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Pan Asian Cuisine

Cutting across all ethnic boundaries from India to Indonesia to Japan, Korea, China and everywhere in between, Asian Cuisines make up over half the world's population. When modified or mollified by western preferences, Pan Asian Cuisine reflects the assortment of foods and the fusion of ingredients available to mainstream diners in American restaurants.

Mediterranean Foods

Foods of the Mediterranean have been shaped over many centuries by trade, conquest, religion and migration. The cradle of Mediterranean cuisine was Persia (Iran) and Mesopotamia (Iraq). Mediterranean culture and foods were then developed in the middle east (Egypt, Libya, Syria, Lebanon, Jordan, Israel, Palestine) before traveling north to Crete, Turkey, the Baltics, the Greek Isles and west to Sicily, Southern Italy and Spain.

Healthy Dining

Taste and Flavor is the main reason restaurant diners select one menu item over another. Unless food tastes good, no one buys it. Health concerns are also important, but they are secondary to the palate. Diners are now more health sensitive than ever. Even though the latest manifestation of healthful dining, low carb, turned out to be a craze, other health buzz concerns are part of the same healthful eating trend.

Beverages

Beverages is the only food that fits into every single band of the taste, color and texture spectrum. There are more options in every beverage niche ranging from coffee to carbonated to cocoa and water. Apart from carbonated, there are seven major beverage categories. Coffee beverages, including hot and cold and including specialty and regular account for over one third (35.3%) of menu listings on restaurant menus. Coffee beverages are the fastest growing beverage category. MenuMine, the foodservice industry's menu information database, indicates growth is greatest for coffee (4.7 pts), tea (3.2 pts) and bottled water (2.4 pts).

Barbecue without the Pit

More than half of all US restaurant chains serve Barbecue, however, hardly any have a pit or a huge grill in the back of the house. Authentic barbecue in the US usually calls for underutilized cuts of meat cooked over a low, open flame for several hours to tenderize the meat, using woods like hickory or maple. Meat is basted with a secret sauce starting with tomatoes and vinegar plus a host of herbs and spices that mingle with smoke to impart that special signature flavor. At home, barbecue usually means an outdoor grilling event with burgers or chicken. In foodservice there are more options. Barbecue offerings partly depend on your geography, partly on your type of operation…and largely how authentic you want to be.