DALLAS —Emerging culinary trends and the economy’s effect on dining habits were hot topics of discussion at Nation’s Restaurant News’ inaugural Menu Trends & Directions conference recently.
About 150 people attended the two-day event, which featured presentations on value promotions, menu development and consumer spending. The conference was produced in partnership with Technomic Inc. and The Kruse Co. —Emerging culinary trends and the economy’s effect on dining habits were hot topics of discussion at Nation’s Restaurant News’ inaugural Menu Trends & Directions conference recently.
Nancy Kruse, president of The Kruse Co. and an NRN culinary columnist, gave a State of the Plate presentation, in which she emphasized the popularity of classic comfort foods and cited a few of the next hot ingredients that chefs were experimenting with. She predicted that classic French cuisine would be the next important ethnic food trend, fueled in part by the film “Julie & Julia,” which featured the life of the late Julia Child. —Emerging culinary trends and the economy’s effect on dining habits were hot topics of discussion at Nation’s Restaurant News’ inaugural Menu Trends & Directions conference recently.
Food scientist Shirley O. Corriher offered tips to chefs about how to make dishes more healthful without sacrificing flavor. Her advice: Minimize but don’t completely eliminate salt and fat content. —Emerging culinary trends and the economy’s effect on dining habits were hot topics of discussion at Nation’s Restaurant News’ inaugural Menu Trends & Directions conference recently.
Top research and development executives from Denny’s, La Madeleine, Popeyes Louisiana Kitchen and McAlister’s Deli discussed their recipes for surviving the financial tsunami and shared their predictions for what types of dishes will lure diners back once the economy recovers. —Emerging culinary trends and the economy’s effect on dining habits were hot topics of discussion at Nation’s Restaurant News’ inaugural Menu Trends & Directions conference recently.
“It used to be that the idea of value was a marketing slogan,” said Phil Costner, chief operation officer of La Madeleine. “Today it’s a necessity. It’s ante to get in the game.” —Emerging culinary trends and the economy’s effect on dining habits were hot topics of discussion at Nation’s Restaurant News’ inaugural Menu Trends & Directions conference recently.
Trend experts from Technomic, the Chicago-based research and consulting firm, reported on consumer trends that impact diners buying decisions. They emphasized consumers’ newfound aversion to excessive spending and said operators that catered to the desire for value would find the most success. —Emerging culinary trends and the economy’s effect on dining habits were hot topics of discussion at Nation’s Restaurant News’ inaugural Menu Trends & Directions conference recently.
Premier sponsors of the Menu Trends & Directions conference were Bush’s Best, Icelandic USA, NatureSeal, Phillips Gourmet, Sweet Street Desserts and Ventura Foods LLC. —Emerging culinary trends and the economy’s effect on dining habits were hot topics of discussion at Nation’s Restaurant News’ inaugural Menu Trends & Directions conference recently.
Australian Lamb, Brill, California Milk Advisory Board, Idaho Potato Commission and Surlean Foods were supporting sponsors. —Emerging culinary trends and the economy’s effect on dining habits were hot topics of discussion at Nation’s Restaurant News’ inaugural Menu Trends & Directions conference recently.
