Midprice W/O F&B Rises, Shines With Upgraded Breakfast Buffets

Breakfast is back. Gone: skimpy danishes and meek coffee. In: fresh waffles, fluffy eggs and gourmet coffee—all taking shape at midprice without food and beverage properties.

Although the midprice without F&B name connotes just that—limited or no food and drink—hotel companies in the segment have recently upgraded their food offerings to fulfill changing needs and guest requests by offering a mix of hot and cold food items and improved beverages—all complimentary.

"There are a handful of areas that are getting a lot of focus in the midscale segment. One is breakfast," said Aaron Katz, vice president of brand strategy and corporate development for Choice Hotels. "We focused on a handful of areas, such as making our menu higher quality and more consistent. We wanted to vary our menu to keep up with customer diets so we put in protein like eggs, yogurt and cheese."

New menus at Choice's Comfort Suites and Comfort Inns will be in place this month at all 1,800 properties. Comfort Suites' breakfast buffet includes scrambled eggs, make-your-own waffles, bacon, ham, or sausage, cereal and assorted breakfast beverages featuring Savory Supreme roast coffee. Comfort Inn's breakfast buffet will be a bit of a downgrade from Comfort Suites' but still will boast waffles, a high-protein item such as hard-boiled eggs, bread items, cereal, coffee, tea and juice. The buffets will be housed in a separate breakfast room off the lobby replete with televisions and an attendant.

Hampton Inns' complimentary breakfast includes such items as eggs, sausage and French toast sticks. Hampton also provides an On the Run Breakfast Bag that includes water, fruit, a muffin and a breakfast bar, said Phil Cordell, senior vice president of Hampton brand management, adding that travelers don't necessarily require an onsite restaurant because they often eat outside the hotel anyway.

Marriott International upgraded its complimentary breakfast last month at one of its midprice without F&B brands, SpringHill Suites. Suite Seasons includes hot, protein-rich items such as omelets and sausage patties, all made to order. SpringHill also offers grab-and-go bags.

Other midprice without F&B brands, such as Carlson's Country Inns and Suites, have modified their breakfast menus to suit travelers who want more bang for the buck. "What used to be a continental breakfast is now really an expanded light breakfast with more protein options," said Nancy Johnson, Country's executive vice president and brand leader.

Holiday Inn Express' Express Start Breakfast Bar, which it initiated in January 2003, features its own cinnamon rolls and coffee. "We've seen significant increases in guest satisfaction," said Verchele Mills, Holiday Inn Express vice president of brand management. "The Express Start Breakfast Bar was able to address some of the needs of the business traveler. It doubled our loyalty in terms of returns to hotels once we implemented it."