Every niche in the food world is going to see their share of trends in the new year, from fast food to the ultra-luxe havens of molecular gastronomy, and Epicurious has just put in their two cents as to what some of those trends will be. Although they don't come right out and say so, it is pretty easy to see that their trends don't apply directly to all diners/cooks. Based on their selections, it appears that their picks are for the gourmet food niche. Not that there's anything wrong with that, but it's good to keep some perspective when reading forcasts for trends like number one on their list:

1. An increase in the number of "foie gras speakeasies", "private clubs having secret dinners, feasting on the forbidden fattened duck liver."
2. Iberico ham from Spain will become wildly popular.
3. More people will shop at farmers' markets and start to grow their own produce.
4. There will be more ethnic fine dining restaurants.
5. Fair trade will become a buzzword in the same vein as "organic" was this year.
6. More quality bread will be baked in restaurants.
7. Spicy drinks and cocktails will be big in restaurant bars. Jalapeno margarita, anyone?
8. Hot dogs will be the new hamburgers.
9. Small coffee roasters will be the new coffee trend (or you could just roast at home).
10. Consumers will continue to care more about the quality of the food they are buying/eating, not just the quantity.

Thanks to the trickle down effect of trends, the more accessible ones will hit the mainstream quickly (more hot dogs (#8) by summer), but the others might take more time to gain widespread popularity.

In spite of the laws in Chicago and the thread of a fine if they are broken, many Chicago area chefs are planning on turning their restaurants in to "duckeasies" for New Year's Eve diners, adding foie gras to one or more menu items on the grounds that the "holidays just wouldn't be the same without a little fattened liver." Restaurants that will be serving foie gras include Gioco, Wave in the W Hotel Lakeshore and Cyrano's Bistrot & Wine Bar, among others.

At one point in time, not so very long ago, the word "rehab" conjured up images of less-than-glamorous institutionalized settings. This is no longer the case, especially not in Southern California, where there are more luxury rehab centers than you can shake a stick at. They offer everything from ocean views to full service spas and cater to the rich, famous and anyone else willing to spend up to $80,000 per month. Any anyone prepared to spend that much money for such a trip is not going to settle for cafeteria food. These centers also have gourmet chefs that are not only willing to meet the nutritional needs of the clients, but to go above and beyond. As the director of one such program said, "What good does it do to have a very wealthy person have a roommate, have to get up at 6 a.m., make their bed and go to breakfast? That's not their real life. They are used to getting weekly massages, to the food, the private bedrooms and everything. That's what gets them through the door to get the help they need."

Not to make light of serious problems or chemical dependencies for which many people need treatment, these ultra-luxe rehab centers do offer top shelf counseling that can really put people on the road to recovery.

You just might get to enjoy a seasonal tasting menu when you're done.

There are a lot of different types of foodies, from those who love to cook at home to those who eat out exclusively, those who relish a great selection of seasonal veggies and those to whom meat is the most important part of a meal. No matter what types of food they fancy, there is going to be something out there, something extraordinary, that will make your favorite foodie's mouth water with anticipation. It could very well be one of the items on our list here. These are top of the line gifts, so some are quite expensive, but each and every one will be well-appreciated.

Pernod Ricard is launching a new champagne at a price that will make Cristal and Dom Perignon look like two-buck Chuck, as $400 per bottle price tags seem small when compared to this one. The wine and spirits group said that it would be launched under their Perrier Jouet Belle Epoque brand and it will be priced at $1,270 (€1,000) per bottle. This makes it the most expensive champagne in the world. Unfortunately, aside from the price tag, the company was fairly quiet about the other details of the release, though chairman Patrick Ricard did say "We won't do many cases and won't be offering it in France."

The group is actively pursuing ways to increase the perception of their brands as very upmarket, so perhaps this will be the first of many releases from the company. Regardless it will certainly set a benchmark in the champagne industry.

