Whether you are an operator who provides coffee to restaurants or one who wants to know what consumers are eating away from home, the National Restaurant Association offers helpful insights in its 2018 culinary forecast. Convenience services operators might find it interesting that artisan soft drinks, cold brew coffee, gourmet lemonade, locally roasted coffee and specialty iced teas were among the NRA's top non-alcoholic beverage trends.
Fads "heating up" include doughnuts with nontraditional fillings, farm/estate branded items, and veggie-centric cuisine.
Fads the NRA calls old news are meals in mason jars, spiralized vegetables, pumpkin spice, flavored popcorn and egg-white sandwiches.
