I just got back from New York and as usual this amazing city provided me with much culinary inspiration. New York is the place where trends are born and made and where the energetic positive atmosphere is highly addictive. In this post I’m sharing the food trends I spotted there:
Hibiscus
Mark my words: hibiscus is gonna be big. This flower has officially won over the New York hospitality industry, so I’m sure it won’t be long before we will enjoy it as well. I spotted hibiscus in the ice coffees from Starbucks, the bright pink glaze on the fantastic donuts from Dough, the Paletas ice pops from La Newyorkina (High Line) and in the date puree from Cannibal.
Away from the mega-chain
New Yorkers seem to move away from the large chains and often prefer products from smaller companies. Products with just that extra bit of love, care and attention and that are far more interesting culinary wise. Single origin coffee from Blue Bottle instead of the large nonfat-soymilk-latte-frappucinos from Starbucks for instance, or the airy donuts with creative toppings from Dough (my personal favorite!) and Doughnut Plant instead of the familiar Dunkin’ Donuts. The really good burgers from Shake Shack definitely win the taste battle from Big Mac and the creative soft cones from the Big Gay Ice Cream Shop (favorite: the Salty Pimp with salted caramel!) leave ordinary cones far behind.
Food Court 2.0
With Eataly and Smorgasburg New York already proved to be great in curating interesting groups of food vendors. Even better is Gotham West Market, the food court 2.0 that made the Hell’s Kitchen area so much more interesting. With the ramen from Ivan Orkin and tapas from Seamus Mullen, this food court is an exciting market full of mini restaurants.
Tacos
The taco is maybe the most popular snack in New York right now and has already been named “the new burger” by New York Magazine. Look at the rise of Mission Cantina, Salvation Taco, Otto’s Tacos, Café El Presidente and so many more. With homemade tortillas and especially innovative fillings (from roasted lamb shoulder to Korean beef) this new taco is incomparable with the former fast food versions.
