Abstract
The midscale/family dining segment of the restaurant market is frequently associated with lackluster innovation, drab décor and sales to match. While the midscale segment has been flat for some time, opportunities exist below the surface that can ignite change and growth.
In this report, Mintel conducts a thorough review of factors impacting growth among midscale operators. These include:
- Staving off competition threatening to cannibalize sales during core/traditional parts of the day
- Retaining core customers without violating loyalty
- Attracting new customers without alienating the core customer
Throughout the report, Mintel compares and contrasts activity among operators in the midscale channel as well as activity in other channels. Readers are provided with multiple examples of menuing and consumer research to back up observations and to provide further guidance.
In the extensive consumer research section, readers will find useful summaries of research observations, as well as a summary of recommendations. These reference summaries allow you to quickly evaluate the implications of Mintel' s extensive research, as well as zero in on new marketing ideas.
This report focuses on family/midscale and casual restaurant chains with system-wide sales in excess of $100 million annually.
This report contains US IRI InfoScan data.
Table of Contents
- Scope and Themes
- What you need to know
- Definition
- Resources used for consumer sections
- Abbreviations and terms
- Abbreviations
- Terms
- Executive Summary
- Bottom line
- Challenges to growth
- Trading down to QSR and fast casual?
- Price point compression
- Heated competition for the breakfast dollar
- Changing demographics may take their toll
- Leveraging strength and innovation keys to growth
- Playing the quality card
- Leveraging the late-night diner
- Supplementing full-service relaxation with quicker service
- Capitalizing on take-out
- Promote midscale as a gathering place
- Make the kids happy
- Supply structure
- Other key consumer insights
- Buffet style service popular among the majority
- Usage by daypart
- Reasons for choosing family restaurants, by daypart
- Market Drivers
- Economic conditions weigh on market
- Figure 1: Impact of fluctuating gas prices on consumer expenditures, May 2007
- Figure 2: Sales growth by fast food, fast casual, and family/midscale, 2004-06
- A competitive restaurant segment comparison
- Price and daypart activity
- Figure 3: All day menu price points, Q1 2006-Q1 2007
- Figure 4: Attitudes toward QSR and family/midscale food quality, June 2007
- Menu innovation and daypart activity
- Figure 5: Percent change in new menu item activity by menu/daypart and dining type, 2005-06*
- Breakfast daypart activity
- Figure 6: Attitudes towards faster service, June 2007
- Marketing claims undifferentiated
- Figure 7: Top ten marketing claims on menus for family/midscale, QSR and fast casual
- Figure 8: Leading cuisine profile for new menu items introduced 2006, midscale
- Figure 9: Leading cuisine profile for new menu items introduced 2006, QSR
- Figure 10: Leading cuisine profile for new menu items introduced 2006, fast casual
- Figure 11: Leading cuisine profile for new menu items introduced 2006, casual
- Reflecting America' s diversity on menu
- Figure 12: Population by race and Hispanic origin, 2002-12
- Maturity and the changing palate
- Figure 13: Population by age groups, 2002-12
- Figure 14: Foreign-born population, by age and region of birth, 2003
- Market Size and Trends
- Market size
- Figure 15: Total U.S. systemwide sales of family/midscale restaurants, at current and constant prices, 2004-06
- Market trends
- Steak- and dessert-focused concepts weak
- Dialing for dining
- Figure 16: Where food was eaten, by restaurant type, April 2007
- Figure 17: Attitudes toward family/midscale delivery, by age, June 2007
- Supply Structure
- Figure 18: U.S. systemwide sales for the top 15 family/midscale chains, 2004 and 2006
- Figure 19: U.S. systemwide units for the top 15 family/midscale chains, 2004 and 2006
- Mergers and acquisitions
- Leading midscale operators
- Denny' s
- Menu composition and menu moves
- Figure 20: Menu composition for Denny' s, by menu component, Q1 2007
- Opportunity quotient
- IHOP
- Menu composition and menu moves
- Figure 21: Menu composition for IHOP, by menu component, Q1 2007
- Opportunity quotient
- Cracker Barrel
- Menu composition and menu moves
- Figure 22: Menu composition for Cracker Barrel, by menu component, Q1 2007
- Opportunity quotient
- Golden Corral
- Menu composition and menu moves
- Figure 23: Menu composition for Golden Corral, by menu component, Q1 2007
- Bob Evans Farms Inc.
