Avocado Toast Again? We Need to Have a Conversation.

A Comedic Look at the Food Trend That Refuses to Go Away

There are certain food trends that arrive, make a little noise, become popular, and eventually disappear into the great culinary graveyard where forgotten foods go to rest.

Remember when cupcakes were everywhere?

Cake pops?

Cronuts?

Those enormous rainbow-colored drinks that looked like a craft project?

They had their moment.

And then there is avocado toast.

Still here.

Still green.

Still sitting on restaurant menus as though nobody has had enough.

I have nothing against avocados. Let me make that very clear before anyone starts sending me angry messages from their brunch table. Avocados are perfectly respectable. They are creamy, versatile, nutritious, and quite delicious when prepared properly.

Toast is also perfectly respectable.

Bread has been doing its job for centuries.

Put the two together and you have a perfectly sensible breakfast.

So why, after all these years, are we still behaving as though someone has discovered a revolutionary culinary invention?

Avocado toast again?

We need to have a conversation.

It Started Innocently Enough

I remember when avocado toast was simply something people made at home.

You toasted a piece of bread.

You cut open an avocado.

You spread it on the toast.

Maybe you added salt.

Perhaps some pepper.

Done.

Breakfast.

No reservation required.

No minimalist restaurant interior.

No menu description that takes longer to read than the recipe.

Then something happened.

Suddenly avocado toast became trendy food.

Restaurants started putting it on brunch menus.

Food bloggers started photographing it.

Social media became obsessed with it.

And before we knew it, people were standing in line on Sunday morning to pay restaurant prices for something they could make in their kitchen before their coffee finished brewing.

This is where I became concerned.

Why Is Avocado Toast Still Everywhere?

The reason avocado toast has survived while many other food trends have disappeared is actually fairly simple.

It is easy to make.

It looks good.

It can be customized.

It works for breakfast, brunch, and lunch.

And most importantly, people genuinely like it.

There.

I said something nice.

Avocado toast has earned its place in modern food culture because it combines several things people want from trendy food. It is simple enough to understand, flexible enough to personalize, and visually appealing enough for social media.

You can add an egg.

You can add tomatoes.

You can sprinkle chili flakes on top.

You can add feta.

You can add seeds.

You can add smoked salmon.

You can add herbs.

You can turn it into an entire brunch experience if you are willing to spend enough money.

And that brings us to my next question.

Why does it cost so much?

The $15 Piece of Toast

Here is where my eyebrow starts to rise.

I have seen avocado toast on restaurant menus at prices that make me question the stability of society.

Fifteen dollars.

Eighteen dollars.

Twenty dollars.

Sometimes even more once you start adding toppings.

For avocado.

On bread.

Now, I understand that restaurants have overhead.

They pay employees.

They pay rent.

They buy ingredients.

They have utility bills, equipment costs, insurance, taxes, and countless other expenses.

I am not suggesting restaurants should give food away.

But there is something deeply amusing about paying a premium for a meal that can be recreated at home with very little effort.

You know what happens when I make avocado toast at home?

I don’t need a reservation.

I don’t have to wait forty minutes for a table.

I don’t have to listen to someone describe the “seasonal interpretation” of my breakfast.

And nobody charges me an additional $3 because I requested an egg.

It’s beautiful.

The Menu Description Has Become Ridiculous

One of my favorite things about trendy restaurants is the way they describe very simple food.

The menu doesn’t say “avocado toast.”

No, dear.

That would be too straightforward.

Instead, you might encounter something like:

“Artisan sourdough topped with hand-smashed avocado, heirloom tomatoes, fermented chili, microgreens, toasted seeds, and a delicate citrus reduction.”

Excuse me?

I asked for breakfast.

Not a thesis.

And what exactly is “hand-smashed avocado”?

Did a professional avocado smasher perform this service?

Was there a ceremony?

Did the avocado receive a certificate?

It is an avocado.

Someone mashed it.

Let’s move on.

Then Came the Microgreens

Nothing makes trendy food look more expensive than putting tiny leaves on it.

Microgreens have become the jewelry of modern restaurant plates.

They sit there quietly.

They don’t do much.

But they look sophisticated.

You could put an ordinary piece of toast on a plate, add avocado, and nobody would be particularly impressed.

Add six tiny green leaves.

Suddenly, it is brunch.

Add edible flowers.

Now it is an experience.

Add a drizzle of something that requires a French accent to pronounce.

Now it costs $21.

I am beginning to understand how this works.

Avocado Toast Has Had Many Makeovers

To be fair, avocado toast has evolved.

It is no longer simply avocado on bread.

Now we have endless variations.

There is avocado toast with poached eggs.

Avocado toast with smoked salmon.

Avocado toast with chili oil.

Avocado toast with feta.

Avocado toast with pickled onions.

Avocado toast with roasted vegetables.

Avocado toast with everything bagel seasoning.

Avocado toast with seeds.

Avocado toast with hot honey.

And probably avocado toast with something called a “wellness dust.”

I haven’t personally confirmed that last one.

But give the food industry time.

Eventually, someone will put avocado toast in a smoothie.

Please don’t.

The Poached Egg Has Entered the Chat

Of all the avocado toast additions, the poached egg may be the most popular.

And I understand why.

Egg and avocado work well together.

The creamy avocado paired with a soft egg can make a satisfying meal.

But there is something amusing about how every brunch restaurant now seems required to place a perfectly poached egg on top of something.

Toast?

Add an egg.

Salad?

Add an egg.

Grain bowl?

Egg.

Burger?

Probably an egg.

At this point, I suspect if I order dessert, someone will ask whether I want a poached egg on it.

No.

I do not.

Thank you.

The Brunch Industry Has a Lot to Answer For

Avocado toast is inseparable from brunch culture.

And brunch is an interesting invention.

Breakfast and lunch had been getting along perfectly well on their own.

Then somebody decided they should have a fashionable little meeting around noon on Sunday.

Now people dress up to eat eggs.

There are menus with cocktails before noon.

There are restaurants with elaborate floral decorations.

There are photographs of food taken from directly above.

And there is always someone saying, “We should come here again next weekend.”

Again?

We were just here.

This is how avocado toast keeps winning.

It is not simply a food anymore.

It is an experience.

A lifestyle.

A social event.

A photograph.

A reason to leave the house on Sunday morning.

And occasionally, a reason to spend half your paycheck before noon.

Is Avocado Toast Actually Healthy?

Here is where things get a little more complicated.

Avocado can be a nutritious food, providing healthy fats, fiber, and various vitamins and minerals. Whole-grain bread can also contribute fiber and other nutrients.

But the healthiness of avocado toast depends on what else is added and how much is eaten.

Once you add large amounts of cheese, creamy sauces, bacon, eggs, oil, and other toppings, the nutritional profile changes.

And that is perfectly fine.

Food do