As more and more people search for new tastes and experiences, region specific restaurants and take away food options are starting to change the landscape of the Australian dining industry.
The days when Mexican meant nachos, Chinese meant fried rice and Japanese was equal to sushi or raw fish are now being outshone by a wider range of regional cuisine options in restaurants, fast food joints and street stalls that play on our hunger for new cultural experiences.
In some cases the rise towards the top of the food chain has actually been a gradual development over many years before a big break into the mainstream. Mexican, for example, started gaining more attention around 2010 with the introduction of chains like Salsa’s, Mad Mex and Guzman y Gomez.
Australians then took to the variety of Mexican dishes like flies to a bottle of Corona, as evidenced by the range of restaurants popping up around the country.
As well as a growing number of Mexican chains, a number of smaller restaurants are developing followings, such as Fonda Mexican in Melbourne. Long established Mexican-inspired restaurants like El Loco in Sydney and Mamasita in Melbourne are also seeing increased patronage as a result of the growing awareness of different Mexican meals.
Alongside the Mexican wave is an increased fascination with all foods Americana. Meals typically offered in Stateside diners – like burgers, hot dogs, po’ boys, milk shakes and any kind of “fries” – are showing up on menus in almost every price range. And that’s not even mentioning the bulge in burger joints, with places like Grill’d booming with business and Melbourne-based Huxtable restaurant opening a number of new burger branches under the apt name of “Huxtaburger”.
Prominent Australian restaurateur Jason Jones – the founder of Mamasita and B’Stilla – also predicts that the Americana trend will expand to include more regional cuisine styles.
“I think we’re yet to tap into the New Orleans type smoky barbecue stuff, that’ll be a big hit,” he says in a Good Food interview.
“Australia is quite Americanised, burgers have gone ballistic and I reckon there’s going to be a Kentucky fried chicken/Southern trend.”
Asian cuisine is also getting a makeover in Australia: 2013 saw us take up more Shanghainese food and authentic Szechuan styles, while Korean food took to the mainstream thanks to widespread reports on the benefits of fermented vegetable dish kimchi.
Image: singleguychef.blogspot.com
Japanese is similarly diversifying, fuelled by the hearty broths and hot noodle mixtures in ramen. Although originally from China, ramen has become a staple of Japanese food and Australians are starting to really slurp it up, with many great ramen restaurants opening around the country.
But if that’s not enough culture for people, hybrids that combine a couple of these cuisines – like ramen burger or most of the menu at street food and casual dining places like Chuckle Park in Melbourne – suggest innovators will also be tantalising more tastebuds as this trend continues to grow.
Going Places With Global Dishes
While international cuisine has been a part of Australian culture for almost as long as federation, this new wave has led to more specific regional tastes and styles that people could only experience through travel in the past.
But in an increasingly globalised and fast-paced world, sharing specific dishes has given people instant access to richer cultural experiences and history.
Foodie blogger Thang Ngo has suggested the cultural shift in Australian dining has a lot to do with our interests and experiences travelling.
Image: sbs.com.au
“I think [it] speaks to the places we travel. We don’t just go to Thailand anymore, we go to Vietnam, China, and even Korea,” foodie blogger Thang Ngo says in a Ninemsn Food article about new food trends.
“We’re much, much more open (to new foods) now than ever before. These days, people actually enjoy the adventure.”
These food experiences, in a sense, can also be a substitute for more expensive adventures overseas. While it takes time and hundreds or thousands of dollars to travel to different parts of the world, food can transport people there in an instant for a fraction of the price.
So the question of “what’s for dinner” may be replaced with “where’s for dinner” in the near future, as more of the world starts showing up on our plates.
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