These days, chefs and home cooks alike have umami on their minds. Known as the “fifth taste,” the term umami is predominantly described as a savory flavor. Are you looking for a way to enhance your dishes with that savory, delicious taste that guests crave? There are many foods that contain glutamate, the amino acid compound that imparts wonderful umami flavor– parmesan cheese, soy sauce, mushrooms, tomatoes, carrots, and shellfish, are just a few examples. Looking for something new? Try miso powder. Famous Japanese chef Nobuyaki Matsuhisa (widely known as Nobu) discovered the powder by accident when he left a tub of his miso paste uncovered in the refrigerator and decided to use the dried out product anyways. The results were good and his small mistake turned into his signature seasoning. Try sprinkling miso powder on fish, meat, chicken, and even salads. Read more here.

Here are some more creative ways you can cook with miso powder (dry miso):

1. Dressings and gravies
2. Broths
3. Jams
4. Glazes
5. Marinades

Many national restaurant chains are getting creative to help curb the effects of menu price increases.  Brands such as Chipotle and McAlister’s Deli are using different menu innovation tactics to soften the blow of rising prices.  In an effort to maintain value for customers, Chipotle targeted specific proteins for price increase, for example, raising the price of steak more than chicken.  McAlister’s introduced sandwiches that offered more meat for more money, instead of scaling back on protein portions to keep prices down.  To diversify their menu, BD’s Mongolian Grill added a new menu category that offers cooked-to-order entrees and sides that will complement the restaurant’s signature build-your-own stir-fry offering.  This new segment will offer a variety of price points and give consumers more choice and flexibility in their budgets.

Mann’s Packing (we are proud to say they are a client!) and Technomic have teamed up to produce a comprehensive report on consumer preferences of salad greens and their trending patterns across menus nationwide. According to the report, two-thirds of diners are eager to try new salad greens and are not pleased with ordinary options offered at most restaurants. The study found that consumers prefer the robust texture and mild flavor of crunchy, dark leaves that have been chopped into bite-sized pieces. Salads are big for this summer and we highly recommend downloading this report for the valuable insight on today’s salad trends.

To download the complete report, click here.

Starbucks is synonymous with coffee. Even if you don’t like Starbucks, you know who they are, and you see them everywhere. But that doesn’t mean that the beverage behemoth neglects to reevaluate its menu every so often. Recently, Starbucks has unveiled a new drink offering that has nothing to do with coffee (or tea) — sodas! Handcrafted sodas, to be exact. Touted as made fresh on demand with no preservatives, artificial flavors, or high-fructose corn syrup, consumers will enjoy Golden Ginger Ale, Spiced Root Beer and Lemon Ale sodas as soon as this summer.

Furthermore, on the heels of this news, Starbucks is planning to offer burgers as well. Actually, it’s not at their Starbucks stores, but rather at their La Boulange chain restaurants.

It’s clear that with menu development, it’s all about research and trial and error. Starbucks has had its misses in the past with failed drinks like the Sorbetto and Chantico, but that’s not stopping them from getting creative and competitive.

For more information, check out http://www.starbucks.com/promo/sodas

As we head into warmer weather, we are seeing some hot new beverage trends. Take a look at our roundup below and consider refreshing your menu with some of our suggestions.

Beverage-Themed Dinners: Hosting a wine or beer themed dinner is a great way to create buzz and boost business. Restaurants are pairing with distributors to host beverage themed dinners that educate guests in a fun, delicious way. Consider hosting a dinner on a normally slow night and make sure you advertise the event in advance.

Cocktails: Scotch, herbaceous liqueurs, and bitter components are gaining popularity in cocktails across the country. One cocktail analyst believes that Irish whiskey will experience growth this year.

Seasonal Lattes: 2013 saw a huge trend in seasonal lattes and still shows no signs of slowing. While these drinks are especially popular around the holidays, seasonal lattes can be adapted to any season. If you have an espresso machine, make sure you are keeping your drink menu current and relevant. Consider light, fresh flavors for the spring (think raspberry or mint) and tropical flavors such as almond and coconut for the summer.

Stay up-to-date on the latest beverage trends here: http://nrn.com/menu/beverage-trends

Dessert menus can often be forgotten and become boring and dated, resulting in missed opportunities to delight guests and boost check averages. Don’t let this happen to your restaurant.  The dessert menu is a great place to incorporate trends and seasonal dishes.  Get inspired by some of today’s hottest trends and give your dessert menu a refresh in time for spring.

