picture by Wally Gobetz

Last Thursday afternoon I chatted to Peter Godfrey about food trends for 2013. There are plenty of lists and ideas out there on the internet (such as that put together by another Adelaide blogger, George at The Foodologist) so rather than rehash all of those I’m going to focus on an Adelaide-centric few.

The rise of the food truck. Hardly a prediction, because food trucks are already an established part of the Adelaide food scene. We’ll see even more over the next year and we’ll see more diversity and catering to more niche markets. We’ll also see more collaborative efforts like Fork on the Road.

Shrinking of fine dining. Adelaide institution The Manse closed its doors in 2012 and while I hope we say goodbye to no other fine dining establishments in 2013, we’ll see few, if any, new ventures in this vein. I think this is a sad thing because as much as I love the fantastic food and casual experience you can enjoy at many Adelaide restaurants, I do love dressing up for a meal out, sitting in a quiet room and eating great food. Fine dining isn’t doomed – it’s all swings and roundabouts and it will enjoy a resurgence, just not in 2013!

The continued rise of South/Central American (think Mexican) and Korean cuisines. We’ve seen a real boom in Mexican eateries in Adelaide in the last year and the fresh, vibrant flavours and the fact that the food can be relatively healthy will ensure continued popularity. Korean cuisine is yet to really hit its straps in Adelaide but more and more venues are opening and one day Korean restaurants will end up being as ubiquitous as Chinese or Thai!

Niche coffees. This prediction is one on a slow boil. I’m aware of two venues in Adelaide selling siphon coffee (see picture above) and we’re going to see more and more of this. Ordering coffee is going to become more complicated … siphon, Aeropress, pour over, cold drip/brew … By next year we’ll all be well versed in these and more!

The small bar. Changes to SA’s liquor licensing legislation will mean we’ll see more quirky, independent, hole in the wall bars. And this will mean a much greater diversity of drinks available. We’ve already got great venues such as Cork and Udaberri, and there are quite a few lined up to open (as a big fan of Alpha Box & Dice wines, I can’t wait for Cantina Sociale to throw open its doors!). If you want to drink something other than badly kept draught beer or cheap, nondescript “dry white wine”, 2013 is going to be your year!

Am I right? Have I missed out an obvious trend for the coming year? Let us all know in the comments!