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Jody Shee

Kansas City

Discerner of food and foodservice trends

Interests: guitar, writing, books, following food and foodservice trends

Recent Activity

Fill Your Plate in Hawaii

It’s hard to put my finger on what it is about Hawaii that makes every trip down the highway headed toward point B like a vacation. But I’ve lived on Kauai for six years now, and I never take my surroundings for granted. I still pinch myself that I get... Continue reading

Posted May 3, 2023 at SheeFood

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Poutine is No Match to Loaded Fries Here

There may not be a physical boundary between the U.S. and Canada, but you could consider Canadians’ love affair with poutine a clear food divide. After Canada’s French fry/cheese curd/gravy dish launched in Quebec in the 1950s, it gradually blended into the culture as the culinary symbol of comfort and... Continue reading

Posted Apr 13, 2023 at SheeFood

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With These Breakfast Items, “Just Because You Can,” You Should!

I think the inner kid in all of us comes out at breakfast. The morning daypart is a whimsical food playground for both research chefs and the patrons who simply can’t turn away from what they see. Culinary dreams are made of cereal, waffles, donuts and pancakes. It is certainly... Continue reading

Posted Mar 10, 2023 at SheeFood

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Pulled Pork Across the Menu

Right now, foodservice operators are knocking themselves out to beat everyone else with chicken. Quit the chicken beating already! Pull yourself together and imagine other opportunities—like pulled pork. It can be economical. You don’t need the best cuts. You don’t have to lose any more sleep contemplating the best way... Continue reading

Posted Feb 9, 2023 at SheeFood

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Chipotle Leads the New Year

To start off 2023, I think I’ll hand a golden lettuce leaf to Chipotle. It’s gone way beyond the typical BFY New Year’s menu LTO. But first, let me say that when Brian Niccol took the Chipotle CEO reins from Steve Ells nearly five years ago, I didn’t think he... Continue reading

Posted Jan 14, 2023 at SheeFood

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Hello Type 2 Diabetes

We’re into the last lap of 2022, and I wonder if I’m the only one who notices that end-of-the-year LTOs are refining the sugar industry. I would be more worried about the onslaught of stuffed and stacked cookies, ice cream, cakes and donuts, but we all know that diet-friendly January... Continue reading

Posted Dec 7, 2022 at SheeFood

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2023 Food Trend Reimagined

It’s time to start crystal-ball gazing into what’s up for 2023 on menus. Whole Foods has already come out with its top-10 food-trend list. One stands out as a solid repeat for the past few years, but with a revised name. Nostalgic foods. We’re not calling them comfort foods anymore... Continue reading

Posted Nov 4, 2022 at SheeFood

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What in the World is Going on With Doughnuts?

In the world of menu item mashups, I think the cronut may have been the first one to catch my attention. Dominique Ansel is credited with wedding the croissant with the doughnut in 2013 at his New York bakery. That may have been when the mashup term was coined in... Continue reading

Posted Sep 15, 2022 at SheeFood

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Spicy is the "it" Thing

The food world woke up around August 12, 2019. That was the day Popeyes launched its spicy crispy chicken sandwich. Now, that wouldn’t be so noteworthy, except they ran out of them in two weeks. Completely. R&D chefs arose. We are still seeing “me-too” launches daily. The takeaway from that... Continue reading

Posted Aug 27, 2022 at SheeFood

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What is the Perfect Appetizer?

As long as there are potatoes, there’s still profit-building potential for inflation-struggling restaurants. And not just QSRs, but all segments. From an operator’s perspective, French fries are an easy snack, side, bar menu, appetizer. But you need to see these skinny spuds from the consumer point of view. Fries have... Continue reading

Posted Jun 21, 2022 at SheeFood

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I wish I could have titled this Hot Tamales, but I see no evidence that tamales are hot right now on American menus. But strangely, they are hot here on the island of Kauai—not in restaurants, but along the road from food trucks, roadside stands and from front yards next... Continue reading

Posted May 11, 2022 at SheeFood

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Wait Until You See the Next Sustainable Wave

Ethical raising of food is a thing, as you know. Some food-producing options beg the question, just because you can, should you? I believe robots in the kitchen fell under that for a minute. Some cried “foul!” at the potential of taking a job away from an employee. Then came... Continue reading

Posted Feb 28, 2022 at SheeFood

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Biggest 2022 Food Trend

As I look at future food trends—2022 and beyond—I think plant-based meat and dairy alternatives have the most legs. Some trends are consumer driven. But plant-based adds a sustainability layer that investors are keen to finance to the finish. Oh, and BTW, consumers are along for the ride. I also... Continue reading

