To some extent, kitchen equipment is also subject to trends, largely dictated of course by menu trends. In recent years, examples have included the focus on sous vide. Norden, however, argued this is no longer the hot toy it once was.
When asked if the fascination with sous vide was now over, she replied: “I think so. I think chefs are using sous vide in a different way now. It used to be a case of, sous vide is the big thing. Now, chefs use it for specific things. If you have a new toy, you want to do everything with that new toy. But eventually you sort of calm down. Sous vide will never go away, but chefs are now more specific about how they are using it.”
Still the hot ticket du jour, however, our designers agreed is the Josper oven. “Josper or Beechwood ovens are the big thing. All the chefs want them,” Norden said.
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“Those trends don’t go away, because they just produce good food. We see a lot more kitchens where it is more about grills, and fast cooking of meat and fish,” Norden said.
Bishop was inclined to agree, and commented: “Jospers are always a winner although robata grills are becoming increasingly more popular due to the current trend seen in Peruvian and Asian offerings.” Bishop also highlighted a new possible trend for the use of 3D food printing technology, which is in fact due to debut in Dubai with the arrival of the Shoreditch-born pop-up Food Ink.
Bishop added: “Experimentation in 3D food printing is something very current and could evolve further.”
Nevertheless, both During and Norden issued a warning on the subject of trends. “Obviously, we look at trends all the time,” Norden told us. “But if you are designing a restaurant, it normally takes about a year. If you look at the trends that are starting to happen when you start to design it, in a year’s time, are they still trends? No.”
During stated at the Vision Conference, Dubai follows, rather than leads, F&B trends. His advice to clients, he added, is often: “Look at the trigger that makes trends happen, rather than the trends.”
Norden concluded: “The important thing is that it fits within the concept. You are not designing a restaurant for next week, but for next year, and actually if you want to give value to your client, the next five years at least.”
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