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| Dining in Houston Style |
Houston is a culinary melting pot with quality cuisine that can rival any large metropolitan area. For the start of 2012, experts have put forth trends to look for in the industry. There’s always something new popping up in the dining world, so check out some Houston restaurants that have opened recently or are just about to make their debut. Also, the Houston area hosts some fabulous “theme” dining spots that are always great for a fun time, and with breakfast meetings becoming very popular, check out some of Houston’s hottest earlyriser spots that offer space for morning meetings or private events.
Dining trends for 2012
Restaurant trends evolve with how, when and where people dine, and what they want to eat reflects the world culture. Here’s a look at what experts predict will influence business practices and food focus at restaurants in the coming year.
Standard dining hours give way to a new schedule, with cocktail hour around 4 p.m., and late dining spiking around 10 p.m. Smart establishments are keeping drinks flowing early and kitchens open late while making pricing affordable to meet the demand. Accompanying this is a need for format flexibility; restaurants need to be able to switch gears from a fast, casual-by-day atmosphere to full-service nighttime elegance. Some restaurants also are finding success by transforming their kitchens into catering businesses during slow times.
The recent boom of gourmet food trucks proved that eccentric menus have market potential when coupled with strong branding and accessibility. Now many of these successful food-truck operators are shifting to brick-and-mortar shops because there’s more money to be made in storefronts. Some will park their trucks at permanent locations; others will attempt to run both stationary and mobile locales with the trucks becoming moving and serving billboards.
The days of food critics having the sole power to make or break a restaurant are gone. Diners are taking control of social media so their friends, more than faceless professionals, now give the recommendations they increasingly trust. Diners also are sharing their own restaurant experiences and opinions on sites like DineSite, OpenTable, Urbanspoon and Yelp! with a wider online audience.
The recent resurgence of comfort foods has sparked a demand for reinventing comforting classics. New taste and texture thrills from recognizable favorites are bringing forth re-imagined macaroni and cheese and sandwiches beyond the basic bread. All kinds of familiar dishes are getting new flavor twists, and there’s still no limit to what people will add to hamburgers, from head cheese and bone marrow to pastrami-and-eggs or Cajun crawfish.
Cooking is at a gastronomic crossroads with everything colliding in a multiethnic, multisensory experience of intentionally clashing flavors. This wilder-is-better philosophy mingles flavors from all over the globe on one plate. Sandwiches are a chief vehicle, but don’t discount daring ideas like fried sushi filled with cheeseburger or tacos stuffed with barbecued chicken and Sriracha slaw or octopus, feta and wasabi-spiked guacamole.
Two countries’ cuisines are rising in recognition: Korea and Peru. Thanks largely to food trucks, Korean offerings like kimchi and kalbi now are appearing on the tables of upscale establishments. Peruvian food—influenced by Japanese, Spanish, Chinese, Italian and Andean flavors and techniques—features vibrant, acidic fruits and juices that create unique raw-fish preparations for ceviche and tiradito and the popular pisco sour cocktail.
Intensely flavored organ meats and other odd parts like tongue, gizzards and pigs’ ears are moving up from ethnic neighborhoods onto the menus of fine restaurants. Also look for more tripe, fried chicken livers, oxtails, sweetbreads and even beef hearts as customers become increasingly adventurous. To provide a foil for the intense flavors of these “other” meats, chefs are concocting globally innovative ways of pickling vegetables and fruits in-house. Made with Asian fish sauce, Mexican spices, ginger, smoked paprika or star anise, these delights often are sold on the menu by themselves or as accompaniment that can enliven multicultural dishes.
The makeup of drink-friendly sharable bar foods is changing. Look for spherical creations, such as balls of kimchi and parmesan rice, fried goat cheese, falafel or crispy oxtail risotto, all dropped briefly in the fryer and served with myriad dipping sauces. Also on the radar are assorted mini sandwiches and globally inspired chicken lollipops and flatbreads.
To the discerning taster, beer is as diverse and delightfully flavorful as ice cream. That realization has led to a rise of restaurants and breweries that promote excellent, often locally crafted beer. Complemented with tasty and often innovative cuisine, the availability of diverse, quality brews is what draws in crowds seeking a tasty and refreshing alternative to their flavor-challenged, mass-marketed and mass-produced counterparts.
Beyond the taste, smell and texture, dining is a visual experience. Currently popular in ceviches, tartars, sushi and salads, chefs are diverting from stacking food impossibly high to stringing out ingredients on elongated plates, a trend that separates the flavors and allows diners to control their culinary exploration. A more extreme experience is “wildcrafting,” in which chefs create horticultural foodscapes coupled with natural elements, such as tree bark, pine needles and lichen. The composed, earthy designs are presented on slabs of slate, miniature rockslides or thrown glass instead of plates.