Posted Jan 31, 2022 at SheeFood

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2022 is Set for This Ingredient

Health, nutrition and plant-based sensibilities aside, a big menu trend I see for 2022 is the outpouring of cheese. It fits within nostalgia, comfort, familiar, crave worthy and delish with applications that a guest probably wouldn’t make at home. As long as there are R&D chefs, there will always be... Continue reading

Posted Dec 30, 2021 at SheeFood

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For Veterans Day, I’d like to align myself with the hundreds of restaurant chains, c-stores and grocery stores that are honoring veterans with free meals, beverages or single menu items. Marketing aside, this might be one of the most crucial years ever to honor veterans. I’m not a veteran, but... Continue reading

Posted Nov 10, 2021 at SheeFood

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Stop, Top and Roll

I find it intriguing lately that the method operators are using to add a twist to common menu items is to add a dust, coating or sprinkle to them—which can either take them salty or sweet. I mentioned this observation to a chef recently, and he agreed, stating that he’s... Continue reading

Posted Oct 30, 2021 at SheeFood

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Will “Comfort Food” Ever End?

I wondered if this would happen. I’ve read and written about comfort food for a year—to the point it bores me now as it must bore you. But alas, I was recently asked to write yet another article about comfort food. In the process, I contacted Suzy Badaracco, president of... Continue reading

Posted Sep 30, 2021 at SheeFood

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Hand-helds in Hawaii

Appetizers, bar bites, tapas, small plates—they all are interchangeable names for little finger foods that work as snacks, catered hors d'oeuvres or sports-gathering nibbles. Operators are coming up with decadent ideas lately. I remember my first experience with the Hawaiian version of this. I attended a wedding reception in Hawaii,... Continue reading

Posted Aug 31, 2021 at SheeFood

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Uncertain Times Call for Certain Foods

The search for certainty in uncertain times leads to comfort food. It’s something I don’t see diminishing any time soon. During the height of pandemic shelter-in-place restrictions, 72% of consumers surveyed for Datassential’s ONE TABLE initiative said they were eating/cooking more comfort food. According to a OnePoll survey conducted on... Continue reading

Posted Jul 22, 2021 at SheeFood

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How to Differentiate the Menu Economically

The secret sauce to incremental sales is… well, actually, sauce. While some operators choose to give their tasty, proprietary sauce away, that’s clearly not a profitable choice. Consider Olive Garden. It recently launched Never-Ending Dipping Sauces (marinara, alfredo and five cheese marinara sauces) to go with its unlimited breadsticks. But... Continue reading

Posted Jun 28, 2021 at SheeFood

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The Next Restaurant Disruptor

What is the next restaurant disruptor? What meal-acquiring platform will customers have an appetite for since ghost and virtual kitchens that were unarguably helped along by delivery? I believe vending machines are on the cusp of business opportunity and consumer acceptance. I see it as more than a chance for... Continue reading

Posted May 27, 2021 at SheeFood

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Is Autonomous Foodservice Delivery Necessary?

Remember clear back one to two years ago when we were hearing all about foodservice drone delivery? It was expected to be the next big thing. Well, all is quiet on that front now, but that doesn’t mean the industry has given up on autonomous delivery. In the space of... Continue reading

Posted Apr 23, 2021 at SheeFood

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Delivery Visionaries Saved Casual Dining

There was a day not too long ago when casual dining execs found pushy third-party deliverers a nuisance to reckon with. How were these busy restaurants to integrate these unsolicited delivery orders/pickups into their operations? They took a few Advil and figured it out, because no matter how unplanned this... Continue reading

Posted Mar 18, 2021 at SheeFood

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How One Restaurant Made Headlines

I dropped my jaw this morning when I read an article about Popeyes’ newest sandwich release. “I don’t think that’s ever been done before,” I said out loud. It’s a Cajun Flounder Sandwich for $4.49 that launched today (Feb. 11, 2021). If you’re afraid to order it for fear you... Continue reading

Posted Feb 11, 2021 at SheeFood

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The Next Frontier for All These Chicken Sandwiches

Are you watching with me as QSRs aim for the fence with crispy chicken sandwiches? I’m loving it! McDonald’s launch of three new chicken handhelds draws renewed attention to the crispy chicken sandwich trend that kicked off with Popeyes version in 2019. KFC and Jack in the Box responded with... Continue reading

Posted Jan 7, 2021 at SheeFood

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