Less popular meats appear on more independent and chain restaurant menus
Despite the avalanche of attention paid to plant-based proteins and the powerful tailwind provided by influential champions like the Culinary Institute of America, consumers remain committed carnivores.
According to EMI Analytics, per capita consumption of meat in the U.S. will top out at 217 pounds this year and hit a record high of 220 pounds in 2019. Consistent customer demand notwithstanding, chefs have faced real challenges over the past few years as drought conditions temporarily dried up beef supplies and avian flu scrambled egg production. One of the results of these challenges has been increased experimentation with alternative meats.
We’re liking lamb. Despite its historical position in the United States as a culinary also-ran, lamb has been steadily gaining ground on menus, where it often stands in for pork or beef. Among myriad examples from the recent past are lamb tartare at Whitman & Bloom in New York City, lamb sweetbread tacos with lamb barbacoa at Empellón Cocina, also in New York, and lamb bolognese cannelloni at Indaco in Charleston, S.C.
Lamb pancetta has popped up at Fish & Game in Hudson, N.Y., as has lamb posole at Seviche in Louisville, Ky. Lamb bacon has made the menu at One Flew South in Atlanta, and, speaking of bacon, there’s been a real uptick in the use of lamb belly. At Gan Chan Station in Asheville, N.C., the lamb belly entrée is served with Sichuan peppercorns, cucumber and pickled peach.
According to the American Lamb Board, about 10 percent of sales are represented by ground lamb, a product that has received a major boost by better-burger specialists like Red Apron Burger Bar in Washington, D.C., where a special doner-spiced lamb burger was topped with harissa mayonnaise and oregano yogurt. Lamb meatballs are also gaining traction, like the lamb albondigas with mint, carrot and egg at Mi Tocaya in Chicago.
Chains, especially those with a Greek or Mediterranean positioning, also like lamb. At fast-casual Zoës Kitchen, it appears in lamb kafta, or meatballs, and the rustic lamb pita sandwich.
We’re daffy for duck. Once associated with high-end restaurants, duck has been appearing in a range of operations. Fine dining still does duck, of course. Pressed duck, a 19th-century classic of French cuisine, has staged a comeback in New York City at Per Se, Daniel and La Grenouille. But other chefs have taken a decidedly more contemporary approach, like the duck-leg chorizo at Vernick Food & Drink in Philadelphia, and the pulled duck sandwich with fig and toasted peanut relish at One Flew South in Atlanta. There’s braised duck lasagna with puffed wild rice at Eden in Chicago, and duck ham sourdough toast at Hampton & Hudson in Atlanta.
Smoked duck is trending, too, at The Morris in San Francisco, where it’s brined with thyme and garlic and smoked over hickory, and at Il Posto in Denver, where smoked Muscovy duck is served with blueberries, fava beans, chanterelles, parsley root and vanilla. At the aptly named Lunchbox Laboratory in Seattle, the Bahn, James Bahn Mi sandwich features “dork,” a combination of duck and pork, along with sweet chile mayonnaise.
Chains are slower to dive into duck, although duck wings are a fixture on the appetizer list at Brick House Tavern Tap, and duck wing “lollipops” with gochujang glaze are offered at Seasons 52.
We’re good with goat. Despite its importance in many ethnic kitchens, goat has been largely missing in action on American menus until recently, when it began turning up all over. Curried goat with sweet potato gnocchi is a signature at Compère Lapin in New Orleans, and goat tamales with charred green tomato relish are featured at nearby Toups South. OvenBird in Birmingham, Ala., has offered a Southern-inflected braised goat with soft-poached egg and grits, and Bad Saint in Washington, D.C., dishes up braised goat with charred coconut that reflects the restaurant’s Filipino roots. At Rapscallion in Dallas, the cabrito “taco” puts goat on flatbread with spiced sunflower seeds and pickled watermelon rind, and Got the Goat Tacos made with Maker’s Mark chile mole sauce were promoted at Chicago’s Wrigley Field.
Chains are getting their goat on, too, as with the curry goat bowl at Bahama Breeze, where slow-cooked goat is served over white rice with naan bread.
Nancy Kruse, president of the Kruse Company, is a menu trends analyst based in Atlanta. As one of LinkedIn’s Top 100 Influencers in the U.S., she blogs regularly on food-related subjects on the LinkedIn website.
