On the heels of a successful launch of Future Menus 2025 in Thailand, Unilever Food Solutions (UFS) commenced a rollout of the 2025 edition of Future Menus in the Philippines.
Tagged “The Taste Kitchen,” the pocket event gathered entrepreneurs at the helm of such food businesses as Mango Tree, Pepper Lunch, and Verleo Catering in renowned food hub Quezon City, where chefs of the professional food services brand shared in various ways how Philippine food entrepreneurs can future-proof their own operations in anticipation of challenging but no less exciting times for the industry.
UFS Country Executive Chef Kenneth Cacho and Senior Sous Chefs Carlos Aluning, J. Brando Santos, and Paulo Sia were joined by award-winning chef Josh Boutwood in a series of industry talks and demonstrations of the four trends identified in the report, in action.
“In our 3rd year, Future Menus keeps growing. Because we get it: Keeping your menu trendy and inspiring is challenging when diner habits change so quickly.Chefs are constantly balancing the now and the next in the kitchen. With 250 chefs globally, Unilever Food Solutions knows what it takes to run a kitchen and stay ahead,” Sheala Ang, Operator Experience Manager, UFS Philippines, notes. “By turning trends into real, sellable recipes, we help chefs create dishes—and guest experiences—that are fit for tomorrow,” she added.
An In-Depth Look at the Future of Food
The UFS Future Menus 2025 report is more than just a trend guide—it’s a roadmap to success in a fast-changing culinary landscape. Featuring four global trends backed by research, chef insights, and actionable tips, the report helps operators meet evolving diner expectations for creativity and innovation.
Street Food Couture
Traditional street foods are being elevated to gourmet offerings with chef expertise in every food service channel, including fine dining. Gen Z is a major driver of this trend, with 65% seeking value for money when it comes to food and dining experiences. With humble ingredients and cooking techniques like charcoal grilling, steaming, and wok hei, chefs are elevating favorites such as crepes, tacos, skewers, burritos, spring rolls, dumplings, bao buns, and Korean corn dogs.
Diner Designed
Diner Designed is all about putting personalization at the heart of the culinary experience, with growing demand for custom flavors and interactive dining. Emerging technologies like AI and AR are driving this trend forward by enabling immersive, multisensory meals. Diners now enjoy more control through techniques like table-side cooking, 3D printing, build-your-own dishes, and blowtorching. With 47% of people now preferring to spend money on experiences over material goods, UFS supports businesses with training, menu engineering, and the easy integration of menu trends.
Borderless Cuisine
Borderless Cuisine celebrates the fusion of global food traditions, driven by globalization, culinary tourism, and migration. This trend brings exciting new flavors and ingredients to the table while honoring authentic techniques and cultural roots. Dishes blend the old with the new, featuring standout ingredients like miso, kimchi, shiso, pomegranate, and calamansi to create fresh, yet respectful culinary experiences.
Culinary Roots
Culinary Roots highlights a return to indigenous ingredients and hyperlocal cuisines, as chefs delve into forgotten recipes and traditional techniques to honor the regions they cook in.
The next and final Metro Manila leg of The Taste Kitchen will go live in Pasay on July 15, before UFS samples Future Menus for key cities across the country, including Bacolod, Baguio, and Davao.
The Future Menus 2025 Trend Report is now available for download. Visit this website to download your copy and start transforming your menu today.
