The Spread

How a versatile group of spreadable cheeses is igniting innovation.

BY CHARLIE POGACAR

DINERS ARE CUTTING BACK on spending. That’s led to fewer restaurant sales and less foot traffic. Black Box Intelligence reported that yearover-year traffic growth slowed by 3 percent in April 2023.

In some ways, this is a familiar challenge for chefs, who often gravitate toward the profession because they enjoy creating something notable and delicious that will get diners through the door. Innovation continues to be at the heart of what they do; it just comes with a new set of considerations.

“With menu development, the attrition of talent is a very real obstacle,” says Jennifer OBrien, director of restaurants and bars at Marriott Luxury brands. “Innovation comes by the way of: ‘How do we upscale people more fluently and quickly without losing quality and innovation on the menu?’”

Nate Weir, vice president of Modern Restaurant Concepts, agrees that staffing remains the biggest ongoing challenge when designing new menu items. He says that’s one of the many reasons that chefs are rethinking ingredient selection—and how each ingredient fits into their operation.

“You can get around the shortage of kitchen staff by simplifying processes and finding layup ingredients that work really well without a lot of manual input,” Weir says. “Versatile ingredients that work in multiple places and give us more velocity in the kitchen are a really key piece to consider when innovating right now.”

This is where spreadable cheeses come into play. They are ingredients that can be used across a wide variety of dishes and dayparts. Products like Boursin, Price*s Pimiento Cheese Spread, and Merkts Cheese Spread are helping chefs unlock creative recipes that will drive foot traffic because they can go far beyond just spredable applications like sandwiches and burgers.

“Versatility is the perfect word for spreadable cheeses,” Weir says. “They are incredibly flavorful ingredients that are versatile by their very nature: They can be stirred into a recipe, spread easily, or even be a standalone ingredient on a cheese board.”

Weir points to Price*s Pimiento Cheese Spread as an example of the above: It can be spread on bread, stirred into grits, put on a burger, or folded into mac ‘n cheese. Pimiento also happens to be a hallmark of Southern cuisine, which has become trendy all across the country in the past decade.

“I feel like especially in the spring, around the time of the Masters [golf] tournament, you start seeing a lot of Pimiento,” Weir says. “But Southern food has had a big moment and we’re seeing that continue with Southern influence all over menus. Pimiento can be a great component in capturing that trend.”

A chef favorite, Boursin is another study in versatility—to exhibit this, Weir cites ways he has used Bour- sin products in the past: in mashed potatoes, on a salad, folding it into sauces or soups, on top of a burger, or in a gnocchi. Weir also recommends the Boursin IQF Frozen Cheese Cubes as a way to get perfectly portioned cheese onto a pizza bursting with flavor—the product was created by Bel Brands USA in the company’s ongoing quest to give chefs solutions-oriented foodservice formats of its time-tested lineup of products.

In a further nod to those IQF cubes—as well as to Boursin’s daypart versatility—OBrien recently designed a breakfast pizza with strawberry preserves and Boursin IQF Cheese Cubes, arugula, and pistachios. “It’s a really simple dish and one you could do with fresh strawberries to upscale it,” OBrien says. “The sweet and savory elements paired together really nicely. The creaminess of the Boursin almost has that goat-cheese-like consistency—it maintains its creaminess despite the heat.”

Each spreadable cheese has the potential to spark fusion-style innovation, too, Weir says, adding that each works well with Latin American flavors in particular. For example, he recently created a Chili Relleno Philly Cheesesteak with Price*s Pimiento and roasted mushrooms.

“You can use all of these products in Mexican fusion dishes in ways that might be somewhat unexpected,” Weir says. “Both Merkts and Price*s can be a great base for a queso. And aside from those Mexican flavors, Boursin can be a great substitute for feta in something like a Kebab—it can elevate the flavor profile of a Mediterranean dish and really add that flavor punch.”

One final trend that the Bel Brands USA lineup has covered is the increasing appetite for plant-based cheeses, which Datassential says have grown 110 percent on menus in the past four years. In fact, Bel Brands now offers Boursin Dairy-Free Garlic & Herbs among its vegan options. OBrien was introduced to the product when it first came to market and was immediately impressed.

“The flavor of Boursin Dairy-Free is outstanding,” OBrien says. “The consistency is also super creamy. It behaves as though it is a dairy product.”

In this way, it is the perfect extension of the Bel Brands USA portfolio: Craveable, versatile, and comforting, it can be used in any number of applications in order to drive foot traffic. Each Bel Brands USA product is packed with flavor and perfect for kitchens looking for easy-to-use ingredients that streamline back-ofhouse operations.

“Spreadable cheeses like the Bel Brands lineup is a nostalgic food group, if you will,” OBrien says. “Because that’s what it is—they’ve created almost their own food group. The flavors of each product are craveable and flexible, so there’s a lot of exploration you can do.” ❖

For more flavor with less labor, visit BelBrandsFoodservice.com.