Predicting 2011 Food and Dining Trends

Artisan ice pops: Popsicles are taking on an upscale, global vibe bursting with exotic flavors. In New York, La Newyorkina sells flavors like tamarind and passionfruit, People’s Pops creates treats-on-a-stick like roasted red plum, blackberry-black tea and pear-ginger, and you can find pomegranate-tangerine, Mexican chocolate and orange-mango-ancho at Locopops in Raleigh and surrounding towns.

Korean spicing and condiments. Kogi, the LA food truck that launched a thousand wheels, has propelled Korean cuisine into the big time. Bulgogi, bibmibap and kimchee will enter America’s gastronomic lexicon. Publicity around the Momofuko chain will also give Korean a push.

Tacos with global and wacky fillings. Look for an outburst of outrageously creative mult-culti tacos, soft and hard, from fast food to haute cuisineries.

Grits are the hot new grain. Expect grits to leap from morning food to an all-purpose starch. It’s part of another trendlet: down-home southern cooking. Shrimp and grits could be the dish of the year. Grits are also gaining popularity because of its gluten-free status. Look for more gluten-replacing starches like grits, quinoa and chickpeas on menus.

New-fangled sandwiches. Last year it was gussied up hot dogs and gourmet hamburgers, next year it’ll be sandwiches over the moon but they’ll be called something else. There are Mexican cemitas, Vietnamese banh mi, baos (traditionally yeasty steamed buns with savory fillings that are now being formed as fluffy flatbreads to wrap around banh mi-like ingredients, tartines, and regional American sandwiches. To me, it seems Banh mi (pronounced “bun me”) will be the sandwich that really breaks through. This Vietnamese street food that unites the flavors of France and Vietnam has sparked the site BattleoftheBanhmi.com that allows visitors to search for and nominate their favorite banh mi shops by states, and includes recipes so you can make your own at home.

Convenience store cuisine. Drug stores and convenience stores are ramping up their food departments with newly conceived fresh “grab-and-go” departments.

Popup restaurants. The recession created lots of empty restaurants and lots of chefs with no kitchens. Now we have popup restaurants (like food trucks) with no location at all. Impromptu food places are popping up and customers are finding them via Twitter and word of mouth. Many popups are now treated in the media alongside major restaurant openings.

Snacks and multiple snacks replacing meals.

Breakfast all the time. More restaurants and chains are entering the breakfast biz, and soft slow-cooked eggs are appearing all over upscale restaurant menus. They’re comforting, turning fancy dishes into homey offerings — runny eggs on pasta, pizza, braised meats and grits.

Going collaborative. Group couponing and location-based restaurant promotions — Groupon, Village Vines, Open Table.

Buzz-worthy foods and ingredients:

Coconut water, awash in a mythology of good hea

Bourbon, for people who actually like booze

Cucumbers, lavender and hibiscus, especially in cocktails

Burrata cheese

Umami along with stealth use of miso

Sangria with new twists

Peppadew

Macarons, not macaroons

Whoopee pie

Fregola, a pasta from Sardinia

Designer donuts imitating froufrou cupcakes

Pesto variations

Greek yogurt, even larger