Creating seasonal promotional items is a vital task for restaurant operators today. That is particularly true when it comes to coffee, that habitual, highly profitable and widely popular beverage.
In addition to drawing add-on sales, seasonal signatures actually help drive traffic in establishments, operators say. In fact, 21 percent of consumers last year — up from 16 percent in 2012 — say that beverages play a very important role in deciding which restaurants to visit for meals, reports Chicago-based research firm Technomic.
Consider that together with the growing appeal of gourmet coffee beverages, and the opportunity comes into sharper focus. According to the National Coffee Association, 34 percent of American adults consumed cappuccino, latte, café mocha and the like last year on a daily basis, up from 31 percent in 2013.
The appeal of signature beverages such as gourmet coffees is especially strong among the customers that operators are striving to attract. Technomic reports that the increasing influence of beverages in restaurant preference is particularly strong among consumers aged 18-44, who tend to use beverages for a wide variety of occasions, including snacks and social visits.
“You are only seeing coffee consumption increase, and you are seeing the younger group drinking it as much or more than the older demographic,” says Marie Grimm, vice president of menu development and innovation at International House of Pancakes LLC, DineEquity Inc.’s Glendale, Calif.-based family dining chain, which has over 1,600 units.
IHOP’s flavored coffee fans enjoy its French Vanilla Coffee, which is served with creamy whipped topping in the same fashion as its signature pancakes. “It has a flavor profile that matches very well with our breakfast foods and offers variety in the overall menu,” says Kirk Thompson, vice president of marketing at IHOP.
French Vanilla was introduced as a seasonal coffee flavor, as were gingerbread and peppermint in the past.
At IHOP, coffee has been elevated to the status of “strategic ingredient” because of its critical importance to the guest experience, Grimm says. “We constantly look at our base ingredient to make sure it is on trend in terms of its source and how it is handled all the way through the back-of-the-house.”
Adds Grimm, “Our coffee innovation isn’t just around flavors. It is about authenticity, service style, origin of bean, it can go back as far as that.”
Cinnamon Winter Blend Coffee and Cinnamon Caramel Latte, along with a cinnamon-flavored bagel, schmear and breakfast sandwich, beckon to customers in the post-holiday weeks at Einstein Bros. Bagels, part of the Einstein Noah Restaurant Group based in Lakewood, Colo., which has more than 855 locations.
They follow Einstein Bros.’ annual fall Pumpkin Bagel Bash, which featured Pumpkin Latte and a variety of other pumpkin-inspired menu items.
Cinnamon Winter Blend Coffee contains a mix of vanilla, cinnamon and nutmeg flavors. The Cinnamon Caramel Latte blends cinnamon and caramel sweetness with toppings of whipped cream and caramel drizzle.
“This time of year, there is something about cinnamon and pumpkin,” says Erin Berg, brand manager of beverages and catering for Einstein Noah. “It feels like home.”
Numerous other flavor profiles hold promise as well, Berg says.
“Salted caramel is kind of a nostalgic flavor, something you would see in a candy shop,” Berg says. “I think there will be a little more of a trend around that. You might see flavors like red velvet, butterscotch, marshmallow s’mores and whoopee pie that also have a nostalgic feel. Then you look at coconut and maybe macadamia nut, dulce de leche and spiced rum, flavors that are more exotic.”
Peppermint Mocha, Cinnamon Dolce Latte and Hazelnut Macchiato headline a new slate of signature coffee drinks this winter at Glazed and Infused, a five-unit mini-chain of artisanal doughnut shops in Chicago that belong to the Francesca’s Restaurant Group there.
“Everyone drinks coffee and they always will,” says Glazed and Infused general manager Vittorio Calandrella. “It is a very important item in our concept. It will be 50 percent of our revenue.”
The java specialties keep pace with innovative doughnut flavors such as Cranberry Blood Orange, Red Velvet, Dreamsicle Bismark and Chocolate4. The latter is a chocolate cake donut raised to a higher power with a chocolate ganache glaze and dark and white chocolate curls.
Part of the rationale of the new javas is encouraging coffee-doughnut matching.
“Now we can suggest the flavor of the coffee for the flavor of the doughnut,” Calandrella says. “For example, the Peppermint Mocha, which is kind of spicy, is a perfect fit for the Chocolate4 doughnut.”
