1.
Get more info on this report!
Generational Comfort Food: Culinary Trend Mapping Report, Vol. 6, No. 1
July 14, 2009
On the surface, most of us crave many of the same foods: ice cream, chocolate, grilled
cheese, chips. However, different generations can crave different foods─and, as
importantly, different incarnations of those foods─for different reasons.
How does this play out with comfort food, a topic near and dear to consumers’ hearts in
times of economic turmoil and financial stress? Do Boomers and their Gen Y offspring
turn to the same foods for comfort? How about Gen Xers, raising children in a new
world of healthful options and global flavors? And what role do venerable food brands
play in definitions of comfort food by generation?
To uncover some answers, the Center for Culinary Development conducted a national
online Generational Comfort Food Survey . By aligning survey findings with the
comfort food trends we have been tracking, it became clear that comfort foods are
evolving. And that’s because consumers’ tastes and values are evolving, along with
health goals and personal/professional lifestyles.
So what’s new? Here are three overarching dynamics that are framing change in the
comfort food arena:
• Contemporary Quality - Consumer expectations and criteria are changing.
Food quality comes in new shapes and sizes today, in some cases customized to
each generation.
• The New Diversity - It’s not just Generation Y that is adopting comfort foods
from other cultures.
• Balanced Eating - Indulging in our favorite comfort foods can result in pangs of
guilt afterwards. However, today’s consumers have new choices.
Generational Comfort Food: Culinary Trend Mapping Report weaves discussion of
these overarching dynamics into profiles of key contemporary comfort food trends. It
also situates each trend within the five stages of the Center for Culinary Development’s
niche-to-mainstream trend mapping:

2. • Stage 1
• Breakfast for Dessert. Consumers of all ages are enjoying sweet breakfast
foods in after-dinner slots.
• Stage 2
• The New Meatloaf. Chefs are updating meatloaf with new meats (some more
healthful), new global flavorings and new forms.
• The Return of Pie. Inspired bakers re-do pie with fresher, more seasonal fillings
and exotic twists.
• Stage 3
• Pho/Vietnamese Beef Noodle Soup. Thanks to a more diverse Gen Y, many
consumers are finding comfort in this flavorful and healthful Vietnamese noodle
soup.
• Stage 4
• Asian Curries. Aromatic and satisfying Indian and Thai curry dishes have
attracted a broad fan base of adventurous eaters, including those seeking more
nourishing comfort.
• Casserole Redux. Today’s casseroles are fresher and more healthful, improved
with seasonal vegetables and lighter fillings.
Stage 5
• Mac and Cheese With a Twist. Whether updated with creative twists or
supplemented with healthful veggies, mac ‘n cheese remains a crowd pleaser.
This data-rich report combines tracking of today’s culinary trends with fresh consumer
insights. Manufacturers and foodservice operators can rarely go wrong with savvy
catering to consumers’ comfort food cravings. To really hit the target, look to our trend
translations for a world of contemporary comfort food opportunities.
• • • The Culinary Trend Mapping Report is an indispensable tool for those whose job it
is to stay abreast of what's hot - or what will be - in the food world!
Using the Center for Culinary Development’s (CCD) signature Trend Mapping
technique, a validated method identifying which culinary trends are “gaining traction”
and which are simply flashes in the pan, each report concentrates on a theme, or trend,
that is affecting the food industry, and then looks at the emerging and established
ingredients, cooking styles and products along the Trend Map that are driving this
theme.
Each report is a substantial journal packed with trends, data, strategies and insights on
the food industry that simply aren't available anywhere else.
Each Issue of the Culinary Trends Mapping Report
• Identifies the maturity level of foods and ingredients according to CCD’s unique,
proprietary 5-stage trend mapping process.

3. • Concentrates on a theme that is affecting the food industry, and then looks at the
emerging and established trends along the Trend Map that affect—or are
affected by—this theme.
• Delves into these trends and what they mean for you and the manufacturing,
retailing, and foodservice industries.
• Gives strategic insight into how consumers are thinking of and reacting to new
foods and ingredients.
• Provides business know-how regarding opportunities, challenges, and ways to
implement current trends into foodservice, retail, and packaged goods
operations.
• Presents a feature interview with a member chef from CCD’s exclusive 80+
member Chefs’ Council® that offers expert analysis and his or her perspective on
a specific trend.
Additional features include:
• Menu Examples: Within the trend profiles, we show how the trends are being
served─through current menu examples from white tablecloth and independent
restaurants, as well as new product offerings from chain foodservice operators.
• Industry Veterans Speak: Points of view from an industry perspective on what
each trend means—whether positive or negative—to the food industry at large,
including consumers, professionals and businesses.
Trend Mapping
Trend Mapping is guided by the premise that major food trends pass through five
distinct stages on their way to the mainstream:
• Stage 1: The ingredient, dish and/or cooking technique appears at upscale dining
establishments, ethnic and popular independent restaurants.
• Stage 2: The item is featured in specialty consumer-oriented food magazines,
such as Gourmet and Bon Appétit plus retail stores such as Sur La Table that
target culinary professionals and serious home cooks.
• Stage 3: The item begins to appear in mainstream chain restaurants --
Applebee's or Chili's --as well as retail stores such as Williams-Sonoma that
target recreational cooks.
• Stage 4: Publications such as Family Circle and Better Homes and Gardens pick
up the buzz.
• Stage 5: Finally, the trend makes its way to quick service restaurant menus and
is either starting to appear or is having increased presence on grocery store
shelves.
Table of Contents

4. Executive Summary
Why Generational Comfort Food? - Kimberly Egan
Generational Comfort Food Survey Overview
Executive Summary
Trend Summary
Stage 1 - Breakfast for Dessert
Stage 2 - The New Meatloaf
- The Return of Pie
Stage 3 - Pho/Vietnamese Beef Noodle Soup
Stage 4 - Asian Curries
- Casserole Redux
Stage 5 - Mac 'n' Cheese With a Twist
Chef Speak: CCD Chefs Council Voices
Patti Dellamonica-Bauler: "Cozying Up" Desserts
Strategic Implications
Opportunities for Comfort by Generation
Sources
Source List
Available immediately for Online Download at
http://www.marketresearch.com/product/display.asp?productid= 2118704
US: 800.298.5699
UK +44.207.256.3920
Int'l: +1.240.747.3093
Fax: 240.747.3004