Top Restaurant Menu Trends for 2016

National Restaurant Association survey shows local sourcing and environmental sustainability remain hot trends

The National Restaurant Association (NRA) annually explores the top menu trends for the coming year. For this year's What's Hot culinary forecast, the NRA surveyed nearly 1,600 professional chefs — members of the American Culinary Federation (ACF) — to find which foods, beverages and culinary themes will be hot on restaurant menus in 2016.

Top 20 food trends for 2016

1. Locally sourced meats and seafood

2. Chef-driven fast-casual concepts

3. Locally grown produce

4. Hyper-local sourcing

5. Natural ingredients/minimally processed food

6. Environmental sustainability

7. Healthful kids' meals

8. New cuts of meat

9. Sustainable seafood

10. House-made/artisan ice cream

11. Ethnic condiments/spices

12. Authentic ethnic cuisine

13. Farm/estate branded items

14. Artisan butchery

15. Ancient grains

16. Ethnic-inspired breakfast items

17. Fresh/house-made sausage

18. House-made/artisan pickles

19. Food waste reduction/management

20. Street food/food trucks

Listen in as 22-year menu trends expert Katie Ayoub, Founder, Katie Ayoub & Associates and Managing Editor of Flavor & The Menu magazine; and food futurist Liz Moskow identify five menu mainstays primed to jump to retail shelves with the right new product development.

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