WASHINGTON – The National Restaurant Association (NRA) issued new research that finds a wider variety of ethnic cuisines are increasingly becoming part of everyday American diets.

The NRA’s Global Palates: Ethnic Cuisines and Flavors in America study found that Italian, Mexican and Chinese cuisines reign supreme in terms of familiarity, trial and frequency of eating, while consumers are least familiar with Ethiopian, Brazilian/Argentinian and Korean cuisines.

The survey finds that two-thirds of consumers say they’re eating a wider variety of ethnic cuisines now than they were just five years ago. Additional highlights from the survey include:

• American consumers place value on authentic experiences and restaurants specializing in individual cuisines, but are nearly equally as open to ethnic dishes on mainstream menus.
• 80% of consumers eat at least one ethnic cuisine per month.
• 17% of consumers eat seven or more cuisines on a monthly basis.
• Nearly one-third of consumers tried a new ethnic cuisine in the past year.
• The cuisines most commonly eaten on-premises at restaurants are sushi, Thai, Vietnamese, Brazilian/Argentinian, Greek and Southeast Asian.
• On the restaurant takeout and delivery side, Chinese is by far the most common, followed by Ethiopian, Mexican and Italian.

“Americans generally are more willing to try new food than they were only a decade or so ago,” said Annika Stensson, NRA director of research communications, in a press release, adding that the typical consumer today “is becoming more adventurous and sophisticated when it comes to different cuisines and flavors.”