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Flavor & The Menu Flavor trends, strategies and solutions for menu development Flavor & The Menu is published in print six times a year, including an annual Top Ten Trends issue.

Flavor & The Menu provides flavor and menu trends, strategies and solutions for food & beverage menu developers. Getflavor.com

Slaw makes menu moves ⭐ Slaw has a long history as a side dish, and in recent years, Korean kimchi has primed U.S. consu...
06/06/2026

Slaw makes menu moves ⭐

Slaw has a long history as a side dish, and in recent years, Korean kimchi has primed U.S. consumers to try global renditions.

Now, operators are showcasing cuisine-specific classics like Vietnamese goi gá and Haitian pikliz while also incorporating slaws into unexpected dishes—saurkraut cake, anyone?

Read on for ideas and insights into these tangy, shredded cabbage builds: https://www.getflavor.com/slaw-moves-from-basic-side-to-menu-superstar/

! We're taking a look back at one of our 2025 Best of Flavor entries: the Pita Donut!Served at Meso Modern Mediterranea...
05/06/2026

!

We're taking a look back at one of our 2025 Best of Flavor entries: the Pita Donut!

Served at Meso Modern Mediterranean and made from fried trimmings of their housemade whole-wheat pita dough and tossed in dardamom and cinnamon sugar. Add honeyed labneh and fruit compote are available as dippers to round out the unique flavor experience.

https://www.getflavor.com/from-pita-trimmings-to-spiced-donut-deliciousness/

In Japanese, “omakase” translates as “I will leave it to you,” and it has come to connote high-end sushi dinners, in whi...
03/06/2026

In Japanese, “omakase” translates as “I will leave it to you,” and it has come to connote high-end sushi dinners, in which the items served and the order of their presentation are left entirely up to the chef. The model, which originated in Japan in the 1960s, has evolved to include some unexpected adaptations.

So-called “tacomakases” have been popping up around the country, influenced by acclaimed Mexico City chef, Enrique Olivera, who reframed the concept to fit his focus on fresh, seasonal and unique Mexican ingredients.

Dirty Taco in New York City offers an after-hours TacOmakase at its location in Grand Central Station. Available just six nights a month and for just six lucky diners, the dozen or so courses reflect chef-partners’ travels and cultural backgrounds (one is of Armenian descent and the other Korean). The meal can be washed down with Korean rice wine, which adds another global element to the mix.

https://www.getflavor.com/bites-sips-boy-kibble-tacomakase-and-smore/

Menu innovation at City Barbeque starts with a deep respect for craft. And for Jessica Bograd, senior director of culina...
01/06/2026

Menu innovation at City Barbeque starts with a deep respect for craft.

And for Jessica Bograd, senior director of culinary, that means balancing tradition with opportunity. The brand stays true to regional American barbecue but still finds room to innovate.

Bograd shares how City Barbeque navigates rising protein costs, defines value beyond price and introduces new flavors without alienating its fiercely loyal customer base: https://www.getflavor.com/flavor-trailblazer-jessica-bograd/

Getting to know "Q" ✨For many consumers, mouthfeel has become just as captivating a sense as taste, with textural contra...
01/06/2026

Getting to know "Q" ✨

For many consumers, mouthfeel has become just as captivating a sense as taste, with textural contrast serving an increasingly crucial role in flavor delivery. Now is the time for menu developers to cast an eye towards Asian cultures and the revered range of textures known simply as “Q."

Chewy, bouncy and springy, Q is poised to add toothsome appeal to breakfast fare, salads, savories, sweets and more: https://www.getflavor.com/getting-to-know-q/

This month, the Flavor team descended on Chicago for the National Restaurant Association Show. Between walking the floor...
29/05/2026

This month, the Flavor team descended on Chicago for the National Restaurant Association Show.

Between walking the floor and attending off-site events, we found no shortage of delicious bites, beverages and all-around inspo.

Our columnist Nancy Kruse will share a full report soon, but in the meantime, here's a handful of sips, both at McCormick and beyond, that had us raising our glasses to industry innovation.

Basic black, always on trend with fashionistas, has been scoring on dessert menus of late. Besides providing an Insta-wo...
28/05/2026

Basic black, always on trend with fashionistas, has been scoring on dessert menus of late. Besides providing an Insta-worthy photo op, black ingredients like black rice and black sesame seeds typically offer an earthy, somewhat nutty flavor counterpoint to conventionally sweet items.

Chicago’s Miru, Japanese for “view,” earns a second look with a dark-as-night hat trick; the dramatic Black Sesame Mochi Cake includes charcoal-vanilla ice cream and a black sesame praline.

Get more from the latest State of the Plate: https://www.getflavor.com/state-of-the-plate-not-so-sweet-desserts-to-savor/

Often playing second fiddle to ice cream, sorbet is getting a long overdue glow-up as chefs incorporate unexpected ingre...
10/05/2026

Often playing second fiddle to ice cream, sorbet is getting a long overdue glow-up as chefs incorporate unexpected ingredients, add colorful quenelles to composed desserts and up the mouthfeel via olive oil and more.

With variations ranging from verdant green, herbaceous perilla to "Barbie pink," sweet-sour-bitter omija berry to tropically complex golden soursop, sorbet is cooler than ever.

Get the details: https://www.getflavor.com/from-subtle-to-sublime-sorbets-flavor-evolution/

A stack made for the weekend ✨Pancakes are having a moment, delighting modern diners with builds that feature unexpected...
09/05/2026

A stack made for the weekend ✨

Pancakes are having a moment, delighting modern diners with builds that feature unexpected textural play and tap into warm nostalgia. Sunny Street Café lands on the ideal flavor profile with its Strawberry Shortcake Pancakes, a stack of fluffy buttermilk pancakes infused with crunchy pieces of shortbread. A flourish of housemade strawberry sauce, crème anglaise, whipped cream and a scattering of shortbread crumbs finish the look.

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