FALL 2010
FLAVOR EXPEDITION New York City
by Gerry LudwigBig Apple restaurants drive the casualization trend
(Proprietary, custom-ground burgers incorporating various whole-muscle cuts of beef are the ultimate in menu differentiation. - photos courtesy of Gordon Food Service)
Dining styles are becoming more casual throughout all segments of the industry. White-tablecloth restaurants have eliminated tablecloths, casual restaurants are creating meatballs, meatloaf and sausages, and consumers are lining up to dine from food trucks — all part of continued growth for the dining-casualization trend.
Nowhere is this more evident than in New York City. In the quest to satisfy the value equation for consumers demanding less formality and greater spontaneity and comfort, the city’s chefs and operators are tweaking ingredients and menu selections, menu wording, decor cues and even waitstaff dress and comportment.
The New Casual Equation
On the culinary side, casualization is apparent in less-costly ingredients being given bigger and better flavor treatments. This in no way means that operators are compromising quality; rather, they are eschewing traditional high-ticket products, which are generally simpler to prepare, in favor of humbler ingredients that require more labor and creativity to produce a great dish. All of this heightened creativity is resulting in sustained plate profitability for operators and very compelling dining for restaurant patrons.
Across the city, menus are featuring flavor-forward offerings based on more-economical proteins, including braised cuts of beef, pork and lamb; ground meats of all sorts; sausages; value steak cuts, such as ball tip, tri-tip and skirt; bone-in chicken; and eggs.
Even more exciting are the dishes built upon non-protein ingredients like beans, whole grains, rice and every form of fresh vegetables, all prepared using a wider array of cooking methods and flavor layering.
Two other aspects of the casualization trend that are affecting menus are comfort and sharing. While comfort food is a trend in itself, the less-costly, bigger-flavor facet pulls virtually all comfort food, both American and ethnic, under the larger umbrella of casualization.