Nation's Restaurant News - November 2, 2009

Higar: Sandwiches offer familiarity, ‘endless’ flexibility

BY RON RUGGLESS

DALLAS — No matter which way you slice it, sandwiches and burgers will continue to be menu mainstays because of their versatility and popularity, said Kevin Higar, director of operator product development at Technomic Inc.

“Sandwiches will continue to have prominence; there are so many things you can do with them,” Higar told attendees at the Menu Trends & Directions conference held here in a session entitled “Between the Bread: Trends in Sandwiches and Burgers.”

Sandwiches offer both operators and customers variety, good value and convenience, he said.

“Proteins will help differentiate the sandwiches,” Higar said. “Everything else on that sandwich is fair game. You will see two directions that can go: We can continue to stay with the traditional comfort-food interpretation, but we can also go for a more sophisticated level that challenges the consumer with some new and

unique flavor profiles.”

Sandwiches are especially popular for those on the go, he said, because consumers’ lifestyles are hectic and the portability of sandwiches and burgers allows them to “to do multiple things at the same time.”

He urged menu creators to not be fettered by the traditional, as seen in the burger category with:

• “Glam-wiches” such as Country Kitchen’s smokehouse burger and a new line of prime sirloin cheeseburgers at Fleming’s Prime Steakhouse and Wine Bar.

• “Wham-burgers” with a powerful flavor punch, such as the Angry Whopper at Burger King, the green-and-hot burger at Ted’s Montana Grill and the Burnin’ Love Burger at Red Robin.

“These have aggressive, over-the-top flavor profiles,” Higar said.

• “Sham-burgers” such as the burger taco at Rubio’s, the cheeseburger pizza at California Pizza Kitchen and the ice cream “ burger” at Noel’s.

Sandwiches are also showing

Kevin Higar of Technomic said operators should play with sandwiches’ flexibility and experiment with unexpected fillings.

great flexibility on menus from casual dining to fast food, Higar said.

“You can also get customization and great flavor profiles,” he said. “I can make it healthy. It can be indulgent. It can be multiple day-parts. It’s endless what you can do here.”

Sandwiches reflect food trends as well, he said, citing the popularity of seafood, as exemplified by the lobster wraps at Uno Chicago

PHOTOS: SCOTT WINDUS PHOTOGRAPHY

Grill, and vegetarian offerings, as seen in the tomato and mozzarella panini at Panera Bread.

In the first half of 2009, Technomic’s Menu Monitor found the fastest-growing sandwich types by segment were:

Casual dining: shellfish, turkey and steak.

Midscale: turkey club, pork and roast beef.

Quick casual: beef, turkey and cheese.

Quick service: vegetables, cheese steak and chicken.

Higar said chefs could create sandwiches that resonate with guests in various ways.

“It can be the preparation process,” he said. “It might be the fact that you have ‘all natural,’ which talks to the healthier and

better-for-you [movement].”

One strong trend is toward comfort food with a “street food” twist, such as the Mexico-inspired torta sandwiches at Baja Fresh.

“This is a comfort-food sandwich, but it’s street-food in nature,” he said. “You can have the bread and a number of different proteins and other ingredients. It works nicely with how they are positioned.”

Another “sandwich” item that is showing legs is hot dogs.

“There are a lot of comfort feelings associated with the hot dog,” Higar said.

The humble frankfurter is showing up with a premium patina as the Angus dogs at Wienerschnitzel, the ample size of the jumbo chili dog at Carl’s Jr. and the snackable mini chili dogs at Johnny Rockets. The wiener even has its place, he added, in the “swanky” cased-meats section at fine-dining chef Daniel Boulud’s casual DBGB’s in New York City. ■

rruggles@nrn.com

Wilson: Customers, operators still sweet on desserts

BY PAMELA PARSEGHIAN

DALLAS — Burgers may be hot right now, but desserts are hotter, according to Technomic.

In a recent poll, 85 percent of respondents said that they eat desserts once a month or more, which is the same amount of times they consume hamburgers, and 0 percent said they never eat desserts, said Melissa Wilson, a principal of the Chicago-based market research firm during the recent Menu Trends & Directions conference held here.

“That’s better than burgers,” Wilson said, explaining that some people reported that they never eat burgers.

In a presentation on dessert and sweet trends, she noted that 57 percent of respondents eat desserts frequently, meaning at least once a week, and many agreed that it is OK to order desserts if they are “shareable.” So restaurants looking to boost dessert sales might design

more options intended for group consumption, she said.

Furthermore, many diners may be ordering desserts in restaurants because “a lot of people don’t have the skill” to bake, Wilson said. Among the top sellers these days are familiar sweets.

Numerous restaurants are rolling out comfort-style desserts, such as puddings, warm cobblers and Bundt cakes, Wilson said, pointing to Sonic Drive-In’s molten-chocolate Bundt cake.

As an added bonus, dessert options at quick-service restaurants may help encourage customers to use the establishments as caterers with one-stop party-planning convenience, she said.

“A lot of QSR has had a lack of dessert options” in the past, Wilson said. Desserts may help “bolster your acceptance as a catering option.”

Of the top 250 chains’ desserts, chocolate was the most mentioned flavor during the first half of 2009,

according to Technomic’s Menu Monitor. And the most popular desserts from that study were fruit pies and crisps, followed by cheesecake, then ice cream and gelato.

Offering chocolate may be right on target, Wilson said, noting that a new study from The Mind Lab in the United Kingdom found people favor the flavor because “chocolate makes your heart beat faster than kissing.”

Many chains have found success with chocolate, she said. In fact, Chili’s best-selling molten chocolate cake did so well the company expanded the line. The new rollout features white-chocolate molten cake, she said.

The mini molten cake “ migrated from the fine-dining segment,” she said. “Now we have them delivered to your doorstep.”

Domino’s Pizza delivers its Chocolate Lava Crunch Cake, she noted.

Even though diners favor the familiar, “we are seeing experi-

Melissa Wilson of Technomic said familiar, comforting desserts,

especially ones with chocolate, are very popular with diners.

mentation” with new desserts in some chains, she said, mentioning Yard House’s banana crème brûlée and a chai crème brûlée from Big Bowl.

Olga’s Kitchen fries its French-toasted cheesecake, and Rita’s Water Ice sold 1. 4 million cups of Swedish Fish-flavored Italian Ice.

Also selling well across the country are frozen yogurts.

“That category has grown 12 percent between 2006 and 2009,” Wilson said.

And mini everything is taking a big chunk out of the dessert category. Besides Darden’s Seasons 52, which is credited with starting the small-desserts trend and continues to expand their line, Country Kitchen has a Mini Mania menu with the pint-size Caramel Cashew Sunday, and Jack in the Box offers

bite-size churros that have a sauce piped into the center, making them easy to eat. Cold Stone Creamery offers ice cream cupcakes that are on-trend as small sweets for grab-and-go operations.