5 Food Trends That Restaurants Are Going Crazy For

Food trend expert Nancy Kruse was at the 2012 MUFSO conference in Dallas and she shared the five biggest menu trends that hit restaurants everywhere in her annual "State of the Plate" address, reports Bret Thorn at Nation's Restaurant News.

These are the trends that are driving culinary R&D in restaurants:

• Chicken — Lots of chains not known from their chicken have been adding more offerings to their menus.

• Eggs — Kruse declared it the "ingredient of the year."

• Greek cuisine — It's appearing in quite a wide range of applications.

• Corn — It has been increasingly popping up in many popular forms, from Mexican-style cuisines to corndogs.

• Crunchy food — Fried skin, fried onions, waffle chips and taco shells were all mentioned.

The next big food trend on the way is likely to be "better chicken," Kruse said at the conference. With chicken on the rise everywhere and "better burger" chains thriving, it seems like the next logical step.

NOW SEE: 24 Crazy Menu Items From Japan's Epic Fast Food War >

More From Business Insider

• Ordering Tricks That Will Get You VIP Treatment At Restaurant Chains
  

• Pizza Hut Wrapped Kit Kat Bars In Pizza Dough To Create These Outrageous 'Pops'
  

• This Digital Bill Holder Could Change The Way You Pay For Meals At Restaurants