Men vs. Women: Most Craveable Fall LTOs
By Aimee Harvey and Lizzie Freier on Nov. 15, 2017CHICAGO -- Both men and women include seasonal fall flavors such as pumpkin spice, salted caramel and smoke in their top five most craveable limited-time offers (LTOs) for the month, but the gender similarities stop there. CSP Daily News looks at the five most-craveable limited-time chain items through October, ranked by both men and women, as reported by our colleagues at Restaurant Business.
Items are listed from fifth to first, as indicated by Technomic’s MenuSurf survey, powered by Ignite. The canvass of 500 consumers on craveability for 50 LTOs shows which are deemed the most craveable on the basis of the item’s name and description. Could c-stores borrow some menu inspiration based on these findings?
Let’s start with the women’s picks ...
Women's No. 5: Checkers' Big Daddy Bacon Double
Score: 70.8%
Launched in late September, the Big Daddy Bacon Double features two seasoned beef patties, bacon, Swiss cheese, grilled onions, onion tanglers, pickles and Thousand Island dressing on a sesame seed bun. Priced at two for $5, the sandwich also comes with the option of chicken instead of beef; however, only 58.1% of women consider the Big Daddy Bacon Chicken to be craveable.
More than 70% of women surveyed deemed this menu item craveable.
Women's No. 4: Bob Evans' Veggie Hash
Score: 71.4%
Slightly more than 70% of women consider Bob Evans’ Veggie Hash craveable. The breakfast dish comes with grilled mushrooms, peppers, onions, broccoli, shredded cheddar and home fries topped with two eggs, diced tomatoes and green onions.
Women's No. 3: Starbucks' Chicken & Double-Smoked Bacon Panini
Score: 73%
Almost three-quarters of women find this seasonal panini craveworthy. It comes with homestyle chicken and maple mustard on apple brioche.
Women's No. 2: The Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf's Salted Caramel Latte
Score: 76%
More than three-quarters of female respondents view The Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf’s Salted Caramel Latte as craveable. The latte is garnished with caramel syrup and a salted caramel crunch. The item is new on the chain’s 2017 fall menu, joining the returning Iced Pumpkin Spiced Chai Tea Latte (found craveable by 54.6% of women). The Iced Salted Caramel Latte doesn’t fare as well as the hot version with women: only 61.5% find it craveworthy.
Women's No. 1: Starbucks' Salted Caramel Mocha
Score: 80%
Four-fifths of women consider Starbucks’ Salted Caramel Mocha to be craveable, launching it into women’s No. 1 most craveable LTO spot so far this fall. The seasonal beverage features espresso and steamed milk with mocha sauce, toffee and toasted nut flavors. It’s topped with whipped cream, caramel sauce, turbinado sugar and sea salt. A tall, 12-ounce drink is priced at $4.25-$4.45.
And now onto the men’s picks …
Men's No. 5: Caribou Coffee's Iced Pumpkin Chai
Score: 75%
Three-quarters of men find this seasonal iced-coffee beverage craveworthy. It features real pumpkin, chai and cold milk served over ice. It’s one of three iced coffee drinks on the top five most craveable list for men.
Men's No. 4: The Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf's Iced Salted Caramel Latte
Score: 76.2%
The second iced-coffee drink on this month’s list, the Iced Salted Caramel Latte is found craveable by more than three-quarters of men. It’s got the same ingredients as the hot version that makes the top five women’s list, but with ice. Only 61.9% of men find the hot version of the chain's Salted Caramel Latte to be craveworthy.
Men's No. 3: Checkers' Big Daddy Bacon Double
Score: 76.4%
Checkers’ Big Daddy Bacon Double is the sole LTO on both top five lists. More men find it craveworthy than women, 76.4% to women’s 70.8%.
Men's No. 2: Bruegger's Bagels' Smoky Brisket & Pastrami
Score: 78.1%
Bruegger's Bagels’ breakfast sandwich—found craveworthy by 78.1% of men—features an egg, sliced brisket, sliced pastrami, cheddar and chipotle aioli on a toasted everything bagel. It’s the sole breakfast sandwich on either top five lists.
Technomic's most recent C-Store Market Intelligence Report revealed that brisket is the fastest-growing type of sandwich on c-store menus.
Men's No. 1: Starbucks' Iced Salted Caramel Mocha
Score: 78.6%
While Starbucks’ Salted Caramel Mocha (the hot version) ranked No. 1 on the most craveable LTOs list on the women’s side, the men rank the iced version as their most craveable LTO so far this fall. Almost four-fifths of male respondents consider the iced seasonal coffee beverage to be craveworthy, but the majority of men (70.6%) also find the hot version pretty craveworthy. It's seventh on the list of most craveable LTOs for men.