Dubai Chewy Cookie Is Out, and This Is Coming In... The Purple Dessert Taking Over Cafes [Trend Recipe]

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[The Financial News] One color has been appearing on cafe menus more and more often lately: purple. As menus using ube, from lattes to shakes and cakes, spread rapidly, another major dessert craze appears to be emerging after the Dubai chewy cookie and Butter Tteok.
According to the industry on the 18th, ube is an ingredient mainly used in Southeast Asia. It looks similar to a sweet potato, but the taste is different. It is known for its soft, mild sweetness and a hint of vanilla aroma. Above all, it stands out for its vivid purple color without artificial coloring. As this visual appeal spread through social networking service platforms, it became a global food trend and is now quickly making its way into Korea's cafe market.
Franchise cafes moved quickly to catch the trend. A Twosome Place introduced its Ube Series, made up of three drinks and one dessert, on the 6th. The "A Twosome Place Ube Latte" ranked first among non-coffee drinks and fourth overall just three days after launch, drawing a strong response. It is unusual for a drink without a shot to rank so high. The company also said some consumers who tried the ube latte have been expanding their choices to the "Ube Cafe Latte" by adding an espresso shot.
Starbucks Corporation also joined the ube trend by offering "Ube Basque Cheesecake" at 100 stores nationwide starting on the 14th. The menu highlights ube's sweet flavor and purple color for visual appeal, reflecting the way "purple desserts" are being consumed as content on social networking service platforms.
Ube is quickly becoming a must-have cafe menu item. Small and independent cafes are also joining the competition by rolling out ube drinks and desserts one after another so they do not fall behind the trend. Industry watchers say the pattern resembles recent dessert crazes that spread nationwide after gaining traction on social networking service platforms, raising the possibility that ube could become a major trend following the Dubai chewy cookie and Butter Tteok.
However, as the unfamiliar ingredient gains popularity rapidly in Korea, some consumers have expressed disappointment over the quality. In some cafes, menus focus only on reproducing the purple color without understanding ube's distinctive flavor, then sell the item under the name "ube."
A 25-year-old surnamed Choi, who said she had experienced ube overseas, said, "Ube fever has finally arrived in Korea, so I visited many cafes and tried the related menus. But at some small cafes, they used purple sweet potato and still claimed it was ube," adding, "Rather than blindly following a trend, I hope there is a clear understanding of the ingredient behind it."
localplace@fnnews.com Kim Hyun-ji Reporter