Trend Tracker

Soup sales heat up

Restaurant customers are ordering more soup, according to Technomic's Left Side of the Menu: Soup & Salad Consumer Trend Report. By the cup or bowl, as a side or entree, 61% of consumers now order soup at least occasionally during restaurant visits, up from 52% just two years ago.

The back-of-the-house looks forward

The seven experienced chefs at the Kraft Culinary Centre joined together to craft their own 2012 predictions. The food trends they chose are bolstered by their working in the trenches every day—along with year-long analysis of internal food casts and menu insights. Their back-of-the-house predictions range from reimaging the past to a rededication to simplicity.

CIA Career Fair Points to Economic Recovery

The Culinary Institute of America holds four career fairs a year at its Hyde Park, NY campus. On February 7, the CIA hosted its largest fair in four years—a sign that indicates the economy is on it's way to recovery and the food industry is leading the surge in job creation, so the college believes. Here are some stats to support that belief: • 275 recruiters from 106 companies participated in the career fair • 75% of the recruiters indicated that they will be adding even more jobs this year than in 2011

Less is more in healthier feeding, study finds

Providing smaller portion options could do more to curb calorie consumption in restaurants than the now-widespread approach of posting nutrition information on menus, according to a new study.

Love and dollars are in the air

Starting this weekend, thousands of couples will be donning their best attire, heading to their favorite restaurants and racking up hefty bills in celebration of Valentine’s Day. OpenTable, an online provider of free, real-time restaurant reservations, compiled a report on this year’s Valentine’s Day trends, keeping operators prepped and ready for the rush. • 93% of Valentine’s Day diners intend to match last year’s spending or step it up a notch

Satisfying a digital hunger

In its just-released 2012 Restaurant Industry Forecast, the National Restaurant Association reports that there is an increasing consumer interest in high tech interaction in restaurants. The NRA's statistics show that consumers up to the age of 55 support new restaurant technologies. But the majority of the restaurant industry does not seem to be keeping pace.

Wingin' it for the Super Bowl

With Super Bowl Sunday a few days away, there’s only one thing that can be predicted with confidence: Americans are going to eat a ton of chicken wings. The National Chicken Council estimates that over 1.25 billion chicken wings will be consumed this upcoming football weekend. Stacked end-to-end, that is long enough to circle the globe—twice. With all this chicken wing madness expected during Super Bowl Sunday, operators are looking to make the most of this delicious opportunity. When weighing out the equation, these are some factors to look at:

Lunch prices fall, but there’s an asterisk

Casual restaurants charged about a dollar less last year for a la carte lunch entrees than they did in 2010, underscoring operators’ fear of midday sticker shock, according to data released by Intelliprice, a Boston-based research firm.

Flavor trends go global in 2012

For the first time, the McCormick Flavor Forecast is taking a global view of trends in 2012. After a year of research conducted by an international group of chefs, sensory scientists, trend watchers and marketing experts, McCormick compiled a list of innovative and creative flavor combinations that are beginning to pop up around the world. Six relevant trends were identified, brought to life through 12 regional flavor combinations.

What's for lunch?

For operators, lunch can be one of the most unpredictable meals of the day in terms of what builds traffic. However, new research from Technomic aims to cut down on the mystery. Targeted at Millennials (ages 18-34), the study suggests that value is the number one motivator in eating out for lunch. Unlike Baby Boomers and older generations who tend to look at health and quality, the Millennials are focused on finding the best deal. Here are some additional findings from Technomic’s Lunch Consumer Trend Report:

Looking at 2012 restaurant trends—and beyond

Pressure to improve the healthfulness of kids meals and restaurant fare in general, along with the influence of the growing Asian, Hispanic, Boomer and Millennial population groups are among the factors that will shape the restaurant industry in 2012 and beyond, according to The NPD Group. Overall, NPD’s foodservice market research projects consumer demand for restaurant-prepared meals/snacks to rise slightly above 2011 levels. Here are some trend highlights from the report.

Food and mood

A new study by the Florida Department of Citrus found that drinking orange juice evokes positive emotions and an optimistic outlook. Through a patented research process designed to reveal unconscious emotions, consumers shared their thoughts and feelings about orange juice and its role in their lives.