Food predictions of 2024 | India’s food trends include bento cakes and millets

Discover the pleasures of dining in 2024: Nostalgia, fusion, comfort food, indigenous ingredients, zero-waste, staff welfare & more.

We tend to be a bit battle scarred as the year ends. This year, perhaps more than usual. In a world that is in the grip of war and a climate crisis, when we gather together for meals, we are likely to seek comfort in friends, family and nostalgia. And we are also in the mood for a change of pace. All of which will influence how we eat in 2024.  

Here are our predictions for the coming year. 

We will expect more out of our favourite restaurants, from decreasing food waste to treating staff better.

Over the past year many of the country’s restaurants and bars have been working towards reducing their carbon footprint, cutting back on food waste and collaborating with local farmers to create seasonal menus that hero indigenous ingredients. In an attempt to move towards being zero-waste, professional kitchens are also taking tips from traditional homecooks by using every part of the vegetable, in addition to composting and repurposing leftovers.

Expect these efforts to intensify, even as chefs find ways to stand out from the pack by foraging, collaborating with local communities and highlighting indigenous spices. This focus on provenance will result in more detailed menus, which celebrate the origin of their main ingredients.

Professional kitchens, which are notoriously stressful spaces, are also likely to put more effort into staff welfare as hiring and retaining chefs and waiters gets increasingly challenging with more opportunities opening up across the country and abroad. Hopefully 2024 will bring them better pay, more respect, shorter hours and a healthier work-life balance. 

Take the small wins.  People have always found comfort in the spongy arms of a chocolate cake, but in the coming year, we will see a rise in decadent desserts as people seek quick, easy treats to indulge themselves.