Southern cuisine is a mainstay for driving traffic to restaurants nationwide. House Autry, a North Carolina mill that first sold grains in 1812, has helped define southern flavor for more than 10 generations. Today, the 200-year-old icon released its 2025 Southern Flavor Guide to help foodservice operators drive traffic and boost sales in their restaurants.
“From southern fried chicken to biscuits and gravy to shrimp and grits, most every menu today relies on the cravability of southern flavor to drive sales,” says Frank Pogue, House Autry’s Vice-President of Marketing and Business Development. “Our insights into how to capture the allure of southern flavor easily offers the opportunity to fully leverage the cuisine for additional traffic and sales this year.”
Southern cuisine’s national appeal is surprising. According to Datassential, a menu analytics firm, finds that there are more restaurants positioned for their southern cuisine in New York City than any other followed by Los Angeles, Dallas, and Atlanta. The firm also finds more chicken and waffles on menus in Eureka, Calif., and Cleveland, than in Savannah, Ga.
The new House Autry Southern Flavor Trends Guide shares the top trending menu items and ingredients for the year, top southern comfort foods, how to get the most from southern fried chicken, and how signature breakfast biscuits, pancakes and waffles can drive the breakfast daypart. The guide also recommends the year’s top 10 southern flavor pairings of the year for menu developers.
“While our history makes us an authority on southern flavor, we continue to innovate on breadings and mixes that reduces labor and speeds service,” says Clay Mullins, House-Autry’s Vice-President of Sales. “I encourage anyone in the foodservice business to download our free 2025 Southern Flavor Guide as a quick path toward increased traffic and sales this year.”
To download the guide, visit house-autry.com/pages/foodservice/flavor-trends.
