Editor’s Note: Looking for another perspective on food and flavor trends, Prepared Foods asked chef and cookbook author Wilbert Jones for perspectives on two summer shows. In this first of a two-part series, Jones shares his notes from the National Restaurant Show.

One of my biggest observations of The National Restaurant Show involves the reformulation or “remake” of many products made with familiar ingredients and flavors. Both shows reminded me of elements from my childhood, and particularly how my grandmother cooked. She worked as a cook 41 years for a first-generation family from Italy. 

Grandmother learned to make many traditional pastas and sauces from scratch. However, in the Mississippi Delta where we lived, hot peppers were a must-have ingredient for many everyday meals. One grandmother’s signature pasta dish, I could still take today (she’s been deceased nearly 50 years), was spaghetti (or capellini), cooked in grated onion water. After the pasta was drained, salted butter and freshly cut green hot chili peppers were added, topped with grated parmesan cheese. It still is a super simple dish with epic taste.   

As I strolled through NRA, I saw many vendors tweaked products by adding familiar ingredients: a canned marinara sauce with real truffles; or Asian Bao Buns stuffed with Chicago-Style pizza and cheeseburger ingredients/flavors. There also a beef jerky company with a plant-based jerky made of shiitake mushrooms.

Vendors often told me, in effect, that “Our customers want great tasting products with familiar flavors and to some extent, clean labels—all without compromising good quality.” 

Restaurant (Show) Review
The 2024 NRA Show showcased many compound products made with simple ingredients

Anthony & Sons Bakery, Inc. launched a new plant-based avocado whole grain bread. This retail product is made of guacamole spices, fresh avocados, and an assortment of flax seeds, sunflower seeds, oats and wheat. The company notes avocados are considered heart healthy and are rich in monounsaturated fats. Further, both avocados and whole grain bread are good sources of dietary fiber, which aids digestion and regulates blood sugar levels. 

Truffle company, Sabatino, introduced two new pasta sauces made with black truffles. There’s a Black Truffle Marinara Sauce and a Black Truffle Arrabbiata Sauce, sold in 18oz retail jars across the United States. Both sauces are made from traditional Italian recipes by this century- old company. Each formula contains real authentic black summer truffle crumbs and natural truffle flavor. This global company prides itself with operating manufacturing plants in their hometown Umbria, Italy, and West Haven Ct., where the pasta sauces are produced. 

Sea Tales is a leading producer of tuna products that are sustainable, Marine Stewardship Council Certified, and 100% pole and line caught. Two of their signature products sold in 7oz retail jars are solid white albacore wild tuna in extra virgin olive oil with lemon (containing only tuna, olive oil, salt and lemon), and solid white albacore wild tuna in extra virgin olive oil with chili (containing tuna, olive oil, chili and salt). Both products offer the consumer gourmet tasting experience, using the simplest ingredients.  

Taking it to the Street
Street food inspired products continue to grow and extend beyond food trucks. 

Exhibiting at NRA’s Omni-Channel Restaurant Concept Booth was Chicago’s own Wow Bao, a leading fast-casual restaurant chain. Interestingly, Wow Bao now offers its popular bao and Asian products to other foodservice operators and retail consumers alike. On the latter front, it recently expanded is retail frozen bao product line to nearly 7,000 retailers across the United States. There are more products soon to hit the retail shelves including Ginger Chicken Potstickers and Pork Soup Dumplings. 

Bao is a type of yeast-leavened filled bun in various Chinese cuisines, usually associated with street food. The fillings can range from vegetarian, meat, poultry and even dessert ingredients. The taste of the bun is sweet in comparison to traditional Chinese dumplings. And, the texture is light, fluffy and soft. Wow Bao’s restaurant-quality products flavors include: Teriyaki Chicken, Chinese-style BBQ Pork, Mongolian-style Spicy Beef, Kung Pao Chicken, Thai-Style Curry Chicken, Szechwan-Style Spicy Pork. There are also a few non-traditional flavors scheduled to hit the market soon: Chicago-Style Pizza, Dessert Coconut Custard, and Dessert Cinnamon Apple. 

Back on the NRA floor was Cuisine Made Easy, which produces appetizers, dumplings, dim sum, and noodles. There’s also an eight-item line of line bao buns. Varieties include Pork Cabbage Bao (pork, cabbage, shitake mushrooms, chicken power, salt, sesame oil, onion, sugar), and Vegetable Bao.  (woodear mushrooms [black fungus], shitake mushrooms, vermicelli, vegetarian protein, bamboo shoots, bean curd, celery, chili, carrots, preserved radish, salt, sugar, white pepper vegetarian powder, potato starch, yeast, sesame seed oil) 

Plant-based giant IMPOSSIBLE, debuted its version of an Impossible Jumbo beef hot dog, for foodservice customers. Each hot dog weighs 2.26oz, contains 16g of protein with just 9g grams of fat (about 50% less fat than leading meat made hot dogs). The application usage is versatile and its texture works for grilling, pan-frying, boiling, steaming or battering and frying as a corndog. This product won the FABI (Food and Beverage Award Winner), at the 2024 NRA.

Grecian Delight Kronos, sampled a new frozen line of plant-based offerings (made from chickpea powder) including Falafel IQF Fritters, Falafel Cooked Pucks, and Falafel Balls. These products can be used as appetizers or as the main protein ingredient for pita sandwiches and bowls. 

Konscious Foods, Richmond, B.C., introduced a foodservice line of plant-based frozen sushi, poke bowls, and onigiri. The company already has debuted at retail with a California Roll (comes with avocado and pickled cucumber tamari sauce), Rainbow Roll (with plant-based tuna, jasberry rice & mango and tamari sauce), Salmon Poke Bowl (with plant-based salmon, spicy miso mayo sauce, edamame corn, mango and organic rice), Tuna Poke Bowl (plant-based tuna, citrus ponzu sauce, edamame corn, mango and organic rice), and a Japanese Vegetable Curry Onigiri (with nori & sesame furikake).   

Hibiscus is trending!
From sorbets to carbonated beverages to candies, the flavor of hibiscus took center stage across several categories at NRA Show. These flavor notes are tangy, slightly citrus with a hit of floral sweetness. Hibiscus pairs well with dark fruits such as sweet cherry and cranberry, which can lead to an abundance of new product creations – anything from salad dressings to dessert icings. 

Australia’s Wild Hibiscus, produces a line of hibiscus-infused products showcased at this year’s NRA Show. One item is a Hibiscus Flower Extract made from fresh cold-pressed hibiscus flowers, dried hibiscus and cane sugar. It’s manufactured in at 3.4oz bottle, and can be used to flavor bottled water, infused cocktails, sorbets and ice creams.