What will Phoenix food trends look like in 2024? 8 pros share their predictions

The beginning of any new year is a time for reflection and renewal. We caught up with eight Valley hospitality veterans to find out what they’re looking forward to in 2024 – and what about 2023 they hope stays in the rearview. One thing they can all agree on? It’s an exciting time to be a diner in the Valley.

Storytelling is on the menu

Authenticity will continue to reign when it comes to the spots that will resonate most with diners and drinkers. Perhaps this buzzword should be left with last year’s lexicon, but the sentiment and intentions were echoed by many of our Valley pros.

“I hope that people continue to take risks, that they continue to be sincere to what they want to cook,” says Alex Martin, who co-owns Thai restaurants Lom Wong and Mr. Baan’s Bar and Mookata with his wife Yotaka. “The food scene has gotten so much better because people are daring to be sincere.”

Yotaka Martin echoed Alex, saying that she’s noticed more variety in cuisine and dining options – a boon for the Valley.
The Martins have been among those leading that charge, landing on Esquire’s 50 Best New Restaurants in America last year.

Arizona Restaurant Association President and CEO Steve Chucri says the industry had a good year in 2023, buoyed by a growing population and the addition of new restaurants. He anticipates steady growth for 2024.

“I think we’ll see (dining out) frequency, at a minimum, remain the same if not go up ever so slightly,” he says.

As diners parse through ever-growing restaurant options, what will separate the good from the great is the ability to transport people through food, drinks and environment, says Kailee Asher, the author of “Mise en Place Marketing,” a guide for bars and restaurants to improve how they promote their business.

“The reality is that we all are storytellers. We’re all raconteurs. When you go into a restaurant or bar, what makes it special is its ability to tell a story,” says Asher, who drew on her experience of marketing Century Grand and its award-winning bars, including the immersive Platform 18 to write her book.

Chef Angelo Sosa, points back to people like Jason Asher, who helms the team behind Century Grand and is married to Kailee, calling him “one of the most inspiring, creative people I know.”

Sosa is coming off a creative year of his own, opening Kembara, a restaurant that takes inspiration from Asian street food, next to his southwest eatery Tia Carmen, both located inside the J.W. Marriott Phoenix Desert Ridge Resort & Spa.

Despite the singularity of storytelling in one’s own restaurant or bar, Sosa said he’s also hoping to see more sharing of ideas across the board.

“I would love to see more collaborations with chefs and mixologists,” Sosa says. “I think it’s more rising tides.”

Out: Gatekeeping. In: Collaborations.

At its grandest, Valley hospitality pros say, cooperation means less gatekeeping and more sharing of information to ensure everyone in the industry can improve and elevate dining in the Valley.

“If you create this community or this environment where you’re able to share best practices with one another, your likelihood to succeed is going to be significantly higher,” Kailee Asher says.

Aseret Arroyo, who co-owns Grand Avenue hotspot Chilte with her husband and chef Lawrence “L.T.” Smith, echoes that perspective, saying she thinks there will be more small restaurant groups emerging and taking over the Valley’s dining scene.

“Arizona does have the talent, and people want more of the independently-owned versus big restaurant groups,” she says.

2023 proved to be a breakout year for the food truck turned brick-and-mortar restaurant: Chilte earned a spot on Esquire’s list alongside Lom Wong, and was included in Bon Appetit’s best new restaurants list. 
The Chilte duo expects more kitchen takeovers, pop-ups and chef collaboration dinners at their restaurant and beyond in 2024. Chilte hosted several collaborations over the past year and plans to continue, starting with a dinner with Suncliffe Gin on Jan. 22.

“That’s always been a piece of who we are,” Smith says. “We started out on the streets and in the (farmers) markets. We were one of the leaders in collabing with other market vendors and really just trying to support our community from within.”

Getting back to basics

Chefs have thoughts about what to expect in kitchens, too.

Sosa anticipates seeing a “back to basics” approach, with a renewed focus on making items in-house, even if that may mean offering a shorter “slimmed down” menu. It’s something that the chef ensures at Kembara where noodles, among other items, are scratch-made in-house.

Sosa and Charleen Badman, the chef and co-owner of Scottsdale farm-to-table restaurant FnB, both shared their desire to see more local flavors and produce highlighted by cooks and mixologists.

“I’m always looking to, and hoping that everybody’s going to, keep using more vegetables and supporting our farmers,” Badman says.

Sosa admits he was initially naive about the array of produce available in Arizona, but says celebrating that bounty and the diversity of the state is something that can help restaurants here stand out – something several chefs noted they admire at spots like Melrose mainstay Valentine.

“By honoring the ingredient you’re honoring the Southwest,” Sosa says.

Predictions for what’ll be on menus

How may those ingredients manifest into actual dishes? Stuffed vegetables as the centerplate item is one trend that the National Restaurant Association is predicting for the coming year, says the Arizona Restaurant Association’s Chucri. Dishes the national organization points to are chiles en nogada and stuffed cabbage rolls.

Badman says she thinks this may be the year that Phoenicians finally embrace conservas, or tinned seafood. But, one item she’s personally looking to use more at FnB is gelatin.

“Jell-O is a love-hate a lot of times … I’ve always been a fan, and I think you can do really cool things with it,” says Badman, who notes she wants to do more with the jiggly “blank canvas” by experimenting with flavors, like local citrus, presentation and texture.

In your drink, Kailee Asher says to expect to see more culinary techniques applied to cocktails – notably infusions and clarification. She points to Sam Olguin and the ambitious bar program at Pour Bastards (the New Times’ Best Place to Take a Cocktail Geek).

“He’s using a lot of different clarification techniques, and clarification is absolutely massive in regards to drink preparation techniques that are happening worldwide,” Asher says, noting how the technique not only provides distilled flavors but also speeds up how quickly a drink is delivered, given that most of the work is done in advance.

Asher also anticipates more niche and small-batch spirits brands will emerge – another nod to seeking authenticity and “hyper-local, terroir-driven products.”

One thing Badman anticipates in people’s glasses isn’t boozy at all.

“We saw a lot less alcohol this year. I think we’ll continue to see a lot less alcohol,” she says. “I think we’ll see more of those (non-alcoholic) options and people being a lot more creative about it.”

Her favorite post-shift sip? A Proper Hibiscus soda by Big Marble Organics.

Betting on trendsetting over trends

While these chefs, restaurateurs and hospitality pros were eager to talk about what they’re hopeful for, they were much less concerned about planting a flag on what’s next.

In part perhaps that’s because Valley experts are going to continue to march to their own drums. After all, doesn’t it take a trendsetter to start a trend?

“We live in the present,” Alex Martin says of how he and Yotaka approach cooking and their restaurants. “I think that’s where good ideas come from more so, not thinking, ‘what’s that trend going to be?'”