The Flavor Experience is one of the best two-day stops for emerging flavor trends and consumer insights for foodservice professionals. In our 14th year of attending, it remains a cornerstone of Creative Energy’s thought leadership and the insights we bring back to our clients.

This year, the conversations went well beyond what’s hot on the menu. Restaurant traffic, changing consumer behaviors, functional foods, Gen Z dining habits, and the relentless demand for menu innovation all point to an interesting 2027.

Here’s what caught our attention.

A Slow Traffic Comeback

After two years of declines, Circana/NPD is projecting a slight return to positive restaurant traffic through the end of 2027. With consumer spending increases in foodservice at 3.3% compared with 1.9% in retail, it’s apparent that consumers are still willing to spend when they believe the occasion and experience are worth it.

There are other signals of changing behavior. For the first time since COVID, delivery ticked downward by 1% in the second quarter of this year.

Also helping restaurant traffic is the higher-income 65+ demographic, which continues to increase restaurant visits. But perhaps the biggest takeaway is the extraordinary growth of beverage occasions, now credited by Circana with driving 89% of the growth in commercial foodservice sales.

For food marketers and operators, that’s a number worth paying attention to. The beverage menu is increasingly becoming a traffic, margin and innovation opportunity rather than an afterthought.

The Power of Protein and Functional Benefits

According to trend expert Nancy Kruse, limited-time offers (LTOs) are up 134%, with restaurant R&D operating at an all-time high to feed the LTO machine.

Animal protein claims lead LTO growth, up 11%, while healthy-halo claims are up 6%. Other functional benefits showing up on menus include high fiber, hydration and collagen.

Consumers increasingly want food to do something for them beyond simply tasting good. Protein may be leading the conversation today, but functionality is becoming a broader platform for restaurant menu innovation.

The Latest on Gen Z

Gen Z continues to rewrite the dining daypart playbook. Their new prime time for dinner? Apparently, it’s 4 to 6 p.m.

They’ve embraced the “joy of missing out,” or JOMO, by spending more time at home. But when they do go out, they may compress the experience through “soft clubbing,” gathering at coffee shops and other social venues featuring music and non-alcoholic beverages.

Then there’s “friction maxxing,” a reaction against always-on technology in which some Gen Z consumers are deliberately seeking more human interaction and analog experiences. Think vinyl records, flip phones, and experiences that don’t require another app.

Go figure.

But there’s a serious marketing lesson underneath all of it. For a generation raised on digital convenience, human connection and real-world experiences may actually be becoming differentiators.

Snacks as Meal Replacements

At last year’s event, GLP-1 use offered an early glimpse of consumers shifting toward smaller portions, small bites, and protein-rich foods. Today, that opportunity continues to grow, with snacks and slightly larger snack items increasingly becoming center-of-the-plate occasions.

According to Circana/NPD, 37% of consumers are ordering smaller portion sizes, with nearly six in 10 of those consumers doing so for health reasons.

GLP-1 users also order more water and fewer sides, snacks, and breads. More broadly, consumers are ordering more non-fried vegetables, up 9%, and more salads as a main dish, up 6%.

For restaurant operators and food manufacturers, portion flexibility may become as important as flavor innovation. The opportunity isn’t necessarily about offering less food. It’s about offering the right amount of food for a changing consumer.

Flavors and Items to Watch for 2027

One of the most anticipated parts of The Flavor Experience comes when Cathy Holley, Publisher and Editor-in-Chief of Flavor & The Menu and President of The Flavor Experience, and Flavor & The Menu Managing Editor Katie Ayoub share the flavors, ingredients and menu items they believe deserve watching in the coming year.

Here are a few that stood out:

• Fried Chicken Caesar Wraps — Millennials and Gen Z love them. They combine a familiar health halo with the texture contrast of crispy chicken, lettuce, and Caesar dressing.
• Black Garlic — Soft, chewy, and complex, with hints of fermentation but without the heat or acidity associated with raw garlic. It offers chefs another way to add depth and umami.
• Croissants as a Flavor System — Laminated dough is moving beyond the traditional breakfast occasion. Look for croissants as carriers for savory flavors, sandwiches, and even meal-replacement applications.
• Pişmaniye (Turkish Cotton Candy) — Made by blending flour roasted in butter with pulled sugar and forming it into fine strands, pişmaniye offers an intriguing new garnish and texture for desserts and ice cream.
• Gelatin — We grew up with jiggly Jell-O^®, and now gelatin is finding new relevance as consumers become more interested in collagen and protein.
• Sandwich Melts — Led by patty melts and tuna melts, this old-school favorite is finding a new audience among Gen Z and on TikTok.
• Anything Ranch — Ranch continues to evolve beyond a simple dressing. Restaurants are using it as a flavor platform for everything from hot honey combinations to unexpected sweet, spicy, and popping-candy infusions.
• Dairy-Forward Desserts — Cheesecakes, lemon curd, egg tarts, and soft serve are all finding renewed attention. Even cottage cheese is making its way back onto restaurant menus.

A History-Making Event

In its 14th year, the Texas Pete^® Kitchen Hero Cook-Off made its debut at The Flavor Experience. Four top chain chefs squared off to create the best culinary application featuring Texas Pete^® sauces, with their dishes judged by fellow chain culinary professionals.

Jessica Bograd of City Barbeque earned Grand Master honors.

In her name, Garner Foods, makers of Texas Pete^®, donated $10,000 to Share Our Strength’s No Kid Hungry^® campaign and another $10,000 to CORE^®, which provides support to foodservice workers and their families facing medical crises and natural disasters.

It was a great example of culinary innovation being used for something bigger than simply putting another new item on the menu.

Looking Ahead to 2027 Foodservice Innovation

If there was one overriding message from this year’s Flavor Experience, it’s that consumers aren’t finished with restaurants. But they are changing what they want from them.

They’re looking for value, but value doesn’t always mean cheap. They want smaller portions, but they still want indulgence. They want health and functionality, but flavor remains non-negotiable. And despite living much of their lives digitally, younger consumers are increasingly looking for experiences and human connections worth leaving home for.

For food manufacturers and restaurant brands, that creates tremendous opportunity. The winners in 2027 will be the brands that recognize these shifts early and translate them into products, menu ideas and marketing that give consumers a reason to act.

At Creative Energy, that’s why we continue to invest the time to attend events like The Flavor Experience, listen to the people shaping the industry and bring those insights back to our clients.

Because spotting a trend is interesting. Knowing what to do with it is where the real value begins.