Latin American and Tex-Mex foods are supplanting Italian dishes as Americans’ go-to favourite cuisine. Why it matters: The dramatic rise in the U.S. Latino population is reshaping the national palate — and sending restaurant operators south of the border (or thereabouts) to freshen up their menus. Driving the news: analysis by Datassential of the 4,500 new menu items released at major restaurant chains last year found that Americans are craving cheesy, spicy foods with Latin-inspired ingredients and preparations. - The 10 fastest-growing items on U.S. menus include birria (a Mexican meat stew), chicken taco salad, and dishes made with Tajin, a seasoning of Chile peppers, lime, and sea salt.
- The #1 menu addition? Ranch Water, a summery cocktail of tequila, lime and Topo Chico sparkling water.
- Tequila is poised to overtake vodka as the country’s top-selling spirit, while margaritas have become the most popular cocktail.
What they’re saying: “When we work with [restaurant] clients, if they’re going to ask about what flavours to put on the menu, it’s probably going to be Latin,” says Mike Kostyo, the “trendologist” at Datassential who analysed 2022’s menus. - “And if it’s not that, it’s probably going to be Asian.”
The big picture: For the longest time, Italian food was America’s favourite — bring on the pizza and pasta! - Then came the millennials, “the first generation to actually prefer Mexican cuisine over Italian cuisine,” Kostyo says.
- Now comes Gen Z, “the first generation to prefer both Mexican and Chinese cuisine over Italian cuisine.”
Where it stands: Demographic changes — which translate to shifts in childhood favourites and adult preferences — are reflected in our evolving appetites. - “The things that young people are growing up with as the norm are so different from 20-30 years ago,” Kostyo says.
How it works: Datassential maintains a database of 40,000 food and drink items at big restaurant chains and asks consumers to rate the new additions based on the menu description, picture, and price. - Consumers score the dishes in categories like “uniqueness” and whether they would order them.
- Restaurateurs use the scores to “concept test” new dishes or revamp-tired offerings.
🌮 What we like: The dishes ranking highest in consumer appeal included a number of “limited time offers,” such as the Barbacoa Quesadilla Benedict from breakfast/lunch chain First Watch and the Orange chicken sandwich Bao from Panda Express. Weirdness works: There’s heightened demand for oddball flavour combinations and sweet-and-salty mashups, driven in part by younger consumers seeking novelty. - Ghost peppers are all the rage — jalapeños are now considered a bit of a yawn.
- The apotheosis of the trends? Baskin-Robbins’ Spicy & Spooky ice cream — a limited-time flavour made with ghost pepper, white and dark chocolate, and blood orange flakes, and released before Halloween.
The bottom line: The Latin and Tex-Mex food boom is everywhere you look — and, given that such dishes produce high profit margins for restaurants, very likely to stick around. It’s only a matter of time before we start to see the creep onto the UK high street brands with some of these crowd-pleasing trend dishes. I can’t see Tequila taking over from Vodka anytime soon in the UK but there is no question that post pandemic the UK’s appetite for Agave spirits has exploded in short serves and cocktails. |
