MINNEAPOLIS Granite City Food & Brewery Ltd., parent to a 26-unit casual-dining and brewery chain, said Monday it will roll out a new brunch offering on Saturdays that is expected to generate about $1 million in additional revenue per year.
Following the success of the chain’s Sunday brunch offering, the Saturday menu will also focus on Granite City’s made-to-order omelet station and will be available from 9 a.m. to noon for $10.99 per guest.
“As our operational margins have continued to improve, we feel that we can be more aggressive in our approach toward generating greater revenues,” Steven J. Wagenheim, Granite City's chief executive, said in a statement. “The Saturday morning breakfast initiative is the first of many potential opportunities and fits nicely with our guests’ desires.”
Brunch, a fast-growing daypart, was also recently tapped by Ruby Tuesday, which introduced a special Sunday brunch at its more than 900 locations nationwide last December. According to a recent study from market research firm The NPD Group, brunch traffic increased 8 percent during the first eight months of 2009, compared with the same period a year ago, while traffic at most dayparts decreased year-to-year.
Granite City’s Saturday brunch was first tested at the chain’s Des Moines, Iowa, location and the results have been positive, the company said. It is now being introduced at the chain’s additional 25 locations.
For its latest quarter, ended Sept. 29, Granite City’s same-store sales fell 12.7 percent.
Contact Sarah E. Lockyer at [email protected].