Breakfast Awakening

Breakfast Awakening
Breakfast is big news in the restaurant industry.
 More consumers are purchasing their morning
meals from foodservice—particularly fast-food
restaurants, which nearly half of consumers
now say they patronize for weekday breakfast
on occasion.

More concepts are offering breakfast;
they range from Wendy’s huge rollout
of morning offerings to hole-in-the-wall
burger joints that are taking a chance on
breakfast burgers.
 More of the restaurants that serve breakfast
are extending it far past the morning hours.
Yet consumer data shows that the breakfast
market is far from saturated and independent
restaurateurs still have plenty of opportunities
to grow sales within this category—if they can
successfully capitalize on consumer preferences
and current menu trends.
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Speed, Convenience, Taste
and Variety
Key Trend: Healthy—continued
"Technomic’s
MenuMonitor database
tallies more than 230
new breakfast items
over the past two
years at limited-service
concepts alone."
American diners, including breakfast consumers, are
increasingly seeking out healthful foods on the menu.
New trends for morning nutrition point to betterfor-you breakfast foods that underscore health and
wellness along with appealing, fresh flavors.
The latest Breakfast
Consumer Trend
Report from Technomic
shows that Americans
today place less
importance on the
price of a foodservice
breakfast than they do
on convenience and
taste. Speed of service
and variety of items
on the breakfast menu
are also key factors.
Breakfast is generally the simplest and least
expensive meal, but these consumer findings show
that it has not been “commoditized”—operators
at all price points have ample opportunities to
differentiate their breakfast offerings on factors
other than low price.
Thinking about the place you purchase breakfast
from most often what are the main reasons you
purchase breakfast most often from this location?
Convenient location on
the way to work/school
Has food that tastes really
good
39%
Has a drive-thru that is
convenient
35%
27%
Speed of their service
Has the best coffee/coffee I
prefer to drink
Has the best choice of
healthy options
Weekday
50%
48%
45%
It is inexpensive
Has the widest variety of
breakfast options to choose
from
51%
33%
25%
19%
35%
30%
17%
13%
9%
11%
Weekend
Base: 548 (weekday) and 644 (weekend) consumers aged 18+
who purchase breakfast away from home Respondents chose the
top three reasons that best describe why they choose this location
Source: 2011 Breakfast Consumer Trend Report; Technomic, Inc.
Now let’s take a look at some key menu trends that
allow restaurants to deliver what consumers want
most for breakfast.
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Lowfat, nonfat and reduced-fat descriptors mark
breakfast offerings as “healthy” or “light.” While
these terms do help consumers choose a nutritious
breakfast, they could also signal to some diners
that the food may not be as flavorful.
But other trendy foods and ingredients carry
strong positive connotations of health and wellness
without this downside. They include:
 Oatmeal. Quick-service chains are stirring
the pot, introducing their own versions
of oatmeal as an alternative to the more
common breakfast sandwiches. Kicking off
the trend was McDonald’s, which introduced
Fruit & Maple Oatmeal in early 2011. Burger
King offers new branded Quaker Oatmeal
in original and fruit-topped varieties. Other
LSRs that have found success with oatmeal
include Calistoga Artisan Sandwiches, Jamba
Juice, Starbucks and Chick-fil-A.
 Whole- grain and multi-grain items. In addition
to whole-grain oatmeal, there have been
other introductions of craveable bread-based
breakfast foods with whole-grain or multigrain
qualities. Black Bear Diner offers 7-Grain
Almond Pancakes and a new breakfast side,
the 7-Grain Almond Cake; Cracker Barrel
introduced a multigrain pancake breakfast
and a Six Grain N’ Granola Pancake; and
Energy Kitchen debuted whole-grain muffins in
blueberry and banana versions.
 Greek-style yogurt. Creamier and thicker
than other yogurt varieties, Greek yogurt
also contains twice as much protein as
familiar types of yogurt. Its popularity is
exploding as many consumers develop a
taste for this alternative; nearly a fifth of
consumers now say they prefer Greek-style
yogurt over regular yogurt. Greek yogurt is
crowding dairy cases in grocery stores, but
restaurant operators are also featuring it
with fresh fruit, granola and/or honey as a
light, nutritious breakfast. New York City’s
Rock Center Café lists Greek Yogurt with
Mixed Berries, and ‘Wichcraft offers signature
granola with Greek yogurt and honey.
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Key Trend: Healthy—continued


