It’s expected that the meat in your sandwiches at fast food and fast-casual restaurants is going to continue getting more expensive in the next year. Which means you’ll either be getting less of it or paying more (possibly both). So what better way to justify the value of that burger than to tart up the bread?

At least that’s the prediction over at BurgerBusiness.com, which is predicting that 2013 will be the Year of the Bun.

The site calls it a “Win-win-win” for eateries, as more bun options give customers more control over optimization, allows them to offer things like gluten-free buns, all while diverting from the additional cost for the protein in between the buns.

Though it’s been burger-centric casual restaurants that have led the charge in giving customers better and different buns, BurgerBusiness thinks it’s only a matter of time until the fast food chains follow suit:

The chains will have to catch up, and they’re already trying. Wendy’s and McDonald’s already have tested flatbread sandwiches. Wendy’s told analysts it is looking at a Cheddar-topped jalapeňo bun for a Spicy Santa Fe Chicken sandwich. A pretzel-style roll is being considered with a Pub Club sandwich it has in development, and pretzel buns are featured with Red Robin’s and Steak ’n Shake’s Oktoberfest burgers. Burger King offered what it called an “artisan-style” bun for its Memphis BBQ Pulled Pork sandwich, but chains can do better than that.

We were kind of hoping that 2013 was going to be the year of free bacon, but that’s just a pipe dream. A lovely, smoky, crispy pipe dream.

Want more consumer news? Visit our parent organization, Consumer Reports, for the latest on scams, recalls, and other consumer issues.