Epicurean experts from some of the world’s most exciting drinking and dining destinations share their pulse on the ingredients and techniques that’ll be cooking up a storm and raising the bar in 2026
Kimpton’s hotly anticipated annual Culinary + Cocktail Trend Forecast returns this year to unveil the unique dining styles, bold ingredients and expert techniques set to shape the global hospitality scene in 2026. From technology elevated cocktails to fruity milk alternatives, Kimpton’s global collective of cult chefs and mixologists are setting trends that will define food and beverages in the year ahead.
This annual forecast underscores Kimpton’s culinary creativity and playful approach to food and drink, brought to life at more than 100 restaurants and bars across its 83 properties worldwide. At the pinnacle of rich creative hospitality, Kimpton hotels, restaurants and bars embody masterfully crafted techniques and robust dining experiences that continue to shape the food and beverage landscape across the globe.
IHG’s Kat Wojcik, Director of Programming & Partnerships, Luxury & Lifestyle Americas, said: “As guests seek deeper connections through what they eat and drink, we’re seeing a shift toward experiences that engage every sense. Cocktails, beverage programs, and food menus have become storytelling platforms – expressions of place, culture, and creativity. Our chefs and bartenders blend global inspiration with local character to craft drinks and dishes that surprise, delight, and invite conversation. It’s not about chasing trends – it’s about leading with authenticity, artistry, and a touch of play.”
Guests of Kimpton hotels, restaurants and bars around the world will have the opportunity to sink their teeth into incredible creations that bring these trends to life all year long. See below for what’s cooking and shaking up in this the Kimpton 2026 Culinary + Cocktail Trend Forecast:
On the Plate: The Culinary Concepts Coming to Pass
Charcoal Gets Fired Up
Driven by a desire to reconnect with authentic flavours and culinary craftsmanship, charcoal will experience a renaissance both as an ingredient and as a medium for cooking. Whether it’s protein or veggies, guests can expect to specifically experience Binchotan, a Japanese white charcoal prized for its minimal smoke and odor. Expect to see menu items like charred cauliflower satay with lemon cream at select properties in the coming months.
Pancakes As Carriers
As global cuisines become more accessible, international pancake variations like Moroccan Msemen, Korean Hotteok and Vietnamese Bánh Xèo will serve as a versatile base for creative flavour pairings.
Heritage & Third-Culture Cuisine
In 2026, Heritage & Third-Culture Cuisine will come to the forefront of the food scene to celebrate multiple cultures all in one dish. Menu items will be unapologetic about traditional flavours and emphasize personal, lived experiences within one or multiple cultures. This style combines influences from the chef’s multicultural upbringing, creating unique dishes that defy traditional culinary boundaries. This upcoming trend can be found at Kimpton BEM Budapest where a traditional Hungarian vegetable soup is reimagined through a modern, multicultural lens, and transformed into a rustic Wild Boar Gulyas. The wide-cut vegetables echo old countryside cooking where produce was used in its most natural form. The clean broth and refined finish reflect global culinary technique. Together they express local memory with international influence – heritage told through a third-culture voice.
Citrus Gets Zesty
Varieties and unique hybrids of citrus like Calamansi, Hallabong and Sumo will appear on food and drink menus, offering a fresh alternative to their more common citrus cousins. These vibrant, flavourful fruits bring unexpected tartness, sweetness, and aroma, inspiring chefs and mixologists to experiment with imaginative pairings and presentations like yuzu-infused cocktails and Calamansi–miso dressings for seafood or salads.
Entree-Inspired Dips
The era of Girl Dinner is gone and in its place step in ‘Snacky Suppers’ with more consumers skipping a larger traditional main course in favour of smaller plates. This will see the in between eating aesthetic evolve as entrée-inspired dips are reimagining classic dishes like gumbo and cacio e pepe to create bite-sized noshes of beloved classic meals.
Chef José Carlos García, Executive Chef at Kimpton Los Monteros Marbella, comments: “Guided by the simple philosophy of cooking I’d offer my friends, the culinary trends of 2026 invite us to reconnect with authenticity through diverse techniques and inspirations. Whether it’s the smoky flavour from cooking with charcoal- honouring one of the most traditional cooking methods – or celebrating dishes that bridge cultures, like those at our restaurant, Escondido, where local Mediterranean produce meets the bold spirit of Mexican cuisine, each plate tells a story of connection. From zesty citrus to entrée-inspired dips, these vibrant flavours and inventive presentations are more than trends – they are a shared culinary journey celebrating the stories and identities behind every bite.”
In the Glass: The Cocktail Trends Raising the Bar
Texture Takes Over
Crispy, crunchy, foamy, fizzy, silky – texture will take over in 2026. Whether it’s a matcha with creamy foam and a crunchy topping or gummy boba in a silky-smooth latte, across the kitchen and bar, chefs and mixologists will experiment with ingredients that add textural complexity and juxtaposition across the palate, transforming every bite and sip into a multisensory experience.
Going Bananas for Banana Milk
Move over oat milk. Popular in Korea, this milk alternative, often paired with coffee and espresso, will gain broad appeal globally in the coming months. With a natural sweetness and smooth, silky texture, banana milk can be paired with other sweet flavours like whipped cream, cinnamon, caramel and chocolate for a perfect morning pick me up, available on request at select Kimpton properties worldwide.
