A toast to brunch!
What does ‘brunch’ mean to consumers and is it just a weekend event?
Did you know the word ‘brunch’ has been around since the late 1800s? It was coined to describe a Sunday meal around noon for Saturday-night revellers who don’t want to get up too early the next morning… It seems the term has always had a link to Brits’ boozy behaviour!
But how has our understanding of brunch evolved since then? Is it still just a weekend treat, or has it moved beyond that of hangover cures? This is what almost 800 of our bees had to say…
Selfies, sourdough and too much avocado?
Who can forget when Australian real estate mogul Tim Gurner implied that the reason millennials can’t afford to buy property is because they spend all their money on avocado on toast? As ridiculous as this suggestion was (and still is!), it shows just how widespread our fascination with brunch really is.
But is it just a Millennial meal — a distraction from the current economic climate — or is the Instagram-generation just the most vocal about it?
Well, there is a definite trend based on age — but it’s not millennials who are increasing their weekend brunches the most, it’s Gen Z. The older our bees are, the less likely they are to be eating brunch more often than they did a year ago.
But let’s not ignore the fact that more than 1 in 3 over-46s are also eating it more — it’s affecting people of all ages. And what people eat at these occasions don’t change much either.
The top three ingredients to weekend brunches are bread/rolls/toast, eggs and bacon/sausages — and this is pretty consistent across age groups. The main differences are that Gen Z don’t eat as many eggs as the others, but porridge/cereal features more often. Over 45s are also more partial to a bowl of porridge.
As for the avocado claim — less than a third of our bees regularly have fruit with brunch, and less than 1 in 10 have vegetables! And this is no different for those who fall into the ‘Millennial’ age range.
Generally speaking, people like brunch — it is a true occasion rather than just a meal. It’s often seen as an opportunity to eat breakfast food later and in a sociable setting — something most people miss out on during the week. It’s a treat.
“It means taking more time and effort to make food, or go out and treat yourself. You wake up later and have the whole day ahead of you, so why not?” Female, 28
“My favourite meal, it means eggs and fresh bread with sides of fruit. It means great coffee and fruit juice and being social with friends or family. Treating yourself” Female, 27
Bottomless… or just legless?
The binge-drinking culture in the UK is infamous — so it’s no surprise that bottomless brunches are rife throughout the country. But is it actually a ‘British’ occasion or have we simply embraced it more than other nations?
Bottomless brunches — paying a set fee to have unlimited amounts of an alcoholic drink, often prosecco, within a specific time allocation. Sometimes the price of the food is included in the deal, sometimes it isn’t — either way it’s often not the star of the show anyway.
Do these occasions pressure customers to drink as much as possible, in order to get the most value out of the experience? Well, 1 in 2 of our bees (39%) do in fact think that bottomless brunches promote binge drinking. Despite this, only 1 in 5 (19%) think they should be banned.
“You can drink as much as you want. It almost sets a challenge to drink as much as you can in order to beat the buffet and drink/eat more than you’ve paid.” Male, 21
Unsurprisingly, people’s attitudes around whether it promotes binge drinking impacts whether they support a ban on bottomless brunches. 44% of those who do think it promotes binge drinking think it should be banned, whereas not a single person who disagreed support a ban.
“I feel like it is the responsibility of the individual to ensure they don’t binge drink. The establishment should not be held responsible for offering a good offer. All you can eat buffets aren’t banned for encouraging obesity. The few who do drink too much shouldn’t ban the bottomless brunches for those who are responsible but enjoy a good deal.” Female, 27
It comes down to who you think is responsible — is it the establishments for providing the deal, or the individual for taking it too far? This opens a wider discussion around alcohol promotions and regulations over minimum price per unit.
How culpable can retailers and vendors be if people over-indulge on alcohol? Should Government intervention play a greater role in helping consumers moderate their consumption? Most people think it should be down to the customer to take responsibility for their actions.
The 2018 sugar tax has showed success in creating greater awareness of individual’s sugar intake, leading to conscious efforts to reduce it and campaign groups are calling for similar taxes on high calorie, high fat food products.
Let’s not forget that younger consumers are shying away from alcoholic drinks in favour for low or no alcohol options — will this impact the brunch industry or will it be people’s rare escape from an increasingly teetotal culture?
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A quick word on our methodology: The figures in the article are taken from Streetbees community members in the UK, carried out in July 2019. All of the data was collected by mobile and web surveys, and is accurate to within 4 percentage points 19 times out of 20.
