Recently, the culinary world in China and Vietnam has continuously shocked consumers with a series of very strange-sounding dishes, such as onion-flavored milk tea, stone-grilled sausages coated with chili powder, hand-pounded lemon tea, salted coffee, cheese coin cakes, clay-baked milk tea,...
However, these bizarre combination ideas have actually appeared for a long time in the world, and it is worth noting that they were developed by famous brands. The fact that big brands launch these unique combination products is not random, but has a clear cause and purpose. These products often aim to meet the diverse needs of the market, attract the attention of consumers and demonstrate the creativity and innovation of the brand.
Scallion milk tea in Vietnam once caused a stir because of its "weirdness"
Little Moons, the famous British artisan ice cream brand, has just launched a bold new flavor: fish and chips. The ice cream is inspired by the traditional British street food, combining the richness of ice cream with the salty crunch of fish and chips.
The brand says it wants to offer customers new and unique experiences. It believes the fish and chips ice cream flavor will appeal to those who like to explore new things.
Little Moons has just launched a bold new flavor: fish and chips ice cream.
Little Moons’ bold decision has received mixed reviews from consumers. Some are curious and excited about the new flavor, seeing it as a creative way to enjoy a familiar street food. Others find it offensive, offensive and unimaginable to combine ice cream with fish and chips.
Or the New York-based artisanal ice cream company Van Leeuwen, known and loved for its basic ice cream flavors like vanilla and pistachio. However, they also sometimes boldly launch ice cream with “shock flavors”, such as pizza ice cream or Hidden Valley Ranch (a sauce containing onions and garlic). These unique creations not only challenge traditional tastes but also create curiosity and excitement from consumers, affirming Van Leeuwen’s position in the artisanal ice cream industry with constant creativity.
Pizza flavored ice cream or Hidden Valley Ranch flavor, a sauce containing onions and garlic
In fact, unusual and even bizarre flavor combinations are becoming more and more common, and consumers are finding them on store shelves.
For example, Hershey launched Lemonade-flavored KitKat. IHOP and Lay's introduced Rooty Tooty Fresh n' Fruity potato chips, which are described as tasting like strawberry-topped pancakes with bacon.
Rooty Tooty Fresh n' Fruity flavored potato chips, described as tasting like strawberry pancakes topped with bacon
In today’s competitive marketplace, brands are always looking for new ways to grab the attention of their customers. Bizarre foods and drinks can help them stand out and create a buzz on social media.
Many people believe that brands are coming up with new flavors to attract attention and increase their popularity. However, experts say that is not the only purpose. Behind these strange flavors is a careful strategy to meet the market demand and changing consumer tastes.
With the explosion of restaurants and cafes, creating something different is crucial to attracting customers. Unique food and drinks can help brands establish their position in the market. Brands hope that the bizarre food and drinks will attract customers' curiosity and make them try the product.
Using new, unique ingredients can help brands save on production costs compared to using traditional ingredients. Launching new flavors is an important strategy for food brands to meet market demand, differentiate themselves and attract customers. However, brands need to carefully consider the benefits and risks before deciding to launch a new flavor.
Launching new flavors is an important strategy for food brands.
Playing with flavors helps brands in a variety of ways. Sometimes it’s a way to introduce new customers to a brand. Sometimes it’s a way to nudge customers toward the original flavor. But these combinations don’t always work. Van Leeuwen, for example, can’t stomach a few bites of Hidden Valley Ranch ice cream, which contains onions and garlic powder. Even the most outrageous flavors, like mac and cheese, don’t appear on the regular menu because they’re not likely to be picked up.
The trend of "racing" with the strange culinary trends of big brands is receiving many mixed opinions. Although they are all strange cuisines, the dishes of the brands are carefully calculated, thoroughly researched on flavors and launched to the market with a clear purpose. That is the biggest difference with the trend of green onion milk tea in Vietnam.
