The speed in which emerging flavors, ingredients and cuisines move through the trends cycle today is nothing short of astonishing. The quick pace of flavor discovery is exciting for the consumer, but arguably even more thrilling for the menu developer. The challenge is choosing which trending flavors to focus on in the development process. We’ve pinpointed four flavors for 2025, each representing opportunity for differentiation while aligning with larger, sustaining trends. As we see them take shape on restaurant menus, each also promises opportunity in the retail space, offering a parallel path for consumer exploration and adoption. 

This Mexican sweet roll stands out with its striped, seashell-like appearance and crispy, sugary topping. Look for iterations next year that take the concha into fun mash-up territory. Indeed, the “croncha,” a craveable combination of a croissant and a concha, is already making a splash. The “manteconcha” could be next, thrilling consumers with a marriage between a muffin and a concha. The concha also offers runway as a starchy sub-in, seen in a French toast riff at Calaca Mamas in Anaheim, Calif.