Chicken. Chicken has never been thought of as
a breakfast protein—until recently. A quarter
of chicken consumers say they would very
likely order chicken breakfast sandwiches at
restaurants if they were available; among
those who favor turkey, three in 10 would be
interested in breakfast sandwiches or burritos
featuring turkey sausage or bacon. Menu data
shows an increase in the number of turkey
items on breakfast menus, along with the
introduction of high-profile chicken items—
such as Chick-fil-A’s chicken biscuits, mini
biscuits and burritos. In the full-service realm,
Leona’s in Chicago offers a Cheezy Chicken Pie
for breakfast.
Egg white. Offering the protein of egg
without the cholesterol, egg white is an
increasingly well accepted alternative to
whole eggs. Examples include the Egg
White and Sundried Tomato sandwich at
Bruegger’s Bagel Bakery and Egg White
Florentine breakfast crepes at Freshens.
Key Trend: Ethnic
Consumers—particularly Hispanics and younger
consumers— report an increased interest in ethnic
breakfast options, and operators are taking note.
Honey Dew Donuts, for instance, rolled out a series
of International Breakfast Sandwiches, including All
American, Portuguese and French sandwiches as
well as The Mexican—pulled pork, egg and chipotle
spread served on ciabatta bread.
Ethnic restaurants are also extending their menu
specialty to the breakfast segment. Breakfast pizzas
are now offered by a number of pizza concepts;
Happy Joe’s Pizza & Ice Cream Parlor offers omelet
pizzas along with cinnamon rolls for breakfast, and
Taco Cabana offers hickory-smoked brisket and egg
tacos with rice, beans and flour tortillas.
American regional breakfast items are a related
trend. In the Southeast, Hardee’s offered a Fried
Bologna Biscuit limited-time offer featuring egg,
cheese and Oscar Mayer bologna on a signature
scratch-made biscuit. Denny’s limited-time Tour
of America menu features a number of regionally
inspired dishes, with options that range from a
Midwestern meat and potatoes sandwich to a Philly
cheese steak omelet.
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Key Trend: Coffee's Hot
Coffee is a major driver of morning traffic, and
consumption is significant. Coffee is playing an
increasingly important role in consumers’ breakfast
purchasing decision, with a third of coffee drinkers
reporting that they are loyal to a coffee brand or
restaurant that serves their preferred coffee for
breakfast. Indeed, at breakfast, food often takes a
backseat to coffee.
Operators have recognized these consumer
preferences for branded coffee—and coffee as
an integral part of a breakfast meal—with recent
rollouts. Subway added Seattle’s Best-brand coffee
to accompany six signature breakfast sandwiches
introduced over the past year. Atlanta Bread
Company introduced Lavazza-brand coffee in all of
its units systemwide.
Consumer demand for fair-trade and organic coffee
beans is also on the rise, with one out of five
consumers saying they prefer fair trade coffee and
almost as many saying they look for organic coffee.
Sysco Can Help
Breakfast is one of the key growth opportunities
for restaurants of many types. Because menus are
generally simple and straightforward, independent
operators who hope to succeed must source
high-quality food and beverage products, then
create recipes that show off these ingredients
and grab attention. They must also price these
offerings appropriately and promote them in a way
guaranteed to draw traffic. For help, operators can
turn to their Sysco Marketing Associate, who can
advise them not only on ingredient sourcing and
menu development but also on pricing, marketing
and competitive intelligence. On call to back up
the Marketing Associate’s expertise is Sysco’s
formidable team of culinary and operational
professionals. In addition to the resources available
within Sysco, operators can draw on Sysco’s iCare
business partners, offering a
suite of value-added resources
designed specifically to help the
independent restaurant operator.
For more information, contact
your Sysco Marketing Associate.
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