- Bob Evans
- Menu composition and menu moves
- Figure 24: Menu composition for Bob Evans, by menu component, Q1 2007
- Opportunity quotient
- Perkins and Marie Callender' s Inc.
- Advertising and Promotion
- Attracting new customers
- Denny' s courts the late night crowd
- Restaurants promote themselves as a gathering place
- Spicing up the menu
- Retaining core customers
- Doing battle over breakfast
- Appealing to kids
- Kids menu strategies
- The Consumer: Usage, Brand Preferences, and Attitudes
- Summary
- Simmons usage and brand analysis
- Kids in tow
- Attitudes toward quality, service, and portion size
- Family/midscale restaurant usage
- Figure 25: Usage of family and QSR restaurants, 2006
- Figure 26: Usage of family restaurants, by key demographics, 2006
- Figure 27: Usage of "top 6" family restaurants, 2000-06
- Family restaurant brand preferences
- Figure 28: Family restaurants where adults dine, 2006
- Figure 29: Adults who dine at family restaurants by race/ethnicity, 2006
- Figure 30: Usage of "top 4" family restaurants by Hispanics, 2002-06
- Figure 31: Adults who dine at family restaurants by race/ethnicity, 2006
- Teen brand preferences
- Figure 32: Teens who dine at family restaurants by race/ethnicity, 2006
- How kids influence restaurant choice
- Figure 33: Influence of children on family/midscale dining decision, by parents with children, June 2007
- Figure 34: Importance of kid-centric attributes to parents' midscale restaurant selection, by number of children, June 2007
- Figure 35: Top 15 items on children' s menus in midscale/family restaurants, Q2 2004-Q2 2007
- Attitudes toward quality, service, and portion size at family restaurants
- Figure 36: Attitudes toward quality, service, and portion size, June 2007
- Figure 37: Attitudes toward quality, service, and portion size, by gender, June 2007
- Figure 38: Attitudes toward quality, service, and portion size, by age, June 2007
- Figure 39: Attitudes toward quality, service, and portion size, by household income, June 2007
- Figure 40: Attitudes toward quality, service, and portion size, by race/ethnicity, June 2007
- Figure 41: Attitudes toward quality, service, and portion size, by # of children in household, June 2007
- The Consumer: Family Dining by Daypart
- Summary
- Usage by daypart
- Reasons for choosing family restaurants, by daypart
- Usage by daypart
- Figure 42: Family/midscale meals eaten for breakfast, lunch and dinner, by age, June 2007
- Figure 43: Family/midscale meals eaten for breakfast, lunch and dinner, by household income, June 2007
- Figure 44: Family/midscale meals eaten for breakfast lunch and dinner, by # of children in household, June 2007
- Late-night dining
- Figure 45: Incidence of late night dining, by key demographics, June 2007
- Reasons for choosing family restaurants, by daypart
- Figure 46: Reasons for eating at a family/midscale restaurant for breakfast, lunch, and dinner, June 2007
- Breakfast
- Figure 47: Reasons for eating at a family/midscale restaurant for breakfast, by age, June 2007
- Lunch
- Figure 48: Reasons for eating at a family/midscale restaurant for lunch, by gender, June 2007
- Figure 49: Reasons for eating at a family/midscale restaurant for lunch, by age, June 2007
- Figure 50: Reasons for eating at a family/midscale restaurant for lunch, by household income, June 2007
- Dinner
- Figure 51: Reasons for eating at a family/midscale restaurant for dinner, by gender, June 2007
- Figure 52: Reasons for eating at a family/midscale restaurant for dinner, by houseold income, June 2007
- Future and Forecast
- Future trends
- A future with take-out
- And a more futuristic dining experience
- Faster service--with a strong caveat
- Family with a splash of casual
- A need to strike a chord with minorities
- Figure 53: Population by race and Hispanic origin, 2002-12
- Figure 54: Usage of family restaurants, by race/ethnicity, 2006
- Market forecast
- Family/midscale restaurants
- Figure 55: Forecast of total U.S. systemwide sales of family and midscale restaurants, at current and constant prices, 2006-08
- Forecast factors
- Appendix: Trade Associations
