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71 Words That Restaurants Started Using In Their Menus And People Can’t Stop Rolling Their Eyes At Them
If your idea of fine dining is a date at Olive Garden, you’re probably used to menus stating exactly what’s on them. Each dish has a simple name, and its components are clearly listed below. But nowadays, restaurants will use any tactic they can to up their prices, including using a heavy hand to smother their food in fancy buzzwords.
Have you noticed recently how many menus are suddenly featuring hot honey, truffles, and microgreens? These trendy buzzwords don’t only make meals more Instagrammable, they also seem to be a tactic restaurants use to justify their high prices. Threads users have recently been discussing some of the most popular phrases restaurants are haphazardly slapping on menus, so we've compiled a list of them below. Enjoy reading through, and be sure to upvote the ones that make you lose your appetite too! Click here & follow us for more lists, facts, and stories.
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#3
“Seasonal fruit” and it is always cantaloupe, honeydew melon, grapes, no matter what season it is
Just like anything else, restaurants have trends that come and go every season. Remember when Dubai chocolate was everywhere? Pistachios are still pretty popular in anything and everything. Tiramisu has also been having a moment on social media recently, as well as matcha.
When it comes to dining out, though, Michelin Guide reports that there are a few big trends coming our way this year. Apparently, char, smoke, and flame are to be expected on every fine dining menu. “Time” is also now considered an ingredient, particularly for components that have been fermented for ages. And we can expect to see creative contemporary spins on traditional cuisines.
#5
When every other word is in English, but they throw in a random french word like haricot. shut the h**l up with your sysco green beans.
#6
Appetizers being called “shareables”. Because now they can charge $18 for some beer cheese pretzels.
As far as what influences how we cook at home, social media plays a major role. There are constantly new food trends popping up on TikTok, such as the viral Biscoff yogurt “cheesecake” trend that started in Japan. And who can forget the mouthwatering Turkish pasta?
But according to Ingredient’s 2025 trend report, a few global cuisines have been influencing home cooking as well. Georgian and African cuisines have become increasingly popular amongst home cooks around the globe. Classic French, Mexican, and Portuguese cuisines are growing in popularity too. And plenty of people have been experimenting with fusion cuisine, putting a twist on traditional flavors.
#8
I once saw "flourless chocolate cake with a dialogue of fruit coulis" on a menu.
A dialogue??? 😂
Is this list making you hungry, or are you simply rolling your eyes at all of these buzzwords, pandas? Keep upvoting the ones that you’re tired of seeing, and let us know in the comments if you’ve noticed any other trendy words taking over menus. Then, if you’re interested in checking out another article from Bored Panda featuring wild dishes from restaurants, look no further than right here!
#11
The possessive on French menus. The equivalent of “Glazed pork loin with its assortment of fire-roasted root vegatabkes,” or “pan-seared Brussels sprouts with their lardons served under a cloche of maple smoke.”
#13
Mocktail. It’s $15 juice. Actually, I love a mocktail but the price enrages me. You’re literally not giving me alcohol but I don’t get a discount? Stop it.
#15
I remember once seeing "potato puree" on the menu and I asked, "So like, loose mashed potatoes?" The server laughed and was like, "Yeah pretty much" lol
#18
“Market Price” Just tell me hmtf it costs, if I wanted to play games of chance I’d go to a GD casino…
#21
Crudité. You mean an overpriced veggie tray I could get at the deli in my local grocery store for 1/3 of the cost?!
#27
This is a restaurant, not a freaking museum. "Curated" is some ridiculously pretentious nonsense.
#28
Foraged and heritage anything, especially “foraged”. Like the sous chef was out in the woods yesterday. 😏
#29
Farm to table. Everything came from a farm and ended up on a table. It’s about the in between.
(I own an organic farm with a restaurant onsite and don’t even use that stupid saying)
#38
I very dislike, a QR code, please seat me with a proper menu. Also when you walk in at a restaurant and there are several tables open and they ask you if you have a reservation 🙈🤣
#41
Crudo. I speak Spanish so it’s just so jarring (and pretentious) to see the word raw. Just say what it is.
#46
"homemade" - it's a restaurant! How can it be homemade?
"fresh" vegetables/fruit/salad/anything... Were you thinking of serving stale food?
#48
Any place of business, including restaurants, that boast that their product is “world famous.”
#49
Not roll my eyes but I’m grossed out when I see bone marrow on a menu. I donated bone marrow - so … ewww
#59
"Lobster" when you know [darn] well it's Langostino. Which is a lobster but stop playing in my face
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