Restaurant Segments Diverge on Value Meals

Quick service and midscale restaurants are ramping up combo and value meal introductions this year while fast casual and casual dining pull back, according to Datassential’s State of Value report.

Overall introductions rose just 3% year-to-date. Quick service, which accounts for the bulk of value meal activity, climbed 13% while fast casual fell 32%. Midscale and casual dining posted sharper swings, up 71% and down 50% respectively, though off considerably smaller bases.

The split reflects two pressures on the category. Combo and value meal prices held flat year over year even as other limited-time offer prices dropped, leaving operators with less room to differentiate on price.

Consumers are also harder to impress on value than they once were. Ratings for combo and value meals peaked in 2020 and haven’t been matched since. Even so, combo and value meals still earn the highest value rating of any restaurant item type tested last year, at 53%, trailing only kids’ meals.

Still, consumers are leaning on combos more than a year ago: 23% say they rely on combo meals more, against 11% who rely on them less, while 31% order about the same. Fifty-nine percent say restaurants should add value menu options rather than raise prices, according to Datassential’s Vibe-cession & Value report. Thirty-five percent say a $3 to $5 price increase is enough to change what they order or where they eat.

Price isn’t the only factor driving perceived value. Bundle or meal deals that provide a full meal ranked among the top drivers of value at 66%, according to Datassential’s Value Equation report. LTO ratings point the same way: Checkers & Rally’s MVP Meal Deal, which adds an apple pie to a burger, fry and drink for $4.00, earned the highest value rating of any quick-service combo meal so far this year at 84%, according to Datassential’s Launches & Ratings platform.