Freaky Caesars & More Restaurant Trends You’ll See In 2026

​At Infatuation, their team of writers and editors visits around 200 restaurants per week in 70 cities across the country. They've seen some things along the way: one too many salads described as "lettuces", unnecessary tableside presentations, and barstools without backs come to mind. But the one pattern we predict to have real staying power is everyday comforts getting the luxury treatment. They're talking pampered hot dogs, $63 pizzas, freaked-out caesar salads, and next-level matcha. You might call it late-stage capitalism. They call it their 2026 trend predictions. Step inside the crystal ball to see what restaurant trends are on the rise. 

​THE TRENDS

​Caesars Are Getting Freakier

​It’s on the menu at The Cheesecake Factory, it’s what's for “Girl Dinner,” and it’s in every airport kiosk fridge across America. It’s the caesar salad, and it’s been a cultural cornerstone since it was invented for presumably picky American tourists in Tijuana in the 1920s. But in recent years, classic caesars are being tossed a little differently. Chicago upped the ante in 2010 by adding smoked salmon and potato chips at Bavette’s, spawning dupes all over the country, including at 4 Charles in NYC. One of the very best salads in all of Miami is Kojin’s caesar, which gets dried bonito, nori, and trout roe before the customary parm treatment. At some point along the way, tahini and miso got involved, like at Loudmouth in Austin. And now with ingredients never-before-caesared, it’s a full-on partner swap. In LA at Bar Etoile, caesaring is a verb insofar as the steak tartare has been caesared. And My Friend Derek’s in Seattle is downright kinky with its showering of Goldfish straight from the bag. Should anchovies and Goldfish be allowed in the same tank? We’re open-minded.

​We're Ordering Differently In The Ozempic Era And Restaurants Are Adapting

Group dinners have always been a challenge. There’s the bottomless pit. The gluten avoider. The one who doesn’t drink. The friend who shows up halfway through appetizers. And then, there’s Kevin, who’s always trying to hoard all of the credit card points. Factor in the server insisting you order 2-3 small plates each, and you’re one tortellini cut into thirds and a Zelle charge away from earning a CPA. But now there’s a whole other variable at play in the group dinner dynamic: weight loss drugs. The American appetite is shrinking because 8-10% of Americans are on Ozempic or something similar. That leaves a whole lot of uneaten shishito peppers on the table. And restaurants are starting to accommodate. Earlier this year in NYC, sceney Italian restaurant Tucci told the NY Post flat out that they’re now selling single meatballs and arancini for customers on Ozempic. Cuba Libre, a Cuban spot with locations in DC, Philly, and beyond is offering a “GLP-Wonderful” menu. Even national smoothie chain Smoothie King has a GLP-1 Support menu. “Any dietary restrictions or weight loss drugs we should know about?” might be the new norm. ​

​Martini Garnishes Gone Wild 

​Espresso martinis had their years. Mini martinis had our attention in 2024. Dirty martinis had their renaissance. But now garnishes have gone wild. We’re not talking about olives, curls of lemon peel, and pearl onions. Those are acceptable accessories. Now the martini glass is being treated like a bowl. At Red Fox in Boston, they’re essentially serving essence of pasta in a glass: the Aglio e Pepe martini has raw garlic, black pepper, and a mound of parmesan. And for the Ruffle’s revenge, The Corner Store in NYC makes a Sour Cream & Onion martini. It invites dill, spring onion, cream-washed gin, and a side of potato chips into the mix. But the most outlandish examples are at New York’s The Snail, where the martini comes with a briny octopus gilda, and The View, which serves pastrami martinis and also cinnamon raisin bagel ones. Go ahead, garnishes, keep getting wilder. 

​Little Luxuries Are Going Premium 

​When big luxuries are out of reach, we pay more for the small ones. Economists call this the lipstick index. We call it the premiumification of daily rituals. Instead of $1,000 steaks or multi-course omakase experiences, people are investing in more mundane little treats. The standard cup of coffee, cheese pizza, and grocery store sushi aren’t cutting it anymore. At Phe in Seattle, ceremonial grade matcha and cold foam just won't do—an $11 iced matcha has a dollop of banana pudding spooned from a glass casserole dish. A whole pizza pie to-go can run $63 at counter-service pizza spot Ceres in New York. At Aji Kiji in San Francisco, $50-ish takeout sushi comes in bamboo boxes that resemble treasure chests filled with jewels. You can’t use yellowtail to pay your mortgage, but it’s fun to pretend.

​The Hot Dog Identity Crisis

​The humble hot dog is having an identity crisis. Once the predictable hero of backyards and ballparks nationwide, the hot dog is now aquatic, apparently. In Boston, Dear Annie’s Sea Dog is a fish cake wearing a bun. At Mariscos San Pedro in Chicago, an octopus tentacle dangles out of the bun like an ivy tendril. But we’re not totally underwater. Wagyu beef hot dogs are served at prototypical is-this-a-bar-or-restaurant spots Gigi’s in SF, Bar 109 in LA, and Almanac in Philly. We never realized ordering a hot dog on a date felt weird until we were given the option. Another wagyu hot dog can be ordered at Chateau Royale, even though it’s sort of embarrassing to do that at a French restaurant in NYC where you should be cutting into duck a la orange. 

​

​“Nice Touches” Are On The Rise 

​When a server calls you honey or refolds your napkin when you go to the bathroom (and you like it), that’s service. But when a steakhouse offers you your pick of a steak knife, and a mini meat cleaver is an option, that’s a nice touch. Lately, we’ve been noticing that nice touches are on the rise. Madre Selva in Atlanta greets you at the entrance with a basin of warm rosewater and a hot towel. At Ogawa in Philly, there’s a mint-scented hand towel that could make a person feel like Mariah Carey in that one scene from Cribs where she takes a bath in a gown. And don’t get us started on leftovers. At Bridges in NYC, they’ll shape your unfinished comte tart into a glamorous tinfoil handbag. Meanwhile, Asakura in LA shapes your hamachi teriyaki rice remnants into a take-home onigiri. With dining out becoming more and more of a strain with $30+ pasta pomodoros and impossible reservations, these delightful little gestures remind us why it’s all worth it. 

​Great Pizza Is Everywhere

​A whopping 12 new pizza spots across 14 cities made the cut for our Best New Restaurants Of 2025 guides this year. Pizza places in cities that aren’t named New York, Chicago, and Detroit have long mimicked the styles of The Big Three. But now pizza specialists are everywhere. Like at Fratesi’s in Miami, where tavern-style pies are cartoonishly thin and take-downable. In Seattle, My Friend Derek’s pan pizza is drawing a scene in a city that doesn’t do “scenes.” At Sho Pizza Bar in Nashville, Japanese-style Neapolitan crust stretches like mochi. Further South in Austin, Allday is dolloping stracciatella onto NY-style slices with a drizzle of olive oil and fresh basil. Over in SF,  the toughest reservation in town is for Jules, where sourdough pizzas come with sauce flights. The Big Three are already borrowing pizza moves from the new class, and the appropriation isn't slowing down any time soon. The pizza arms race is on.

Source: The Infatuation