Eating breakfast is important to 41% of diners, yet only about a third choose foodservice options for breakfast, brunch, and morning snacks. Diners already appreciate the value and convenience of ordering breakfast or brunch at restaurants; they are motivated by the treats and the on-the-go convenience that morning dining offers. However, many prefer to reserve their dining expenses for sit-down occasions that feel “worth it.” Nevertheless, on-the-go dining is on the rise, as is diners’ reliance on fast casual restaurants to offer quick but highly tailored dining experiences. This level of customization may be the breakthrough operators need to increase foodservice visitation.
Operators will need to adapt to changing lifestyles to boost traffic during the week. Looking ahead, emerging disruptive concepts may provide more versatility and speed in the breakfast/brunch experience during weekdays and promise a more experiential and immersive dining experience on weekends. Overall, breakfast/brunch operators are tasked with meeting varied needs that oscillate between fast-paced and leisurely dining.
This report looks at the following areas:
- Morning dining habits
- What motivates or deters AM foodservice ordering
- Where diners prefer to eat breakfast/brunch
- Menu items diners most want to see
- Factors important when ordering breakfast/brunch on the weekdays vs the weekend
- Foodservice breakfast/brunch behaviors and attitudes
Restaurant operators are tasked with reinventing breakfast/brunch and offering compelling experiences that make diners opt for foodservice over cooking at home.
Varchasvi, Research Analyst
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Executive Summary
- What you need to know
- Market predictions
- What consumers want & why
- Opportunities
- Innovate breakfast/brunch with non-dairy options
- Graph 1: frequency of non-dairy milk consumption, 2024
- On the menu: dairy-free options
- Pairings make the breakfast order feel more accessible
- Graph 2: food ordered with coffee/tea, 2024
- On the menu: coffee combos
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Market Dynamics
- Market context
- Market drivers
- Uptick in consumer sentiment may change menu price perception for the positive
- Graph 3: consumer sentiment index, 2022-24
- Bullish outlook on households’ personal finance is a boon for foodservice
- Graph 4: income growth in the past 12 months, by financial outlook, 2024
- Graph 5: opinions on financial future, 2024
- More breakfast/brunch fast casual concepts will emerge
- Graph 6: trended restaurant visitation – any ordering, 2022-24
- Morning dayparts need a stronger value proposition
- Graph 7: attitudes and behaviors towards cooking [18+] – select items, 2024
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Consumer Insights
- Consumer fast facts
- Who’s ordering in the AM?
- Foodservice snacking needs a push
- Graph 8: restaurant ordering occasions, 2024
- Morning dining habits are driven by convenience
- Graph 9: breakfast, brunch and morning snack orders, by employment and work from home status, 2024
- Graph 10: breakfast, brunch and morning snack orders, by household income, 2024
- Men, parents favor breakfast away from home
- Graph 11: breakfast, brunch and morning snack orders, by gender, 2024
- Graph 12: breakfast, brunch and morning snack orders, by parental status, 2024
- Diverse options in urban areas attract younger consumers
- Graph 13: breakfast, brunch and morning snack orders, by area, 2024
- Graph 14: breakfast, brunch and morning snack orders, by age, 2024
- Ordering motivators
- Morning dining serves several needs
- Graph 15: ordering motivators, 2024
- Breakfast is routine for men, special for women
- Graph 16: ordering motivators, by gender, 2024
- Make the routine AM visit exciting for parents
- Graph 17: ordering motivators, by gender, 2024
- Ordering deterrents
- Are mornings too simple to dine out for?
- Graph 18: ordering deterrents, 2024
- Novelty will get younger diners excited about breakfast
- Graph 19: ordering deterrents, by generation, 2024
- Employees look to foodservice breakfast to save time
- Graph 20: ordering motivators and deterrents, by employment and work from home status, 2024
- Breakfast/brunch locations
- Grow on-the-go dining
- Graph 21: breakfast/brunch consumption location, 2024
- Snacks fuel consumers at work
- Graph 22: breakfast/brunch consumption location, 2024
- Convenience keeps younger diners returning
- Graph 23: breakfast/brunch consumption location, by generation, 2024
- Desired menu items
- Diners want to start their morning right
- Graph 24: desired menu items, 2024
- Make breakfast an event for women
- Graph 25: desired menu items, by gender, 2024
- Younger diners want what’s trendy, but are loyal to the classics
- Graph 26: desired menu items, by generation, 2024
- Novel options can power diners’ workday
- Graph 27: desired menu items, by typical consumption location, 2024
- Dining priorities
- Diners consistently value good service and affordability
- Graph 28: weekday vs weekend dining priorities, 2024
- Experience can be the differentiator for breakfast/brunch
- Graph 29: dining priorities – foodservice coffee and tea^, 2024
- Graph 30: dining priorities – breakfast, brunch and morning snacks, 2024
- Ordering behaviors
- Classics win, but reinventions will appeal also
- Graph 31: ordering behaviors, 2024
- Restaurant apps can shape morning dining
- Graph 32: ordering behaviors, by generation, 2024
- Generations indulge in foodservice on their own terms
- Graph 33: ordering behaviors – indulgence, by generation, 2024
- Graph 34: ordering behaviors – menu exploration, by generation, 2024
- Opinions
- Customizability can be the breakthrough for steady breakfast/brunch visitation
- Graph 35: opinions, 2024
- Gen Xers are loyal to the homemade breakfast
- Graph 36: opinions, by generation, 2024
- Convenience is key for family breakfasts
- Graph 37: opinions, by parental status and gender, 2024
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Innovation and Marketing strategies
- Launch activity and innovation
- Familiar breakfasts reinvented
- Festive indulgence and health go together
- Breakfast/brunch heats up
- Unique breakfast/brunch offerings
- Marketing and advertising
- Operators look to social media for the latest breakfast innovations
- Value wars take over breakfast
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Appendix
- Consumer research questions
- Consumer research methodology
- Generations
- Abbreviations and terms
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