Brands look to offer home meal replacementBrands look to offer home meal replacement

Mark Brandau

With retail food inflation climbing at a more rapid rate than menu price increases, operators are finding that American families have yet one more reason to be receptive to such value packages as bundled dinners and home-meal replacement offers.


But while chains like KFC, Pizza Hut, Bob Evans, Long John Silver’s, Mimi’s Cafe and Zoës Kitchen are pushing the value button, they are not losing sight of the continuing need to underscore other messages like convenience and quality.


The 57-unit Zoës Kitchen recently debuted Dinners for Four, aimed at busy, value-seeking families. But the fast-casual chain’s new vice president of marketing, Rachel Phillips-Luther, said family-focused deals and home-meal replacement do more than simp...