Cheese is integral to fan favorite, Ubiquitous comfort foods (pizza, burgers,
sandwiches, soup, etc.), as well as Adoption-level comfort food megatrends
like new bar foods, which notably showcase cheese as the filling for items
like globally-inspired empanadas and arancini. Cheese also plays a
prominent role in regional U.S. comfort foods, ranging from filling Chicago
pizza puffs to topping Colorado chile verde. Many classic Mexican comfort
foods (such as enchiladas) feature cheese and sour cream, too, and new
wave Mexican classics are also leaning into cheese — think, for instance, of
the cheese crust on the outside of the tortilla used in quesabirria, a dish
that’s up 982% on menus over the past 4 years (Datassential Menu Trends).
