Feel good fast food - eating local

A real social phenomenon, ‘feel good fast food’ restaurants, where you can enjoy a balanced meal on the go, have been thriving in all major Western cities since the start of the decade. The trend continues in 2016 with small-scale entrepreneurs opening businesses selling appetising, relatively inexpensive dishes, emphasising the benefits of quality and locally sourced products as a marketing argument, as does Pur etc.  in France for example. Detailed information is provided about each dish, even specifying the names of the producers of the ingredients. We may even soon know the name of the cow our milkshake comes from! Fast food giants like Chipotle Mexican Grill or McDonald’s are following the trend to hold onto their market shares [1]. The American chain Panera Bread  is taking it even further by highlighting the absence of colourings, preservatives and trans-fats in its dishes.

Waste, a thing of the past

The issue of food waste received heavy media coverage in 2015. This year, the web is already full of sites advocating the abolition of food waste and providing tips for using leftovers. Major retailers are following the trend by selling fruit and vegetables that are not entirely up to usual aesthetic standards^[2]. The initiative by the French Gueules casséescollective, which promotes the fight against waste and the sale of ‘ugly’ fruit and vegetables, has been copied in Germany, England, Japan and the United States^[3]. At the same time, an increasing number of websites provide advice for the public on how to make the most of leftovers and even make real feasts out of them[4]. How long will it be before restaurants offer menus based on leftovers or ingredients that were headed for the compost heap? In the United States, the trend is in full swing and some top chefs have already jumped on board, like Dan Barber ou Daniel Humm, who includes cauliflower stalk filaments in his gourmet menus at Eleven Madison Park in New York. 

The burnt and smoky taste

If you used to hate the taste of burnt food, you’re going to love it in 2016. The trend is all over the net. Blackened food with a smoky or charcoal taste is ‘in’[5]. René Redzepi, chef at the famous Noma in Copenhagen, paved the way for this, followed by many other confreres around the world. To achieve this special little taste at home, while we wait for the agri-food business to bring it to the supermarket shelves, nothing could be simpler. You just need to cook some fruit or vegetables on burning coals, dry them for a long time in the oven and grind them down into powder. This powder can then be added to a myriad of preparations, such as homemade mayonnaise or yoghurt. Another alternative is to buy a food smoking gun, to add a smoky taste to all kinds of food and drinks quickly and effortlessly.

More plants, less meat

The WHO rang the alarm bell in 2015^[6]. We are eating too much meat and too much processed meat. Consumers are advised to find alternatives to meat-based food. Restaurant owners are offering more and more vegetarian menus, such as Al’s Place in San Francisco, which Bon Appétit magazine named the best new restaurant in the United States. Meat is on the menu, but as an optional side. The same concept applies at Semilla in Brooklyn, where you can enjoy fermented fries with smoked apple sauce! The trend seems to be spreading to homes, with those observing the household appliance market noticing exponential growth in sales of juicers, which enable consumers to make their own fruit or vegetable juice at home. 

Fizzy drinks

With or without alcohol, carbonated drinks are going to be tickling our palate. In the range of soft drinks, we will apparently be seeing [7] more fermented drinks, refreshing herbal beverages, sparkling teas and coffees with, of course, a hint of lemon zest or smoked yuzu!