FEATURE STORY : Twist On A Trend

Consumers have been clamoring for “comfort foods” at restaurants for nearly a decade. In the last five to seven years, we’ve seen this trend reach a near fever pitch. Patrons flock to trendy restaurants with “Comfort” or “Home” in the name, where they can find familiar favorites on the menu like fried chicken, meatloaf, mashed potatoes and pie.

Restaurant trend watchers speculate that the appeal of comfort food is often connected to times of economic recession and that these familiar favorites are what people crave when they are down. Research consistently indicates that when times are tough, consumers gravitate to comfort foods. In fact, Technomic, a foodservice research and consulting firm, predicts that comfort food cuisine will be a continuing foodservice trend through 2015.

However, this decade is about reinventing comfort food by adding a twist consumers will recognize as gourmet. This twist can be healthy or indulgent, but it must differentiate the menu item and excite your customers’ senses. Technomic refers to this as a “contemporary traditional” offering—a culinary twist that adds “uniqueness” and “cravability.”

Basic American Foods can help you develop contemporary traditional offerings with a wealth of intriguing ideas that capitalize on easy-to-prep products that consumers already crave.

READ INTERVIEW WITH CHEF LISA SCHROEDER! >>

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