2014 Trend Prediction #11: Everyday Veggieday

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Keeping with tradition, my annual trend prediction blog is driven by the dining industry. And this year, it’s personal.

As a publicist in the hospitality industry, it’s critical to not only know about all the amazing new restaurants and culinary trends, but to also experience them firsthand. But as a lifelong vegetarian, I haven’t been able to enjoy some of Chicago’s greatest restaurants due to lack of veggie options. The great news? I see all this changing in 2014.

A couple months back, Eater Chicago posted a story about the increase of vegetarian tasting menus and many Chicago restaurants. Having worked with the wonderful Chef Patrick Sheerin of Trenchermen, I loved his thoughts on working more vegetables into the menu:

"Vegetarian menus are not just a trend...it's not going away," Sheerin says. He cites "the science behind the diet, the potential to cure diseases and the environmental impact" for the trend, "plus it is a great challenge to our team to craft with plants as opposed to meat as the focal point of the dish."

It’s exciting to hear that a chef is viewing this as a challenge versus an afterthought. I am already a fan of Trenchermen and am looking forward to becoming a fan of places like GT Fish & Oyster and Grace.

Later Meatless Monday, hello vegetarian every day!