Personally, I'm not a big fan of caviar, although it does give a certain impressive air to parties and the quality of the American product has increased significantly over the past few years, meaning that good-quality caviar is often available at a reasonable price for those who do like it. If you are thinking about serving caviar at any of your holiday parties, you might want to take a look at the Caviar and Bubbles brochure from Schramsberg Vineyards. It was produced in conjunction with the Tsar Nicoulai Caviar Company and is a guide to pairing champagne, specifically six Schramsberg blends, with caviar. Three different types of caviar are recommended for each champagne. The Brut Rosé, for example, pairs with the Beet and Saffron Whitefish, Truffled Tiger-Eyed Whitefish and/or Gold Pearl Trout. The guide is available both as a PDF and can be ordered through the mail from Schramsberg.

The 4-star Storrs Hall Hotel in England's Lake District is offering what appears to be the UK's priciest picnic lunch. Chef Craig Sherrington put together a group of items that he thinks make up the ideal picnic - assuming that money is no object, since the picnic costs £1,566.60 ( $2,895 US). Picnicker's will dine outdoors on the shores of Lake Windermere on a meal that includes foie gras, Beluga caviar, British rare white beef, Scottish lobster, Waberthwaite Royal Air Dried Ham, Smoked Holker Venison Loin and Smoked Wild Lune Valley Salmon and an exotic fruit trifle with real gold leaf shavings. And since no picnic is complete without a beverage, the luxury meal will be accompanied by bottles of Louis Roederer Cristal Champagne and Chateau Lafite-Rothschild.

 Peeps and grocery-store chocolate candies are all well and good, but the end of Lent calls for something of a splurge. Fortunately, the purveyors of fine chocolate and other goodies are more than happy to oblige the impulse to celebrate the season. Here at Slashfood, we are happy to indulge whenever the opportunity arises, but these luxury Easter chocolates are really ideal for a special occasion.

1. Harry and David may not be the "go-to" chocolatier for some, but their Chocolate Praline Eggs are somehow shaped inside a colorful, real eggshell and need to be broken out before eating. A half dozen eggs are $29.99.
2. Robert L. Strohecker's Assorted Rabbits are chocolate bunnies designed to have three different flavors of filling inside different parts of the rabbit: toasted almond ears, an almond butter crunch head, and a caramel pecan body. Available in both milk and dark chocolate, this is one bunny you won’t get bored with. They are $30.95 a pair.
3. Neiman Marcus' Chocolate Easter Bunny is hand poured, hand decorated and hand wrapped. At nearly 5-pounds, it is one very big, but festive, bunny. Use it as a centerpiece, then serve it for dessert. Each bunny is $99.

In China, many products are produced at prices much lower than they are in other countries, but until recently, agriculture was not subject to the same type of mass industrialization. Now, it appears that China is muscling in on the truffle market, something that the French are not too happy about. France has a 45% share of the truffle market and their fungi cost an average of more than $500 per pound. Two new Chinese varieties of truffles cost more than 90% less - $28 per pound. The director of Yunri foods, a Chinese company that sells the truffles, said that they sell over 20 tons of truffles and mushrooms a year, mostly to the United States, United Kingdom and France.

A representative from the French Federation of Truffle Growers said that there were marked differences in the quality of the truffles, despite the fact that they look almost identical to the pricier Perigord variety. "It's a problem of aroma and of quality consistency." Truffle aficionados, predictably, state that the French version is unquestionably superior, but the real question is whether the average consumer would find the French truffles to be 90% better than the much less expensive Chinese ones.

Thanks to our swanky friends over at Luxist, we were alerted to the ban on worldwide caviar trade by the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES), and this just after the US banned import of caviar from the Caspian Sea. The New York Times had more detailed information yesterday about the reasons behind the ban as well as the 10 countries it affects, but the best story so far has been from the UK's Guardian. Tim Dowling gives the bourgie some other options for luxury items now that caviar won't be available at all - foetal peppers with your line caught mackerel eyes, anyone?