Food trends where you are

[Gups]

I don't actually eat out all that much but for some reason really enjoy reading restauraunt reviews and generally keeping in touch with foodie trends.

In London, American fast food has been the dominant trend for the last two years or so, although the tide is beginning to ebb. AKA dude food, dirty food etc - the aim is to reproduce and gourmandise the humble burger (using high quality meat, sourdough buns etc), the hotdog, frid chicken (cooked in buttermilk) and so on. American BBQ is also becoming popular.

As indicated in this Guardian article, this trend is now moving out of London and into the rest of the country.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/lifeandstyle/wordofmouth/2013/jan/11/why-do-brits-love-american-food

Linked to this is a growing tendency to specialise - the hugely popular mini-chain Burger and Lobster allows just three choices.

The next big thing is Ramen - noodle soup in a pork stock. Several places have opened up in Soho recently and are doing a roaring trade.

At the higher dining end, Scandi food has been pretty trendy for a while now, linking in with the foraging movement.

What (if anything) is going on in your area? 

[Liep]

Stone age food is the new thing. Basically don't eat anything they didn't have back then, it sounds horribly like a 1st world idea and it is just that, horrible. Can't eat potatoes, can't eat pasta or bread but lots of meat which is why it's popular. Also tied to the Scandi food thing + foraging.

[Eddie Teach]

The next big thing is Ramen - noodle soup in a pork stock. Several places have opened up in Soho recently and are doing a roaring trade.

[Gups]

Stone age food is the new thing. Basically don't eat anything they didn't have back then, it sounds horribly like a 1st world idea and it is just that, horrible. Can't eat potatoes, can't eat pasta or bread but lots of meat which is why it's popular. Also tied to the Scandi food thing + foraging.

That's the paleo-diet, been around for a while now. The missus was on it for a while.

[Phillip V]

Eating feces.

It's called recycled food.

[Admiral Yi]

We don't really do trends here in the heartland, but based on two restaurants (one in Iowa City and one in the family home base of Wapello) some chefs do seem to be pushing "American food with a twist."  For example the one in IC has a tuna tartare appetizer and some flaming greek cheese appetizer. 

Pedro: a world of difference between noodle shop Ramen and cook your own brick Ramen.

[garbon]

Pedro: a world of difference between noodle shop Ramen and cook your own brick Ramen.

[Barrister]

Local food trends...

Of course a place like Edmonton isn't inventing it's own food trends, but rather following the trends from other regions.  As such the two trends I've seen would be food trucks, and the whole "fresh and local" idea.

It used to be you couldn't buy any food on the street that wasn't a hot dog, but in the last few years several really good food trucks and carts have opened.  In the summer there's a nice Thai food truck I would buy from a few times during the summer.  I've seen a pretty good southern barbecue truck as well.

Restaurants themselves seem to be making a bigger deal of advertising where they get their food from.

I did want to pick a bone with one paragraph from your Guardian article:

Unfortunately, like the political Special Relationship much vaunted in the British press and rarely mentioned in the US, our foodie love affair with America is on unequal footing. We're the love-struck junior partner, the one who – like Blair panting after Bush – does most of the chasing. Americans may be amused by Downton and enamoured of afternoon tea, but British food is never, ever going to be a craze over the pond. There are no secret bangers and mash pop-up restaurants in LA, no Sussex pond pudding fad in Chicago, and no apps listing the top pasties in New York.

The writer is apparently unaware of the "British pub" phenomenon.  Now it's dated at this point, getting its start in the 80s and continuing into the 90s.  But there still exist a great number of "British pubs" all over north america where you probably can indeed find fish and chips, steak and kidney pie and any of a number of British pub favourites.

[Admiral Yi]

I've been in plenty of pubs that served fish and chips but they were generally Mick bars.  Never once have I seen steak and kidney pie on a menu.

Actually a lot of generic bars serve fish and chips too.  It's just Long John Silvers with a beer on the side.

[Barrister]

I've been in plenty of pubs that served fish and chips but they were generally Mick bars.  Never once have I seen steak and kidney pie on a menu.

Actually a lot of generic bars serve fish and chips too.  It's just Long John Silvers with a beer on the side.

Some British pubs are better/more authentic than others, but I've definitely eaten steak and kidney pie at a pub a few times in Canada.

[Admiral Yi]

Some British pubs are better/more authentic than others, but I've definitely eaten steak and kidney pie at a pub a few times in Canada.

I don't doubt it.  I was taking exception to "all over North America."

In my long and illustrious pub crawling career I have been made aware of exactly one "British pub" in the US.  That was Spanky's regular hang in North Augusta.

[Gups]

I've been in plenty of pubs that served fish and chips but they were generally Mick bars.  Never once have I seen steak and kidney pie on a menu.

Actually a lot of generic bars serve fish and chips too.  It's just Long John Silvers with a beer on the side.

Some British pubs are better/more authentic than others, but I've definitely eaten steak and kidney pie at a pub a few times in Canada.

I wonder if it was authentic. Steak and kidney is almost always called a pudding rather than a pie - the case should be made from suet.  Savoury pies are usually made with shortcrust pastry and the fillings tend to be things like steak and ale or chicken and ham.

I knew that you had British and Irish pubs in NA, but not that they were at all known for their food.

[Barrister]

I wonder if it was authentic. Steak and kidney is almost always called a pudding rather than a pie - the case should be made from suet.  Savoury pies are usually made with shortcrust pastry and the fillings tend to be things like steak and ale or chicken and ham.

I knew that you had British and Irish pubs in NA, but not that they were at all known for their food.

Well, they're known for their experience, not their food specifically.  Which means warm beer, bar service, and british food classics.

The better ones at least.  Some put up a vaguely celtic sounding name over the door and serve nothing but burgers.

[CountDeMoney]

Tapas places have been popping up here in the trendy areas faster than MacBook-carrying hipsters in Buddy Hollys with fake prescriptions.
I think they started in DC first, and migrated up I-95.   So look out, Philly, if they're not there already.

More restaurants are jumping on the "only locally grown by local farmers/producers" seasonal fare as well.  Sustainable agriculture, and all that.

[Barrister]

Tapas places have been popping up here in the trendy areas faster than MacBook-carrying hipsters in Buddy Hollys with fake prescriptions.
I think they started in DC first, and migrated up I-95.   So look out, Philly, if they're not there already.

More restaurants are jumping on the "only locally grown by local farmers/producers" seasonal fare as well.  Sustainable agriculture, and all that.

I thought Tapas was a big thing like 10 years ago.