Hot Entrees Lead New Items at Breakfast

In 2010, 61 leading chain restaurants added 421 breakfast items to the menu. One of every four items was a "temporary" Limited Time Offer (LTO) and three of four were "permanent" new items. Breakfast LTO's were mainly Hot Entrees and Baked Goods, while New Items were mainly Hot Entrees and Sandwiches, with a very good showing also for Breakfast Sides. (see table below).

One in Four Chains Menus Breakfast

The MenuMine database from Foodservice Research Institute monitors menu activity in 638 unique chain restaurants in all regions of the country. Currently, 24% of these chains menu breakfast items. Approximately 4 of ten chains serving breakfast added a New or LTO breakfast item in 2010.

Top Chains Adding New Breakfast Items

Leading chains adding new breakfast items last year are led by Waffle House, 5 & Diner, Jamba Juice, TooJays Gourmet Deli, Clyde's, Polly's Pies, Panera Bread, Berryhill Baja Grill, Dunkin Donuts and Mimi's Cafe.

Top Chains Adding LTO Breakfast Items

Leading chains adding LTO's include Dunkin Donuts, IHOP, Coco's Bakery Restaurant, Krispy Kreme Doughnuts and Coffee, Perkin's Restaurant & Bakery, Cracker Barrel Old Country Store, Panera Bread, Einstein Bros. Bagels, Seattle's Best Coffee, and Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf.

New Item Trend for Breakfast

According to MenuMine from Foodservice Research Institute, the number of new items for breakfast peaked in 2007 and 2008 at 375/379 breakfast items. In the last two years, new item activity at breakfast is down from the high of a few years ago. Going back to a benchmark year (2005), activity is up, however, with an index of 137 (basis: 2005=100). The five year trend in the table below was developed on a "Same Store" basis with a MenuMine sample of 136 chains (out of 638 in MenuMine) serving breakfast in each of the last 5 years.

New/LTO Breakfast Items in 2010: Hot Entrees

Hot Entrees are generally classified into three groups: Egg Entrees (54%), Griddle Cake Entrees (42%) (represented by Pancakes, Waffles and French Toast) and Bread Entrees (4%) monopolized by Biscuits & Gravy.

• Top two Egg items are Skillet Entrees and Steak & Eggs. Other items include, in order, Huevos Mexican Entrees, Eggs Benedict, Spinach Omelets, Fiesta Omelets, Bacon Omelets, and Mushroom Omelets.
• Griddle Cake Entrees are mainly Pancakes (55%), French Toast (26%), Waffles (14%), and Crepes (5%).

New/LTO Breakfast Items in 2010: Sandwiches

Wraps make up 23% of breakfast sandwiches, followed by Biscuit Sandwiches (18%), Bagel Sandwiches (18%), Croissant Sandwiches (12%), English Muffin Sandwiches (10%), Ciabatta Sandwiches (6%), Griddle Cake Sandwiches (3%) and other (10%). Breakfast Wraps, as a class, are led by Wrap Sandwiches, Burritos, Flatbread Sandwiches and followed up by Quesadillas, Pita Pockets and Tacos

New/LTO Breakfast Items in 2010: Side Dishes

Most new side dish additions to the menu are Fruit (31%) and these include mainly Fresh Fruit and Fruit Salads with Mangos and Berries frequently mentioned. Cereal Sides are dominated by Oatmeal (60%) followed by Granola and other Cold Cereals. Carb Sides, with a 24% share of breakfast new item sides, consist of Potatoes (mainly Hashbrowns, Country Potatoes, Sweet Potato Fries, Home Fries and Taters), but also heavily mentioned Biscuits & Gravy, with some Beans and some Pancake mentions. Other side dish categories include Eggs, Dairy and Breads. Dairy is predominantly Yogurt & Fruit, followed by Cottage Cheese.

New/LTO Breakfast Items in 2010: Baked Goods

Leading Baked Goods, in order of menu mentioning order, are: Donuts, Bagels, Muffins, Danish/Sweet Rolls, Scones, Croissants, Biscuits, Fruit Crisps, Coffee Cake, Tortillas, Cinnamon Rolls, Baguettes and Sourdough Toast.