Dive Brief:
- Traffic related to consumer-perceived value menus rose 1% in the foodservice industry for the quarter ending June 2025, Circana said in a September press release emailed to Restaurant Dive. That builds on 2% growth seen in the previous year.
- Half of the consumers surveyed by Circana, who had not dined out recently, said they would visit restaurants with lower prices, including a majority — 54% — of respondents with household incomes under $75,000.
- Value menus are helping some brands offset an overall traffic decline of 1% in the foodservice industry.
Dive Insight:
Circana said the challenge facing restaurants now is to create “refreshed messaging” that can better connect with price sensitive consumers within a highly competitive environment.
Value-seeking consumers are 33% more likely than other consumers to choose value menus from other restaurant chains, rather than sticking with one chain, as they seek the best deals across brands, Circana said.
Restaurants also need to maintain a high-quality experience for guests to keep bringing consumers back.
“Value is rarely defined only by price,” David Portalatin, senior vice president and industry advisor for food and foodservice at Circana, said in a statement. “Operational excellence in providing quality, affordability, great experiences, and convenience is what leads winning restaurants and their supply chain partners to greater success.”
A year after many QSR chains went all in on value, chains continue to add deals and expand existing offerings. McDonald’s brought back its Extra Value Meals this month with a starting price point of $5 for a Sausage Egg McMuffin meal and $8 for a Big Mac meal. This move came a few months after the Golden Arches expanded its McValue offerings with the addition of the Daily Double. McDonald’s said that its value plays helped end a U.S. same-store sales slump in Q2.
Taco Bell began testing a value menu with an upper price limit of $3 in Indianapolis in July to test if this menu can work on a larger scale. Taco Bell’s value proposition, alongside its menu innovation, has been one of the strongest in the industry and it continued to outperform the QSR sector, with same-store sales up 4% in Q2.
