HOUSTON — What are the food trends that dominated the Houston restaurant scene in 2023 and what would some of Houston's top food influencers like to see in the coming year? Here's a list, according to Chron.com's Erica Cheng.
First up, there's seafood. Houston chef Nick Wong noted in Cheng's article there was a rise in popularity in 2023 of dishes that include oysters, redfish and blue crab with ingredients from Galveston and beyond. That, along with the rise in seafood restaurants in Houston, has made seafood one of the trending foods of the year.
Next, Cheng mentioned 'omakase.' If you're not familiar with the term, it's letting the chef decide what to serve you. It's seen most often at sushi restaurants. In the article, food influencer Adrian Verde mentioned the rise in restaurants serving omakase. Verde said there are now even restaurants that are dedicated to omakase.
Then there's pizza with the flare of different cities, writes Cheng, mentioning the popularity of award-winning restaurants that serve Detroit-style pizza, like Gold Tooth Tony's in the Heights, and Chicago-style pizzarias, such as Nonno's Family Pizza Tavern on Richmond, which was honored by Esquire as a 'best new restaurant.' Food blogger Zain Mohammed of the Halal Reviewer said he'd like to see halal deep-dish pizza at restaurants in 2024. Halal refers to food that's allowed according to Islamic law.
The final of the four food trends noted by Cheng is more diversity. All of the food influencers Cheng mentioned agree Houston can up its game when it comes to food diversity. Mohammad, who keeps halal, points to Bosnian food and says he'd like to see more halal Tex-Mex and pizzarias across Texas. Verde said we could use more regional food options. And Wong said in the new year, we'll see a rise in West African and Filipino food.
You can read Cheng's full article on Chron.com here.
Editor's note: The information from this story came from Chron.com's Erica Cheng. A version of this story that ran on Tuesday, Dec. 26, on KHOU 11 Morning News didn't include correct sourcing.
