Wild Card

Future Restaurant Trends for 2019

Nowadays, restaurants all over the world are embracing all sorts of new trends in an attempt to cater to an ever-changing society. 2019 is no exception, as many restaurants are already attempting to embrace brand new trends to cater to audiences. According to restaurantbusinessonline.com, these are five new trends that should be coming sometime this year.

1. Savory flavor boosters at breakfast
Savory options are emerging as a beloved member of the breakfast club. Diners can expect to see oatmeal and bean-topped grain bowls, uniquely flavored sausages and global-inspired dishes such as shakshuka or chilaquiles on the menu. As for what types of savory flavors are gaining traction, be on the lookout for cotija cheese, blue cheese, Caesar dressing, Cajun spices, sriracha and pecorino cheese.

2. Asian and Pacific Island cuisines
Look for experimentation with Pacific and Asian island cuisines. Where sriracha has thrived in the past, sambal will begin appearing more and more. Lime is a prominent flavor in these cuisines, and Filipino adobo will likely increase in notoriety. Malaysian and Indonesian foods to look out for include satay (seasoned, skewered and grilled meat served with a sauce) and bakso (a savory meatball soup).

3. Ordering automation  
Self-ordering kiosks speed up lines, and at-the-table ordering offers a sense of immediacy to diners, rather than having to wait for a server’s attention. At-the-table ordering also offers the potential of increased check averages, since there’s no waiting to order drinks, apps or desserts—three categories that diners may waver on and decide against if they have the spare time to do so.

4. Better-for-you kids meals
As finding healthier options becomes more and more important to consumers, kids menus are changing in stride. Some chains have already taken steps in this direction. For instance, Smashburger offers grilled chicken strips as part of its kids menu, while Burger King offers its BK Fresh Apple Fries (peeled apple slices) as a side instead of traditional french fries.

5. Plant-based dining

Expect to see a heavier focus is on making vegetables the star of the show, rather than just a side. This could be due to consumers’ increased consumption of vegetarian and vegan meals—23% of consumers say they expect to eat more vegetarian foods in the next two years, and 21% say they expect to eat more vegan options,  according to Technomic’s 2019 Center of the Plate: Seafood & Vegetarian report. Additionally, look for more unique plant-based items on menus, like Romanesco broccoli, burgers made from beets and cashew-based “cheese” sauces.

Classmate Blog Critique

Rhett Gentry's Blog Critique

Rhett's blog is one of the few blogs that I actually take time and look over, mainly due to its easy-to-read format and his ability to make his posts flow easily, most likely due to the fact that he has a minor in English. The link to his blog can be found here. 

One of the things that I admire most about Rhett is his style of writing. I'm not sure if there's an actual word for it, but Rhett's style of writing is similar to that of a novelist, using several descriptive terms while managing to to keep his thoughts on track. However, in my opinion, this does come with a downside. He tends to get straight to the point, and, while he does do a good job with the details, he doesn't really branch out past that, providing very little when it comes to background of his subject. He usually talks about it, but not in great detail or length as he does the main focus of his posts. 

Rhett does an extraordinary job with images and videos. For most of his posts, his images and videos were that of his main focus, primarily on a certain person, people, or event. This, coupled with their placement, were aesthetically pleasing to me, particularly with the his post regarding television. 

Rhett definitely goes all out when it comes to research. Overall, it seems his topics are very well-researched with various links and videos provided to back up and support his claim or topic. In particular, his video regarding Japanese film just seemed to fit perfectly with the subject, allowing it to simply mold into his writing and become a part of the flow.

One thing that I do recommend for him to improve upon, apart from the previously mentioned issue, is that I feel the pure black background isn't very inviting. While that is his personal preference, I, personally, don't feel like this an educational blog, but rather a hardened blog of an individual trying a little too hard to promote gun rights. As I said, it is his preference what he does with his blog, but I feel a bit of a brighter tone would help.  

Overall, I believe Rhett's blog is still quite good, despite my personal issues. I can tell he's worked hard and put forth a considerable amount of time and effort into his work and, personally, do think he has earned any praise he receives for his blog.

International Media

BBC Review

BBC, or the British Broadcasting Channel, is one of the most well-known news international news channels in the world. The British Broadcasting Company broadcast its first radio bulletin from radio station - 2LO. In 14 November 1922. Wishing to avoid competition, newspaper publishers persuaded the government to ban the BBC from broadcasting news before 7:00 pm, and to force it to use wire service copy instead of reporting on its own. 

On Easter weekend in 1930, this reliance on newspaper wire services left the radio news service with no information to report after saying "There is no news today". Piano music was played instead. The BBC gradually gained the right to edit the copy and, in 1934, created its own news operation. 

A weekly Children's Newsreel was inaugurated on 23 April 1950, to around 350,000 receivers. The network began simulcasting its radio news on television in 1946, with a still picture of Big Ben. Televised bulletins began on 5 July 1954, broadcast from leased studios within Alexandra Palace in London.

The website itself contains several news stories related to both the UK, as well as international news from all over the globe. Personally, I have no issues with this particular source of news as it, generally, it quite reliable, usually not picking one end or another when it comes to things such as political debates. 

One thing that BBC does very well, as opposed to popular new networks in the U.S. like CNN or FOX, is that BBC ONLY gives facts based on either research, witness testimony, or some other form of evidence based on science of facts. Compared to networks like CNN, who tend to lean one direction or another, they give very little opinion on subjects, preferring to only use facts. CNN, for example, will generally give opinions on a particular subject, rather than looking at all the evidence. 

BBC is also very good when it comes to their reporters and their ability to cover a vast array of different topics. From politics to entertainment to natural disasters, BBC always has some sort of coverage over every major event in current history. And for that, i applaud them.