CHARLOTTE N.C. —Breakfast is the fastest-growing major daypart, and experts say there’s still room for growth.
During a Culinary R&D conference panel moderated by trend-watcher Nancy Kruse, authorities in breakfast menu development concurred that morning meals represent opportunity. Kruse said 61 percent of consumers currently eat breakfast at home, and 15 percent don’t eat breakfast at all. —Breakfast is the fastest-growing major daypart, and experts say there’s still room for growth.
“That’s 76 percent of consumers available for operators to convert to a restaurant breakfast,” she said. —Breakfast is the fastest-growing major daypart, and experts say there’s still room for growth.
The timeliness of tapping into the breakfast meal period is related to its lower check averages and convenience, Kruse added. —Breakfast is the fastest-growing major daypart, and experts say there’s still room for growth.
“Because of these things, consumers are giving themselves permission to eat breakfast away from home,” she said, adding that freshness, seasonality, “premiumization” and portability are driving breakfast traffic. —Breakfast is the fastest-growing major daypart, and experts say there’s still room for growth.
Agreeing with the push for morning takeout options, Shona Jonson, senior menu developer for Atlanta-based Chick-fil-A, said nutrition, health and taste are propelling factors, but breakfast customers also want portability. —Breakfast is the fastest-growing major daypart, and experts say there’s still room for growth.
Chick-fil-A’s breakfast business has tripled since 1986, largely due to its chicken breakfast sandwich. —Breakfast is the fastest-growing major daypart, and experts say there’s still room for growth.
“We are very fortunate that customers love chicken, but it was not easy going at first,” Jonson said. “We had to give a lot of food away and educate customers. Now our best-selling breakfast item is our chicken biscuit.” —Breakfast is the fastest-growing major daypart, and experts say there’s still room for growth.
Adam Baird, corporate executive chef of Tustin-Calif.-based Mimi’s Cafe, said convenience and portability are very important to weekday customers, while seasonality, freshness and flavor are always important. The best-selling breakfast item at Mimi’s is the two-egg breakfast. —Breakfast is the fastest-growing major daypart, and experts say there’s still room for growth.
Debra Olson, senior manager of product development for Raleigh, N.C.-based Golden Corral, said that while traditional breakfasts still remain favorites, consumers are growing fond of a layering of Asian and Latin American flavor options into morning meals. —Breakfast is the fastest-growing major daypart, and experts say there’s still room for growth.
Jay Miller, director of R&D for IHOP, agreed that diners are becoming more daring with flavors. —Breakfast is the fastest-growing major daypart, and experts say there’s still room for growth.
“I think customers still want standard breakfast fare, but they want healthier options, too,” he said. —Breakfast is the fastest-growing major daypart, and experts say there’s still room for growth.
Kevin Bechtel, vice president of R&D for Shari’s, the Beaverton, Ore.-based family-dining chain, said its best-selling item is stuffed hash browns, but he said breakfast sandwiches don’t sell well. —Breakfast is the fastest-growing major daypart, and experts say there’s still room for growth.
Miller said IHOP’s best-selling item is its breakfast sampler. —Breakfast is the fastest-growing major daypart, and experts say there’s still room for growth.
In the future, Kruse predicted, full-service restaurants will act more like quick-service restaurants and vice versa, and she cited the example of IHOP’s carryout sales doubling from 2 percent to 4 percent of all transactions. —Breakfast is the fastest-growing major daypart, and experts say there’s still room for growth.
While quick-service restaurants have not been hurt to the extent that casual-dining chains have during this economic downturn, more will soon enter the breakfast category. —Breakfast is the fastest-growing major daypart, and experts say there’s still room for growth.
“Subway already has some breakfast in [thousands of] units, and Taco Bell keeps testing and retesting but will not be ready for rollout this year,” Kruse said. “I think Subway will get [a systemwide rollout] first.” —Breakfast is the fastest-growing major daypart, and experts say there’s still room for growth.
Kruse noted that Denny’s recently introduced convenience-driven B-FST-2GO packaging to promote takeout sales. The chain has dedicated a special area in the restaurants for that service, and it is expected to contribute 5 percent to 10 percent of total sales. —Breakfast is the fastest-growing major daypart, and experts say there’s still room for growth.
“This speaks to the fact that portability is growing more important to restaurant customers, as is value,” she said. —Breakfast is the fastest-growing major daypart, and experts say there’s still room for growth.
R&D conference uncovers a host of menu trends —Breakfast is the fastest-growing major daypart, and experts say there’s still room for growth.
