based meat. Development is well under way.

Before I dial it back to what’s happening on menus right now, I’ll go a bit further with a global coating on top. Global stakeholders concerned with climate change will see to it that plant- and cell-based food eventually dominates the world food supply. Suffice it to say, the plant-based space has its sponsors that are not likely to let it fade to fickle fad. But so far, flimsy whim is not an issue for plant-based meat and dairy alternatives. Consumers are gradually getting on board with plant-based dairy leading the way, especially almond milk, according to the NPD’s Nutritional Eating Trends report.

Currently, plant-based alternative adoption is in its infancy. Only 15% of consumers use plant-based alternatives such as almond milk, tofu and veggie burgers (and most of that is almond milk). Of those who do consume plant-based meat and dairy alternatives, 56% have health and wellness in mind, followed by 40% who do so for environmental sustainability. Plant-based burgers are the meat alternative most eaten with 39% usage at home and 37% away from home, per NPD Group. Plant-based burgers have actually become pretty ubiquitous out there.

For restaurants, after burgers, the low-hanging fruit of plant-based protein is chicken. Plant-based aside, chicken is easily the top animal protein consumers eat, while beef consumption has steadily declined. Yet chicken has not made up a lot of the plant-based launches at restaurants.

However, plant-based chicken is starting to roost. KFC is in the midst of its due diligence in making it part of its menu. It tested Beyond Fried Chicken in a few markets in 2019 and 2020. Now it’s in the midst of a national LTO. Burger King has tested Impossible Nuggets in a few markets.

Keep your eye on the big chains. They are pioneering these plant-based proteins for consumers who can test them with little outlay to decide if they want to make them part of their diet. Plant-based sausage is also showing up more. Chipotle is in the midst of a plant-based chorizo LTO.

The World Economic Forum, among other global entities, pushes for a plant-based diet in its sustainability drive that would like to dictate plant-based as the direction in which the world’s collective diet needs to go. An article on its website says, “Switching en masse to a plant-based diet is essential to protect wildlife habitats and prevent the loss of numerous species currently facing extinction.” The quote is from a study by researchers at UK think tank Chatham House, supported by the United Nations (UN) Environment Programme.

In other areas, we’ve seen recently how global thought leaders influence global dictations. With plant-based meat and dairy alternatives, let’s hope all can arrive at their own conclusions without the dictates of fear-mongers. The report quoted above further says, “Unless we change what we eat and how it is produced, the planet’s ability to support humans could come under threat.” I assure, the sky will not fall if we eat meat.

Nevertheless, plant-based meat and dairy alternatives are a welcome option and addition to the diet for health and sustainability reasons, and thus we will see more well-funded R&D along with increased availability—guaranteed.

As for cell-based meat, that’s a topic for next time.

Tell me what you think.

Jody

2022 is Set for This Ingredient

Health, nutrition and plant-based sensibilities aside, a big menu trend I see for 2022 is the outpouring of cheese. It fits within nostalgia, comfort, familiar, crave worthy and delish with applications that a guest probably wouldn’t make at home.

As long as there are R&D chefs, there will always be new ways to bring the cheese, and no one is complaining. Imagination led to some very creative LTOs in the later months of 2021. I predict the cheese will continue to flow through 2022.

Before I address chain-specific mac and cheese dress-ups, I want to give my verbal prize to what struck me as the most refreshing idea. In November 2021, Red Robin came out with a fondue-themed LTO with its Cheesy Bacon Fondue Burger along with a side of Cheesy Bacon Fondue as a fry dip or to pour over any side or appetizer. In an age when queso is going the distance, the fondue alternative is fresh and nostalgic at the same time (for boomers).

Another noteworthy LTO at the same time was Applebee’s Cheetos Wings & Cheese Bites that essentially panko crusted boneless wings as well as cheese bites with Cheetos crumbles before frying. If that sounded unappealing, another option featured the two items tossed in “original Cheetos Wing Sauce.”

The brilliance of this that I want to point out is the brand collaboration that brought that about. I think we will see more partnerships like this. Already Dine Brands’ Buffalo Wild Wings has partnered with Doritos for a wing sauce and other associations with the snack food beast I recently blogged about. The Cheetos LTO must be Inspire Brands’ answer to that. This leaves room for someone to partner with Cheez-it!

Also, there is still some distance to go with the simple cheeseburger. Consider Culver’s CurderBurger LTO. That was a cheeseburger topped with breaded and fried cheese curds.

But now for what some chains have done to get comfy with mac and cheese.

• If chicharron-topped mac and cheese doesn’t fit into an operation’s wheelhouse, come up with a crunchy alternative that does. Long John Silver’s promoted Mac & Cheese with Crumblies, which tops the iconic comfort dish with small pieces of fried batter. High five, Long John Silver’s!
• How about putting a little black dress on mac and cheese? Noodles & Company promoted Truff Mac, which was Mac & Cheese drizzled with Truff Black Truffle Hot Sauce. That’s a blend of chilis, agave nectar, black truffle and spices.

• Qdoba did the right thing and substituted in queso for the cheese in its recent Mac & Queso LTO. But this wasn’t just a simple craveable side. Besides Mac & Queso, the promotion also included Cholula Mac & Queso Bowl or Burrito with chicken; Tex Mex Mac & Queso Bowl or Burrito topped with smoked brisket; and Loaded Mac & Queso Burrito also with smoked brisket.

It’s possible we haven’t even scratched the surface of what’s possible with cheese on the menu. I used to be editor of a magazine that was just about the possibilities of fruits and vegetables on the menu. It would probably still be around today if cheese had been the focus ingredient instead!

Tell me what you think.

Jody