Hold on to your toques. 2011 promises to be – despite what you might think – an exciting year in Foodie Land. We're setting our stall out now with our predictions of what's gonna be hot for the next months. The rise and rise of Asian food continues with a wave of new restaurants opening across the country. Hey, even Blackpool can boast its own Vietnamese bistro. But it's not just Vietnamese pho bars, look out for Korean barbecue coming to a table near you. And although we all love a good Chinese, you can forget sweet-and-sour; think instead Szechuan hotpots and Hunan Province dishes – it's getting regional. And if you're finally bored of sushi, panic not. Just get yourself along to an izakaya – Japanese drinking establishments serving bar snacks to soak up the sake.
Fusion – been there, done that. But fusion guru Peter Gordon seems to have had enough of the food crimes committed in his name and he's back to show us how it's done. With the opening of his new pad Kopapa in Covent Garden, he's joined by the likes of Anna Hansen (Modern Pantry) and Stevie Parle (The Dock Kitchen) in making food exciting again. Just as long as we're done with the foam thing...
The gourmet burger chains have banished greying patties to the refuse bin where they belong. So let's hope they can do the same for the much-maligned hot dog. Yep, the newest pup on the block is getting a makeover and moving house from cart to diner. And don't expect slimy frankfurters – we're hoping this could be an introduction to gourmet sausages from the world over.
We are so over tapas – and the sharing plates of food patently not Spanish and still called tapas. It should be a food crime. Anyway, moving on... we hear mini plates are the 'new' tapas, although maybe they're just more accurately named. You can already see plates of mini desserts in restaurants up and down the country; next stop four mini mains on a plate – now that's what we call fusion.
Food provenance will continue to be a force within the food industry and we reckon it won't be long before we're seeing single-source listings on menus. Look out for cheeses made from the milk of one no doubt named and cosseted cow, vegetables and fruit from single heirloom-variety plants and so on. Where will it all end?
Don't go anywhere: next time more hot restaurant tips and trends for 2011. And if you've heard of anything on the single-varietal grapevine, let us know.
Like the idea of gourmet sausages. Best sausage ever eaten were in Bonn a sort of Hot Dog the Dog being three times as long as the bread you held it with.
Like the idea of gourmet sausages. Best sausage ever eaten were in Bonn a sort of Hot Dog the Dog being three times as long as the bread you held it with.