While I'm still mulling over what will dislodge cupcakes as an enduring trend in 2010, I've come up with a list of food and food-related trends to watch out for in the coming months. In creating this forecast, I went with my gut and what I've spied recently in local supermarket shelves, restaurants, and magazines as well as recent reports in the international food scene.  
In no particular order, here's what could be on our tables this year:

1. Gourmet for the masses. The signs are on the supermarket shelves–from gourmet penne pasta made with real semolina flour (by a local brand) and pasta sauces, chef-inspired premium ice creams to potato chips in sea salt and other gourmet flavors. Local brands are taking note that we, the masses, are trading up our palates. We're ready to taste newer and more sophisticated flavors, so expect more gourmet stuff in the market.

2. Chicken inasal is the new lechon manok. With its achuete-tinged, tender meat grilled to perfection dipped in sinamak, soy sauce and chilies, we just can't have enough of chicken inasal. Though I have not come across a chicken inasal stand a la lechon manok yet, this Ilonggo-born grilled chicken continue to create more restaurants–all bearing the term "inasal"–in just about every district in the Metro.

3. Artisanal, handmade and home-made. Home bakers, ice cream makers, and small-scale food producers create products they themselves will not hesitate eating. They know the pulse of their market (foodies like themselves), and churn out these products on a bigger scale so everyone gets to share the good stuff. We know they put a little more care, passion and love so it translates into their products and to the consumers. International restaurant consultants Baum and Whiteman call it "the campfire experience–building emotional ties and connecting to communities."

4. More "combo meals" in high end restaurants. With the economy still reeling from the recession, restaurants will not hesitate to offer recession-friendly menus so people will continue to dine out. That means, full course meals, chef specials and the like will be ours for the taking.

5. More luxury brand restaurants and cafés. On the flip side, Filipinos love the good life and will not hesitate to plunk down their hard-earned pesos for a taste of it. With the presence of Bacchus Epicerie in Rockwell since late 2008 and the opening of a new Haà¤gen-Dazs café (at Robinsons Place Ermita) and the Maitre Chocolatier Boutique Café in Jupiter Street (which serves Ferrero Rocher- and Lindt-inspired desserts) in 2009, more are sure to follow.

6. Celebrities as chefs. Ever since Juday earned her diploma in cooking school, more and more actors, actresses and celebrities are embracing their inner foodies. The latest actress to graduate from Gene Gonzales' Center for Culinary Arts is actress Janice de Belen who's been earning her chops as a cooking show host and product endorser.

7. Supermarket delis. Supermarkets have made deli products like sandwiches, cold cuts, cheeses, sausages, gourmet groceries, and hot dishes more accessible by bringing the experience on-site. After customers are done shopping for the basic stuff, supermarkets now provide quick gourmet meals in their very own corner delis and dining areas.

8. Healthy anything. Antioxidants, probiotics, vitamin-enriched, organic, fat-free, light, sugar-free and zero transfat continue to be the buzzwords of our local consumer food products. Whether in teas, frozen yogurts, ice creams, all-purpose creams, light fruit cocktails, fast-food meals, even corned tuna and vegetarian chicharon, it's good to know we have healthier alternatives. Real healthy food (without enhancements or subtractions in their makeup) also continue to, er, sprout–I'm eager to try a glass of wheatgrass and kefir.

9. Culinary school-connected restaurants. What better way for schools to train students for the real world (i.e. restaurants with paying customers) than to run a restaurant next door? From ISHCAM's Celsius Gastrolounge and Aubergine Restaurant and Patisserie to Enderun's Restaurant 101 and MIHCA's Illumine Restaurant, it's a delicious learning experience not only for the students but also for us diners.

10. Power of the collective–food blogs and bloggers. This trend, which I borrowed from Phil Lempert (a "Supermarket Guru") and his own forecasting for 2010, has also been happening in the Philippines. He says, "It's a new world of "word-of-mouth" recommendatio ns using the latest technologies:mobile devices, mommy bloggers, Twitter and house parties. In 2010, shoppers will depend less on advertising and more on social networking and killer apps to help them make their decisions on where to eat and what foods to buy."

So true. I'd buy what Market Manila or Dessertcomesfirst.com is currently raving about without batting an eyelash, have what Franco at Table for Three Please is having, or go to a restaurant that Anton Diaz of Our Awesome Planet and his family recommends. They are authorities to a blog-reader like me as much as any of the local publications. Anton even created his own taste testing event to feature foods that we would only stumble upon via word-of-mouth. PR companies are also taking notice of the "new media"–bloggers continue to receive invites to food events, sometimes exclusive only to them. Amidst all these, we just have to separate the wheat from the chaff.

SPOT.ph wants to know: What do you think the next delicious thing will be in 2010?

Images courtesy of aubergine.ph, abeerofcan (Chicken Inasal), Michael Wisniewski (Jacq's jars, wheat grass), Spoon (Janice de Belen), Marian Peralta (deli meat).