Fast casual restaurants, particularly the bakery café model, had lightning in a bottle in terms of consumer preferences during the economic recession. Though the restaurant business suffered during the last year, foodservice bakeries and bakery cafés enjoyed comparatively steady business by borrowing the best qualities of quick service restaurants (QSRs) and finer dining establishments. With the economy tanking, consumers sought better value and wanted to stretch their dollar further without compromising on quality or healthfulness. The bakery café model was uniquely positioned to offer quality products, universally perceived as wholesome and healthful compared to the burgers at the typical QSR, at competitive price points. Moreover, they were able to offer convenience that casual restaurants couldn't.

But now, the secret is out. Both QSRs and casual restaurants are acutely aware of what makes fast casual restaurants succeed, and they are both pursuing the bakery cafés' market share. Foodservice bakeries and bakery cafés are going back to the basics, focusing on their core competencies, and in light of increasing competition, making sure they are the best at what they do. Large foodservice bakeries and bakery cafés are digging in their heels to ensure they are firmly entrenched as the place to go for quality, healthfulness, wholesomeness and convenience.

Big chains stick with what they know

For Burlington, Vt.-based Bruegger's Bagels, the idea is to remind customers that what they want — healthful, quality products made from quality ingredients the right way — is something it has been doing since hanging its first shingle.

“We think we have the bagel high ground, and it's our job to maintain it. We introduce new and seasonal bagel varieties to stay interesting and relevant, but at the same time, we want to be the ones who make the quintessential bagel shop bagels,” says Philip Smith, Brueggers' corporate executive chef. “Really, now it's all about simple ingredients, and clean, uncluttered food like the simple perfect bagel. We're excited to share with the consumer that what they are after; we have been doing since our inception.”

Bruegger’s Bagels’ strategy amid increasing competition isn’t to increase variety, but to remain focused on being the “quintessential” bagel shop.

In an increasingly complex world, Smith wants Bruegger's food to be familiar, reassuring, safe and taste like what it says it is. “We don't do a lot of value adding,” he says. “And because we don't, we seem to have our finger on the zeitgeist.”

Panera Bread Co., Richmond Heights, Mo., is taking a similar approach in 2010. Plans don't include forays into new territory. Rather, the company plans to strengthen existing products and follow the momentum toward being all natural.

“I look at the trends and realize — I don't have a whole lot of use for trends,” says Tom Gumpel, Panera's director of research and development. “I like to put them in their context as necessary swings in preference as consumers move towards more mature, balanced choices in eating. We can't get caught up in trends.”

Panera's goals in 2010 center around “fixing what's broken” and better positioning existing products to succeed. Fixing the things that are broken means looking at ingredients, texture and portion size — generally tinkering with good products to make them great. The orange scone, for example, is iconic to the brand, but Gumpel aims to improve upon it by making it all natural without losing the flavor.

He also hopes to reposition existing products to better align with customer needs. Consumer research data indicated three major real-life uses for bread, thus spawning Panera's “real bread for real life” approach.

Everyday bread is white pan bread. It typically is used in applications where the bread serves as a vehicle to consume something else, like in toast or sandwiches. “Grab a loaf” bread is bread made to complement a meal, such as a baguette purchased to go along with a pasta dinner. Finally, there is the gift-quality bread. Gumpel envisions gift-quality bread replacing a bottle of wine as an offering for a get together or a seasonal present.