National French Fry Day 2024: Good fries only!
Celebrate good fries, come on! Celebrate good fries, come on!
One of the best parts about any holiday is the perfect excuse to dig into a favorite food or dish. With National French Fry Day (NFFD) coming up on Friday, July 12 (thanks to a top QSR chain recently petitioning to hold Fry Day on a Friday) - this is the perfect time of year to take advantage of the appeal of a food holiday by using the fries you already have on hand to build new and exciting offers. Because who doesn’t love a reason to indulge in a fan favorite like fries? Read on for ideas on how to drive traffic and help your customers celebrate with you!
Fries are a key ingredient for success
More than 7 in 10 consumers (75%) tie their overall satisfaction with a restaurant visit to how much they liked their fries (Lamb Weston/Datassential: AmpliFry Report, July 2023). That means that if you’re not leveraging the potential that fries present for versatility, creativity, and even customization, you’re missing out on a relatively easy way to uplevel your customer satisfaction. The good news? National French Fry Day (NFFD) presents the perfect opportunity to start taking advantage of the importance of fries ASAP.
Lamb Weston/Datassential: AmpliFry Report, July 2023
Don’t let NFFD be a missed opportunity
The numbers are in: half of consumers want fry promotions to celebrate National French Fry Day (Lamb Weston/Datassential: AmpliFry Report, July 2023), but current operator plans are not set up to meet this particular customer desire. That makes NFFD a potentially missed opportunity for operators to capitalize on enthusiasm surrounding this food holiday. By switching things up and embracing NFFD with enticing promotions and specials, restaurants can attract customers eager to indulge in all kinds of fry perfection, ensuring this day doesn’t slip by unnoticed on the culinary calendar.
Lamb Weston/Datassential: AmpliFry Report, July 2023
The power of expectations
Also consider National French Fry Day’s potential for summertime limited-time offers (LTOs) – more than half of consumers equate summertime with LTOs and special promotions (Datassential, Summer Trends 2024 Report, March 2024). With operators taking advantage of the abundance of summer holidays like Independence Day, Memorial Day, and Pride Month, slotting in promotions for a national food holiday like NFFD just makes sense.
Datassential’s Summer Trends 2024 Report, March 2024
Summertime fry varieties
Nearly 80% of consumers report they want restaurants to offer more than one type of fry variety (Lamb Weston/Datassential: AmpliFry Report, July 2023). Since several fry varieties over-index in LTOs during the summer, NFFD is the perfect time to introduce an LTO while adding a new fry variety (or two) to your menu. Alternatively, remind customers about all the different varieties available to them at your locations – allowing them to celebrate NFFD by indulging in their favorite fry variety. See below for two summertime fry LTOs that had consumers saying, “I’d buy that!”
Datassential, Launches & Ratings, Apr ’15 – Mar ’24 (top chain restaurants), INDEX: 100 = average for all seasons; the higher above 100, the more that item trends to toward summer
Datassential Concept Testing (Launches & Ratings)
top performer for item type (>90th percentile
above average for item type (70th to 90th percentile)
Flavors, sauces, toppings – load ‘em up!
The term “loaded fries” has grown +49% on menus in the last four years (Datassential, MenuTrends, YE MAR’24). Additionally, 47% of consumers want to see more exciting fry options that leverage things like toppings, seasonings, and dips (Lamb Weston/Datassential: AmpliFry Report, July 2023). National French Fry Day is the perfect time to offer LTOs that take advantage of the loaded fries trend by mixing and matching trending fry flavors, sauces, and toppings to create an array of loaded fry dishes. Why not offer loaded fries featuring nacho cheese and carne asada as toppings? Or try a Mediterranean-inspired vegetarian loaded fry option with garlic aioli, red onion, and feta? The possibilities are endless, making it easier to appeal to a wider consumer base.
Growth on fry appetizers/sides over the past 4 years in Datassential MenuTrends, YE MAR’24
Growth on fry appetizers/sides over the past 4 years in Datassential MenuTrends, YE MAR’24
Give consumers what they want for NFFD
With National French Fry Day right around the corner, the time is ripe for creating your NFFD offerings and specials. And consumers want them! Take advantage of the fries you already have on the menu by combining or pairing them with your signature flavor or dish to create a loaded/topped fry option. To appeal to consumers seeking diversity, try adding a new fry to your menu or call out the different fry types you already offer. With National French Fry Day right around the corner, the time is ripe for creating unique offerings and specials – and consumers want them!
