Datassential Releases Food, Flavor, Beverage Trend Predictions for 2027

2027 Trends at a Glance

Late MAC Stage Concepts Get New Life: Datassential's Menu Adoption Cycle (MAC), built on more than 20 years of menu and consumer data, tracks trends from Inception through Adoption and Proliferation to Ubiquity. Late-stage concepts, those in Proliferation or Ubiquity, can find new life when operators use them in new ways. Five are making a comeback: banana, anchovy, mango, the old fashioned, and deli salads.

"Heading into 2027, we see some later stage MAC concepts getting new life," said Jaclyn Marks, Senior Publications Manager and Trendologist at Datassential. "Banana, anchovy, mango, deli salads, and the old fashioned, for instance, have been around forever, but enterprising operators are showcasing them in next-level applications and as flavors—think banana coffee and cocktails or mango sticky rice ice cream and pies."

New Classics to Know for 2027: Ten foods, flavors, and beverages have graduated to New Classics, which highlights trends Datassential flagged early that are rapidly making their way into the mainstream. New Classic items are now cemented as must-haves for many consumers and can be leveraged across restaurant segments and retailers. This year's list includes whipped feta, chili crisp, sticky toffee pudding, hibiscus, and dirty soda. Typically, New Classic trends follow a pattern we've seen before: ube, a Trend to Watch in 2017, for example, moved to the New Classics list in last year's report.

Foods and Flavors to Know for 2027 and Beyond: Ten more foods and flavors are on the radar for potential future growth, including buldak, Korean spicy chicken in a gochujang and chile sauce; doubanjiang, a fermented fava bean and chile paste at the heart of Sichuan cooking; falooda, a South Asian dessert of rose syrup, vermicelli, and basil seeds topped with ice cream or kulfi; and kinilaw, a Filipino dish of raw fish "cooked" in vinegar and citrus.

Beverages to Know for 2027 and Beyond: New this year, a list of 10 beverages to know for the future includes Vietnamese lemonade made with salted preserved lemons or limes; koji milk, an alternative milk made with koji, a Japanese mold; makgeolli, a milky Korean rice wine; and the cantarito, a Mexican cocktail consisting of orange, lime, and grapefruit soda traditionally served in a salt-rimmed clay cup.

CDMX (Mexico City) is the Cuisine to Know for 2027 and Beyond: As we look to what's next for Mexican cuisine (one of the most-loved global cuisines by U.S. consumers), we see regional CDMX cuisine popping up more at operators stateside. As younger generations gain more purchasing power, it's notable that 75% of Millennials, statistically more than any generation, are interested in trying CDMX cuisine. Overall, though, 58% of U.S. consumers are interested in trying it. Pulque, a fermented, agave-based beverage quintessential to CDMX culture, is up 147% on alcoholic beverage menus over the past 4 years, and 49% of U.S. consumers are interested in trying pambazos (a griddled bread roll dipped in mild red chile sauce and stuffed with potato and chorizo) but haven't yet. The same is true of huaraches, an approachable classic CDMX concept featuring oblong corn tortillas topped with beans, meat, salsa, and cheese.

"We've been identifying trends early for more than 20 years," said Jim Emling, CEO at Datassential. "We flagged Nashville Hot in 2014, and it reached Ubiquity on the Southern MAC in 2025. With 70% of consumers optimistic about the year ahead, now is the time to innovate. Our AI-powered growth forecasts are 98% accurate, so teams can plan around these predictions with confidence."

Download the 2027 Trends Report sneak peek here. The full report featuring deep dives into not only the foods, flavors, and beverages to know for the year ahead and beyond but also key macro trends and forces that will shape the industry will be available exclusively to Datassential subscribers and give foodservice and CPG teams the data they need to plan for the future. To learn more, visit Datassential.com.

About Datassential
Datassential is the global authority for food and beverage intelligence, helping brands, operators, and retailers make confident decisions in a complex and fast-changing industry. Founded in 2001, the company delivers trusted food intelligence through its all-in-one platform, Datassential One, which brings together menu, consumer, and sales intelligence alongside AI-powered analysis. More than 90% of the leading foodservice and consumer packaged goods companies rely on Datassential to understand market change and stay ahead of what's next.

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SOURCE Datassential