It was a topsy-turvy year in the restaurant industry, with bankruptcies at chains large and small, consumers pulling back on restaurant visits, record numbers of limited-time offers and some big CEO moves.
But, as we do most every year, we like to take a look at the restaurant vocabulary words we saw a lot of during the past 12 months.
We hope some, if not many, of these words will go the way of loyalty punch cards in 2025. Much of this industry jargon gave us the ick, as the kids would say (which is, indeed, another turn of phrase that gives us the ick).
Let’s dive in with our winner for the worst word of the year:
Swicy (and its deeply unfortunate siblings swalty and swavory) cause a visceral reaction every time we see them. (And not in a good way.) They’re portmanteaus used to describe foods that are both sweet and spicy (or sweet + salty or sweet + savory). Swicy made its first appearance in RB in July 2023, when Outback Steakhouse launched a “Sweet Heat Season” menu. But it’s cropped up many times since then. Consumers remain enthralled by these contrasting flavors. But we sure hope these adjectives are soon forgotten.
Some solid runners-up:
Anything-cuterie. Charcuterie is an actual word, a fancy French way to describe ever-popular trays brimming with cured meats, cheeses and other snacky items. But it has unfortunately been co-opted to describe any sort of grazing items served on a board. We’re looking at you, seacuterie, breakfast-cuterie, butter-cuterie and the like. Big fan of snacky plates of any kind, but can we please come up with a new name?
Servant leader. Yes. We get it. Your CEO prioritizes the needs of others over their own. That’s an admirable quality, to be sure. But it’s the “servant” part that gives us the ick. How about a leadership style that promotes equity, fairness and mutual respect, rather than putting anybody above or below anybody else?
Functional foods. All foods are functional, whether it’s a Nerds Gummy Cluster or a broccoli floret. End of discussion.
Rip and dip.Dipping was all the rage on restaurant menus this year, from Panera Bread’s Ciabatta Dippers to Chili’s Triple Dipper to the growing popularity of birria. We have New York-based PopUp Bagels to thank for the phrase “Grip, Rip and Dip,” which the bagel chain trademarked. The concept’s bagels are softer than traditional ones, designed to make them easy to tear and dip into a rotating selection of flavored cream cheeses. Minimal ick factor on this one, though. We’re fine ripping and dipping well into 2025.
Anything+wars. We’ve had burger wars and chicken wars and, this year especially, fast-food value wars. It’s a favorite shorthand of journalists (this one included) to play up any kind of conflict, even over something as (relatively) inconsequential as sandwiches. Going to ask Santa for some new noun options for the new year.
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