Breakfast-Inspired Desserts: Pastry chefs across the country are creating dishes inspired by the first meal of the day.  We are seeing desserts with flavors, shapes, and foods often associated with breakfast.  This trend is going farther than waffles and pancakes, which have often been enjoyed as part of either meal.  Pastry chefs are getting creative with sweet concoctions such as cereal-flavored panna cotta, Poptart Ice Cream sandwiches, and bacon-infused ice cream garnished with Cap’n Crunch and Rice Krispies.  Check out this article for more information on this trend.

Berries: As Spring approaches, fruit and berry-focused desserts are popping up on menus nationwide.  These light and bright desserts are a welcome change after a cold winter.  Blueberries are the most popular option and are a great addition to desserts such as tarts, cakes, and cobblers.  While blueberry pastries and desserts are delicious on their own, they are especially wonderful when paired with a hint of lemon.  Read more on berry desserts here.

Milk-and-Cookie Shots:  The Cronut Creator has done it again!  Chef Dominique Ansel released his newest creation: The Milk and Cookie Shot.  It’s a cookie molded into a shot glass and filled with cold vanilla-infused milk.  The cookie is even crisp on the outside and moist and tender on the inside.  This is a great example of how classic desserts and flavor combinations can be refreshed and made completely new and exciting.  Read more about milk-and-cookie shots here.

We wrote a while back about what “umami” is and why it’s important. Umami is the Japanese term that essentially describes foods that have a savory (and sometimes even meaty) flavor. Think of it like the “fifth taste” next to your sweet, sour, bitter, and salty profiles. Umami is becoming so mainstream these days that just Googling the term yields 2.8 million results as of today. Restaurants these days are paying close attention and creating restaurants and menus revolving around this flavor. You’ll even find some restaurants with term in their names!

Umami is not necessarily as exotic as you might think. Foods like tomatoes, mushrooms, cheese, beef, chicken, and pork all contain this flavor, so incorporating umami into your restaurant dishes will be relatively simple. A great umami-rich dish will be a truly  satisfying experience for your guest!

The following list is a small example of some dishes that pack an umami-punch:

1) Eggplant Parmesan
2) Miso soup
3) Pho
4) Tuna fish sandwich
5) Shrimp gumbo
6) Aged steak with sauteed mushrooms
7) Classic meatloaf
8) Pepperoni pizza
9) Ratatouille
10) Bacon-wrapped scallops

In the end, it is crucial to understand that flavor is still what drives customer preference. For more umami-rich dishes including recipes, check out the Umami Information Center.

Tis the season!  Restaurants are making menus festive with special holiday limited-time-offer items.  This is a great way to add some excitement to your menu while showing guests that you’re in the holiday spirit. As stated in the this Huffington Post article, these holiday dishes can become cult classics that keep guests coming back with their families year after year.  We love using these seasonal dishes to create holiday traditions and consumer loyalty.

Take a look at what some of the country’s biggest chain restaurants are offering this season.  It seems that gingerbread, peppermint, and eggnog are some of the most popular holiday flavors being offered.

Starbucks Caramel Brulee photo: Tamara Spain CC by 2.0

Stop in to nearly any bar and you’ll notice the drinks are becoming more complicated. With fresh squeezed juices and unique flavor profiles, consumers are looking for fancier drinks, and bartenders are using technology to meet these demands.

With innovative equipment such as vacuum machines, tabletop stills, and commercial filters, even the most seemingly simple drinks are being refined with technology. Not only does using technology create interest for customers, it also can help to create a higher quality product, and potentially generate a lot of buzz (no pun intended). Get inspired and check out the slideshow from Popular Science for ideas on how to take your bar to the next level and be sure to read our article on designer ice that is showing up in the nation’s hottest bars.

Spicy foods are not a turnoff for American diners, in fact, they crave flavorful foods! New research states that 54% of consumers prefer hot or spicy flavors and sauces. Given that this statistic has increased by 8% since 2009, we are predicting this trend is hot (no pun intended)!

Synergy Restaurant Consultants founder Dean Small always says, “Flavor drives traffic,” and the latest research reports agree. Technomic found that 41% of consumers say that new or innovative flavors can influence them to try a new restaurant. Additionally 75% of these consumers are also highly likely to return to a restaurant that serves them a delicious menu item featuring innovative flavors.

Now is the time to play with the flavors offered on your menu. Get creative and use unique flavor combinations to surprise and delight diners. Based on our 25 years of experience, we know bold flavors will drive traffic to your door.