New catering menu trends
Recent catering drops leaned into fresh, approachable items like crispy chicken Milanese sandwiches, burrata‑tomato salads, watermelon‑feta plates and ancient‑grain bowls (x.com). Those items showed up in event menus and catering announcements across the week as spring service ideas (x.com).
Spring catering menus are skewing lighter and more familiar, with sandwiches, composed salads and grain bowls replacing heavier buffet staples. (rebeccasculinarygroup.com) A spring 2026 catering menu from Rebecca’s Culinary Group lists a Fried Chicken Caesar Sandwich, a Spring Cobb Salad and an “NYC Street Cart Bowl” built on curry-spiced farro. The same menu prices sandwiches at $12.25 per person and salads and bowls at $15.50 per person, with a 10-person minimum. (rebeccasculinarygroup.com) Restaurant industry coverage in late March and early April showed the same seasonal pattern on retail menus: more strawberry, mango and other bright produce, plus lighter dishes for warmer weather. Restaurant Business reported on March 23 that spring menus were emphasizing “fresh flavors and lighter dishes,” and on April 6 that new items were “popping with flavor and color.” (restaurantbusinessonline.com, restaurantbusinessonline.com) The shift lines up with broader 2026 menu data that still favors portable and customizable formats. Toast said last month that sandwiches and wraps were the most popular item in 44 states, while bowls led in Hawaii and salads led in Utah. (toasttab.com) That helps explain why caterers are leaning into chicken sandwiches, tomato-and-cheese salads, fruit-and-feta combinations and grain bowls instead of more formal plated entrees. Those dishes travel well, can be packed individually and fit office orders that need a vegetarian option next to a meat option. (rebeccasculinarygroup.com, ezcater.com) Salads are also no longer a side category on business menus. Nation’s Restaurant News reported in 2024 that chains such as Sweetgreen, Just Salad and CAVA were posting strong gains as salad-focused fast casual expanded, and Toast said last month that global flavors such as tahini, kimchi and za’atar are pushing salad development in 2026. (nrn.com, toasttab.com) Caterers are pairing that freshness with ingredients that feel premium but still recognizable. Rebecca’s spring menu uses feta, watermelon radish, snap peas, apricot vinaigrette, farro and harissa cauliflower, but keeps the formats simple: sandwich, salad and bowl. (rebeccasculinarygroup.com) The practical side is hard to miss. ezCater says its platform works for workplace orders that need delivery, budget visibility and options for different tastes, and those constraints reward menus that are easy to portion, label and serve in a meeting room. (ezcater.com) The result is a spring catering playbook built around food that looks seasonal without asking guests to decode it: crispy chicken on bread, cheese with tomatoes, fruit with feta and grains under vegetables. (rebeccasculinarygroup.com, restaurantbusinessonline.com)
