Unilever Food Solutions’ (UFS) latest Future Menus report, Volume 4, focuses on the trends of ‘Street Food Couture’, ‘Borderless Cuisine’, ‘Diner Designed’ and ‘Culinary Roots’.
Future Menus Volume 4 is about creating dishes without limits, while still delivering consistency, quality, and strong commercial results.
Street Food Couture continues the street food trend, with chefs upping the ante by incorporating gourmet ingredients, mashing up cultures and using modern techniques, offering bold global options that remain accessible and authentic.
For pubs and clubs, Unilever advises adoption of barbell pricing – “value-rooted street items and prestige provenance experiences to lift margins and reach”.
Communal eating drives engagement, it says, and is valued on social occasions, while handheld food from across the globe boosts add-ons and satisfies cravings.
A current common flavour upgrade popular with Gen Z is hot honey, which can be added to enhance fried chicken, pizza and cocktails for minimal effort and without changing core recipes.
Borderless Cuisine takes the idea of fusion further, creating bold and unexpected combinations using new techniques, honouring international traditions and being creative, all with a real understanding of world flavours. It plays with texture and tells a story from the serving dishes to the last bite.
Costs can be controlled by avoiding imports and instead sourcing authentic-tasting substitutes locally.
Gen Z tend to look for emotional engagement through storytelling, such as giving concise origin stories for dishes, which can enhance perceived value. Gen Z want fusion that is culturally respectful and knowledgeable rather than gimmicks. Craft non-alcoholic options such as Mexican beverages are well received and are low-cost, with the possibility of premium pricing if made in-house.
Diner Designed gives customers a sense of connection to and ownership of their experience, whether it is selecting toppings or a sauce mixed at the table, or having their favourite order remembered.
Diner Designed is about personalisation, utilising a venue’s team, the menu and local knowledge to create memorable moments.
Gen Z are looking for experiences that are different from home. Full-service restaurants can give ‘Instagrammable’ experiences as a unique selling proposition if offering table-side theatre, which bolsters guest excitement.
A current Gen Z favourite is a Dining in the Dark experience, where diners are blindfolded to heighten senses and create a unique experience. Set menus can simplify the process.
Culinary Roots taps into defining dishes celebrating local history and personal identity.
Currently authenticity is a top priority, with heritage ingredients a highlight. Flavours such as turmeric, black sesame, yuzu, tamarind and tempeh connect tradition with forward-looking offerings.
Diners, Unilever says, are wanting to see the effort and skill in each dish, so allow them to see fermentation jars, char marks and botanical garnishes.
Allow ingredients to lead, Unilever continues. Keep them recognisable, vibrant, and true to their natural form. Focus on local and native produce and present it in a way that highlights its colour, shape, and character, with authenticity speaking for itself.
Again, storytelling should be integrated into these dishes to support premium pricing.
Together, these four trends point to a future where creativity, authenticity, and experience come together to drive both customer connection and commercial success.
