The effects of the last year's chicken sandwich wars were still lingering in the first of 2020—at least, that's what Grubhub found.
On Thursday, the food delivery service released its annual "State of the Plate" report, which analyzes over half million orders placed on the app between Jan. 1 and June 20. The data was then used to determine the top 2020 food trends to date, what Americans were ordering while under lockdown, and which dishes will likely see a surge in the upcoming months.
According to Grubhub, spicy chicken sandwiches experienced a 300 percent increase in popularity this year, making it the top 2020 food item to date. Plant-based burgers came in at a close second with a 291 percent rise in popularity. Vanilla shakes took the No. 3 spot (273 percent increase), followed by iced lattes (261 percent), and chili (228 percent). Cinnamon rolls landed at the No. 6 slot (205 percent), chimichangas at No. 7 (195 percent), beef burritos at No. 8 (181 percent), while potato tacos and taro milk tea rounded out the top with 169 percent and 168 percent increases, respectively.
Grubhub also laid out the most popular food orders in the country's biggest cities. New Yorkers were apparently big fans of the mushroom burger; Angelenos couldn't get enough of their California burritos; and Chicago was all about the gyros.
As for most popular orders across the main three meal times, açaí bowls lead the breakfast list, Thai chicken salad came in first for lunch, and rigatoni bolognese topped the dinner list. Cheese breadsticks were the most popular for late-night orders.
Grubhub also found vegetarian and vegan foods became much more popular during the first half of 2020, with general plant-based orders increasing by 135 percent. New York was determined to be the most vegan-friendly city, followed by Los Angeles, Portland, Las Vegas, and Boston.
Just like comfort food, DIY kits and alcohol orders also rose in popularity between January and June:
Top Alcohol Orders (in ranking order):
- pinot grigio
- hot sake
- rosé
- light beer
- IPA
- merlot
- frozen strawberry margarita
- chardonnay
- cabernet
- pina colada
Most Popular Meal Kit Orders
- D.I.Y. burger
- D.I.Y. lobster roll kit
- D.I.Y. salad
- D.I.Y. pizza
- D.I.Y. gyro kit
You can check out Grubhub's full State of the Plate report here.
