November 2011/Prepared Foods -- Pick any restaurant chain, take a look at its menu, and one would be hard pressed not to find at least one ethnic dish on it.
Ethnic cuisines are integrated into countless restaurant menus--even traditional “American” menus. Jack in the Box serves a Chicken Teriyaki Bowl. Atlanta Bread Company offers Penne Bolognese. Even Tastee Freez serves tamales. Ethnic offerings are exploding on menus, and the trend is not restricted to any one segment or menu classification. It is visible at national quick-serves, small fine-dining brands and everything in between. Yet, these menu examples only showcase the “big three” ethnic cuisines--Mexican, Italian and Chinese. These cuisines remain extremely popular and will always have a place in our foodservice industry.
But, the tide is turning, as other ethnic cuisines are gaining a footing and a following with restaurant-goers. Chefs are moving beyond expected ethnic influences and exploring the ingredients, flavors and cooking techniques of far less familiar and far more exotic cuisines. Technomic has identified Mediterranean, Indian and Caribbean as three of the hottest cuisines in the restaurant industry today. What follows is an overview of each cuisine and a discussion of why each is poised to break out of (relative) obscurity and impact the industry in a big way.