Next-to-no service concept bests chain restaurant giants

Let’s hope this isn’t the “new normal” restaurant industry analysts keep talking about. The overall winner in Technomic’s just-released Consumer Restaurant Brand Metrics ranking of the top 100 restaurant chains has no chef, no cooks, no real kitchen, no servers, no dining room and no bar. Yet overall winner Papa Murphy’s Take ‘n’ Bake Pizza dominated the results, posting a score well above that of every full-service and limited-service chain brand in the industry.  

This surprising result comes from a study two years in the making that drew 80,000 separate responses. Chicago-based Technomic handled all data tabulation, analysis and reporting. Even though the results may seem like what you’d get if someone figured out how to stuff the digital ballot box of a one-shot online survey, they are the product of a process that followed stringent research protocols.

Vancouver, WA-based Papa Murphy’s, which has roughly 1,300 stores, was the outright leader in three of the four areas Technomic analyzed.

• Leading chains overall. It finished well ahead of second-place Cracker Barrel Old Country Store. The rest of the top five included Chick-fil-A, McAlister’s Deli and Firehouse Subs.

• Top concept by segment. Papa Murphy’s was chosen top limited-service chain, beating out Chick-fil-A. It was also chosen as the top pizza/Italian chain ahead of Carrabba’s Italian Grill and Olive Garden.

• Brands that consumers rank the strongest on key attributes. Here Papa Murphy’s was chosen the best chain for service and hospitality; finished a close second (by just 0.2 percent) to Cracker Barrel as the industry’s food and beverage leader (finishing first on one key subcategory, “portion size for price paid”); and ranked first in convenience, takeout and value. The chain didn’t crack the top five on unit appearance and ambiance, but was ranked first in the kitchen/food prep area cleanliness sub-category.

• Brand image was the only area Papa Murphy’s did not dominate. This category was topped by Chick-fil-A. Here Papa Murphy’s finished fourth behind In-N-Out Burger and Starbucks.

Restaurant marketers and concept developers take note: Collectively, these results make a strong case that clean, simple and affordable are what customers want these days.

Perhaps the most surprising scores came on key attributes within the food and beverage category. Given a universe consisting of the Top 100 restaurant chains in the country, consumers ranked Papa Murphy’s takeaway pizza second in food quality. Ruth’s Chris Steak House won first. The finishing order for food taste and flavor was the same, with Ruth’s Chris edging out Papa Murphy’s for the top spot. The food at Papa Murphy’s was also chosen as having the most visual appeal.  

Keep in mind that consumers gave these high food scores to a product that, while nicely assembled and wrapped at the store, is cooked at home by the customer. The product isn’t par baked; it’s raw. You’d think home oven temperature calibration issues and the wide range of baking times Papa Murphy’s suggests would result in numerous disappointed consumers. The Technomic results suggest otherwise, strongly.

The key question for restaurant operators is how and why a no-frills operation like Papa Murphy’s has become top of mind for U.S. consumers. The in-store experience is low-impact—customers place their orders and pay the cashier, then cool their heels while their pizza is assembled, which in our several experiences takes a couple of minutes longer than you’d imagine. The finished product is good, several cuts above the competition at its modest price point—although other pizza competitors actually cook their pizza.

Maybe the results document a case of lowered expectations on the part of consumers. Maybe Papa Murphy’s is just the first chain to really nail home meal replacement in a scalable way. But whatever Papa Murphy’s is doing, this Technomic study is telling us its food, at its price point, presented with its service level, is what customers want today.

You’d think popular chains like Cheesecake Factory or P.F. Chang’s or Five Guys or Chipotle would be the high scorers in this survey. That they weren’t should give any full-service operator plenty of food for thought.