Dining trends for 2012
Restaurant trends evolve with how, when and where people dine, and what they want to eat reflects the world culture. Here’s a look at what experts predict will influence business practices and food focus at restaurants in the coming year.
Standard dining hours give way to a new schedule, with cocktail hour around 4 p.m., and late dining spiking around 10 p.m. Smart establishments are keeping drinks flowing early and kitchens open late while making pricing affordable to meet the demand. Accompanying this is a need for format flexibility; restaurants need to be able to switch gears from a fast, casual-by-day atmosphere to full-service nighttime elegance. Some restaurants also are finding success by transforming their kitchens into catering businesses during slow times.
The recent boom of gourmet food trucks proved that eccentric menus have market potential when coupled with strong branding and accessibility. Now many of these successful food-truck operators are shifting to brick-and-mortar shops because there’s more money to be made in storefronts. Some will park their trucks at permanent locations; others will attempt to run both stationary and mobile locales with the trucks becoming moving and serving billboards.
The days of food critics having the sole power to make or break a restaurant are gone. Diners are taking control of social media so their friends, more than faceless professionals, now give the recommendations they increasingly trust. Diners also are sharing their own restaurant experiences and opinions on sites like DineSite, OpenTable, Urbanspoon and Yelp! with a wider online audience.
The recent resurgence of comfort foods has sparked a demand for reinventing comforting classics. New taste and texture thrills from recognizable favorites are bringing forth re-imagined macaroni and cheese and sandwiches beyond the basic bread. All kinds of familiar dishes are getting new flavor twists, and there’s still no limit to what people will add to hamburgers, from head cheese and bone marrow to pastrami-and-eggs or Cajun crawfish.
Cooking is at a gastronomic crossroads with everything colliding in a multiethnic, multisensory experience of intentionally clashing flavors. This wilder-is-better philosophy mingles flavors from all over the globe on one plate. Sandwiches are a chief vehicle, but don’t discount daring ideas like fried sushi filled with cheeseburger or tacos stuffed with barbecued chicken and Sriracha slaw or octopus, feta and wasabi-spiked guacamole.
Two countries’ cuisines are rising in recognition: Korea and Peru. Thanks largely to food trucks, Korean offerings like kimchi and kalbi now are appearing on the tables of upscale establishments. Peruvian food—influenced by Japanese, Spanish, Chinese, Italian and Andean flavors and techniques—features vibrant, acidic fruits and juices that create unique raw-fish preparations for ceviche and tiradito and the popular pisco sour cocktail.
Intensely flavored organ meats and other odd parts like tongue, gizzards and pigs’ ears are moving up from ethnic neighborhoods onto the menus of fine restaurants. Also look for more tripe, fried chicken livers, oxtails, sweetbreads and even beef hearts as customers become increasingly adventurous. To provide a foil for the intense flavors of these “other” meats, chefs are concocting globally innovative ways of pickling vegetables and fruits in-house. Made with Asian fish sauce, Mexican spices, ginger, smoked paprika or star anise, these delights often are sold on the menu by themselves or as accompaniment that can enliven multicultural dishes.
The makeup of drink-friendly sharable bar foods is changing. Look for spherical creations, such as balls of kimchi and parmesan rice, fried goat cheese, falafel or crispy oxtail risotto, all dropped briefly in the fryer and served with myriad dipping sauces. Also on the radar are assorted mini sandwiches and globally inspired chicken lollipops and flatbreads.
To the discerning taster, beer is as diverse and delightfully flavorful as ice cream. That realization has led to a rise of restaurants and breweries that promote excellent, often locally crafted beer. Complemented with tasty and often innovative cuisine, the availability of diverse, quality brews is what draws in crowds seeking a tasty and refreshing alternative to their flavor-challenged, mass-marketed and mass-produced counterparts.
Beyond the taste, smell and texture, dining is a visual experience. Currently popular in ceviches, tartars, sushi and salads, chefs are diverting from stacking food impossibly high to stringing out ingredients on elongated plates, a trend that separates the flavors and allows diners to control their culinary exploration. A more extreme experience is “wildcrafting,” in which chefs create horticultural foodscapes coupled with natural elements, such as tree bark, pine needles and lichen. The composed, earthy designs are presented on slabs of slate, miniature rockslides or thrown glass instead of plates.
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If accepted, your submission will be edited for length and clarity. There is no monetary payment if your item is used; instead, you can publicize yourself through a five-line biography with your contact information that will appear at the end of the article.
Send submissions to
editorial@MeetingPlannerResources.org. We will contact you if your submission is chosen.