Nation’s Restaurant News reports, “While the restaurant industry these days is bullish on specialty coffees and teas, operators should not ignore their regular brewed coffee, which accounts for most of their customers’ coffee orders, according to market research firm Technomic Inc.”

“Chicago-based Technomic’s ‘Market Intelligence Report: Coffee and Tea’ found that 60 percent of restaurant consumers reported drinking regular hot coffee or tea in the past month, second only to the 62 percent of customers who bought a non-diet, carbonated soft drink at a restaurant. According to the report, 14 percent of customers said they are buying more hot coffee today than they were two years ago, and 10 percent reported the same behavior for iced tea. ‘Consumers who regularly purchase coffee on their way to work are motivated by the convenience of the location,’ Joe Pawlak, Technomic’s vice president, said. ‘But significantly, they are actually more motivated by the quality of the coffee, making them important loyal customers who return often.’”