Family Dining
-- Restaurants & Institutions, September 1, 2009
Who Goes Most
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66% of consumers visited at least one of the family-dining concepts included in R&I’s Consumers’ Choice in Chains survey in the past year. Boomers and those with children ages 6 to 12 are among the consumers most likely to patronize these chains.
What Consumers Want from Family Dining
Consumers were asked how they rate—on a scale of 1 (not very important) to 5 (very important)—the importance of eight attributes in choosing a family-dining chain. The chart below shows how patrons’ opinions have changed in the past year.
| Attribute | 2009 | 2008 |
| 1. Food Quality | 4.45 | 4.43 |
| 2. Cleanliness | 4.30 | 4.30 |
| 3. Value | 4.23 | 4.21 |
| 4. Service | 4.17 | 4.16 |
| 5. Menu Variety | 4.06 | 4.05 |
| 6. Convenience | 3.93 | 3.91 |
| 7. Reputation | 3.86 | 3.85 |
| 8. Atmosphere | 3.75 | 3.71 |
| Platinum | Gold | Silver | |
| Cracker Barrel | Bob Evans | Marie Callender's | |
| Overall Score | 68.9 | 67.0 | 65.1 |
| The Chain | Headquarters: Lebanon, Tenn. CEO: Michael A. Woodhouse Units: 588 R&I Top 400 Chains rank: 25 Respondents who... Are aware of the chain: 66% Visited in past 12 months: 21% Plan to return: 90% | Headquarters: Columbus, Ohio Chief Executive: Steve Davis Units: 569 R&I Top 400 Chains rank: 44 Respondents who... Are aware of the chain: 49% Visited in past 12 months: 8% Plan to return: 87% | Headquarters: Memphis, Tenn. President-CEO: Jay Trungale Units: 130 R&I Top 400 Chains rank: 122 Respondents who... Are aware of the chain: 34% Visited in past 12 months: 5% Plan to return: 91% |
| Why It Won | Consumer cachet: The chain continues to find a large audience for its Cracker Barrel Old Country Store-exclusive merchandise, from limited-edition pink Dolly Parton rocking chairs to Paula Deen dinnerware. The newest CD in Cracker Barrel’s collection, Montgomery Gentry’s “For Our Heroes,” debuted at No. 11 on Billboard’s Top 200 in June. | Consumer cachet: Bob Evans chose Xenia, Ohio, as the first site for its new prototype, which features flat-screen TVs, WiFi, curbside carryout and a communal table—all part of a new “Home of Homestyle” design. For all of its embrace of tradition, the chain has taken a decidedly current approach in reaching out to guests via online social networks. | Consumer cachet: As of August, kids eat free all day Tuesdays and Saturdays (one kid meal per adult purchase). The promotion is part of a bid to win back business from families, an important audience segment that has cut back on meals away from home during the recession. A new $18 two-course meal features two entrées and two slices of pie. |
| Overall Score | Atmosphere | Cleanliness | Convenience | Food Quality | Good Reputation | Menu Variety | Service | Value | |
| Note: Overall Score is an index; percentages for each attribute represent respondents who rated the chain a 4 or 5 on a scale of a low of 1 to 5. | |||||||||
| 1. Cracker Barrel Old Country Store | 68.9 | 73% | 70% | 49% | 76% | 75% | 76% | 69% | 62% |
| 2. Bob Evans | 67.0 | 58 | 69 | 54 | 73 | 74 | 74 | 65 | 60 |
| 3. Marie Callender’s | 65.1 | 66 | 68 | 56 | 75 | 73 | 68 | 63 | 53 |
| 4. Perkins Restaurant & Bakery | 59.2 | 47 | 61 | 48 | 64 | 62 | 66 | 58 | 56 |
| 5. IHOP | 58.0 | 44 | 52 | 53 | 64 | 64 | 68 | 58 | 54 |
| 6. Big Boy | 55.7 | 41 | 58 | 55 | 59 | 57 | 63 | 50 | 54 |
| 7. Boston Market | 55.7 | 39 | 52 | 51 | 72 | 62 | 54 | 51 | 51 |
| 8. Steak ’n Shake | 55.2 | 48 | 55 | 49 | 64 | 63 | 54 | 55 | 49 |
| 9. Shoney’s | 52.1 | 49 | 49 | 41 | 59 | 55 | 57 | 54 | 47 |
| 10. Denny’s | 51.4 | 35 | 41 | 52 | 50 | 51 | 63 | 53 | 57 |
| 11. Waffle House | 48.3 | 30 | 33 | 49 | 53 | 45 | 49 | 53 | 58 |
| 12. Village Inn | 48.1 | 31 | 41 | 41 | 55 | 48 | 65 | 47 | 42 |
| 13. Friendly’s | 46.2 | 39 | 43 | 43 | 48 | 52 | 58 | 40 | 48 |
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