Cultivating Coffee Cultivars
What’s brewing on the coffee scene? Specialty beans, terroir flavours, climate-resilient types, co-fermented and seasonal blends will drive bold, unique coffee trends in 2026. Coffee connoisseurs will rejoice as new varietals of beans like Columbian Gesha, Ethiopian Hambela, Ethiopian Uraga Heo, Papau New Guinea Volcanic Robusta and Lijang Yunnan Bam gain traction at Kimpton properties around the world.
The Newest Spritz: The Garibaldi
The Garibaldi is going to unseat the Aperol Spritz as the new favourite aperitivo cocktail. Low ABV but high in refreshing flavour, menus will feature variations using combinations of unique citrus and Italian aperitifs. Simply delicious, the mixture of bittersweet Campari will the acidity of orange juice balances on the palate for a refreshing happy hour.
Botanicals Swap Out Sugar
As consumers embrace fresh, natural ingredients, unexpected sweetness will be on the menu in the coming year. Commonly added sugar will give way to fruit and botanicals like rose, elderflower, and cherry that impart flavour and sweetness naturally. Cocktails like a twist on the traditional “Garibaldi”, available at Kimpton Atlântico Algarve, uses Campari fat-washed with coconut oil, orange juice and garnished with charred chilli orange. The Campari is infused for 24 hours in the fridge in warm coconut oil, making the cocktail naturally sweeter without adding any sugar.
Layered Drinks
Taking “eating with your eyes first” to the next level, blended beverages will be replaced with drinks featuring distinct layers of flavor that you can see and taste creating a feast for the eyes and tastebuds. From cocktails to coffee beverages, layered beverages will bring together delicious taste pairings to indulge in.
Garden to Glass: Plants
With the popularity of herbal and earthy drink flavours on the rise, plants including aloe, chayote, eucalyptus, and pepperberry will appear in more cocktails as the latest evolution of the industry’s garden to glass movement. Garden to glass offers guests the opportunity to taste the freshest seasonal, locally sourced ingredients possible like in the “Frosé Margarita”. Literally a salad in a glass, the Frosé Margarita is a showstopper at Kimpton De Witt Amsterdam offering an interesting reimagination of your classic margarita. Served as a slushy with Patron silver as base spirit, the drink is topped with a Waldorf cordial which brings green acidity from apple and celery, but with gentle nuttiness from walnut. The Belsazar rosé vermouth provides light red fruitiness.
Cocktails Get Techy
Bars will transition from smoke to aromatic machines and adapt innovative processes, including switching and sous-pression that rely on deep-freezing to alter or release flavour. Watch this trend come to life in the cocktail “The Clarified Basil Highball,” which leverages molecular gastronomy to create a one-of-a-kind lemon water and modern techniques for a sous vide basil tincture. This transformative take on the famous gin basil smash tastes of liquid basil and can be found on the bar menu at Kimpton Main Frankfurt.
Wine: Asia-Pacific on the Rise, Bordeaux is Back, & Spanish Wine Cocktails Get Fizzy
Asia-Pacific wines and fizzy Spanish wine cocktails, like Kalimotxo, Tinto Verano, and Rebujito will grow in global popularity, while Bordeaux, side-lined for other popular grapes over the years, will enjoy a comeback on wine menus, including those of Kimpton Fitzroy London. Available at the hotel’s iconic Fitz’s Bar, “The King of Persia” is a sophisticated cocktail blending floral and fruity notes. It combines Fresh Monkey Grain Spirit, Botanist Gin, Kaffir Lime, Pine, and rose petals infused in a Pinot Noir reduction. This drink evokes a sense of royalty with its intense and refined flavours.
Hayleigh Mull, F&B Manager at Kimpton Blythswood Square summarises: “Nature has always served as a significant inspiration in the mixology experiences that we offer at Kimpton, drawing from lush surroundings and a rich natural habitat that’s expertly distilled into a glass. But 2026 will see that evolve even further, bringing the chance to experiment with unusual, herbaceous ingredients such as aloe and eucalyptus, as well as cane sugar–free infused syrups and unexpected fruit creations that encourage guests to explore their palates. It’s a future that feels more exotic than organic, and certainly an exciting prospect.”
Kimpton is one of six brands within IHG Hotels & Resorts’ leading luxury and lifestyle portfolio, one of the world’s largest. A pioneer of the boutique category since 1981, Kimpton was founded by Bill Kimpton who, inspired by his travels to Europe, saw the opportunity for a more human approach to hospitality.
This outlook continues to this day as Kimpton is building on its boutique roots to expand into new markets across the world. There are now over 145 open and pipeline hotels (83 open / 64 pipeline) in around 25 countries, representing a global network of design-led hotels and restaurants that act as vibrant hubs for sparking authentic human connections in the communities they serve.
At every hotel and with every stay, Kimpton wants guests to experience something they haven’t before and leave them feeling awe inspired. It seeks to transport guests with new sights, sounds, flavours and experiences to deliver a new kind of luxury – one that’s both sophisticated and playful.
For more information on the 2026 Kimpton Culinary + Cocktail Trends Forecast, visit: kimpton.com/culinaryandcocktailstrends