The Possible F&B Trends For 2014?
by Clover Ng
@ 15 Nov 2013
Consultants Baum+Whiteman have given their take on what the hottest f&b trends will be in year 2014 and we will take a look at some.
For starters, set your eyes on opening a restaurant or cafes in or near a departmental store. They will be more than welcome to a collaboration in order to keep hungry customers in the departmental store for a longer period of time. Whenever they need a cup of drink or something to keep them shopping for more, they will definitely need some food to recharge their shopping energy. Alternatively, aim at opening cafes or just a small bistro in collaboration with some retail shops. Right here in Singapore, we have visited such a concept located in Little India. This retail store offers clothing and accessories, as well as a little art corner upstairs and of course, a small cafe right beside the clothing retail area for shoppers to take a little break for a sip or some delightful dessert.
Next, a proliferation of tasting-only menus. We can probably look forward to more 'fine dining' concepts, for menus that offer only bite sized serving at fine dining prices. You might want to find restaurants that offer you a 7/9 course meal for a much filling dinner.
Third on the list, invite the poulet in the coups to your restaurants. However, you might want to have a creative interpretation of the dishes knowing that your competitors are serving that as well. We do enjoy a plate of French poulet stuffed with foie gras and served with mash and asparagus. Wonder what new creations can we look forward to.
Fourth on the list, bidding food courts a good-bye and saying hello to food halls. We have plenty of food courts in Singapore, so much so that sometimes we mistakenly take kopitiams as food courts or even hawker centres as food courts, despite the minute differentiation between them all. Well the idea of food halls involves the collaboration of artisan food by name-brand restaurants. It kind of represents having well-known names packed together at a spot where diners can get the best of all worlds.
Fifth on the list, be prepared to welcome these fishies back to your menu. We have seen an interpretation of anchovies on the western menu from Manhattan Fish Market and saba fish on the Japanese menu that is similar to mackerel fish. Restaurants might want to take a second look on these, including the Herring and keep them in view.
Lastly, although not an exhaustive list, work on your drinks menu with Starbucks leading the way in introducing more teas to go with their selection of food in the pastry cases. Also, try out some new flavours on fizzy sodas, sour beers as well as pressed juices.Consultants Baum+Whiteman have given their take on what the hottest f&b trends will be in year 2014 and we will take a look at some.
