Trend Watch: Cereal - time to make a killing

After a great deal of fanfare, the UK’s first cereal café finally opened its doors in London last week.

The Cereal Killer Café, on Brick Lane, offers around 100 cereals from throughout the world – each of which can be customised with different 20 toppings and 13 types of milk – in kitsch and retro surroundings.

As soon as it opened, the backlash begun. Indignant reporters wanted to know how founders Gary and Alan Keery could justify charging £3.50 for a bowl of cereal in one of the most deprived boroughs in the UK.

Whether you believe the café is a sound business idea or an unsustainable gimmick, it does raise the question – should pubs being paying more attention to cereal?

Carter advice​

Writing in the Publican’s Morning Advertiser​ earlier this year, former BII Licensee of the Year Ali Carter urged pubs not to dismiss cereal as part of a breakfast offer.

Hot cereals in particular, she claimed, are a massive growth segment – with value sales up 83% in the last five years.

Carter picked out the growth in porridge as an example where manufacturers have responded to consumer demand for added convenience, by providing new packaging formats and more flavours.

"There is no reason you cannot tap into this market, but tart it up a bit by adding ingredients people won’t have at home or won’t want to faff around with… creamy apple, cinnamon and sultana porridge… or add anything you can put a ‘superfood’ label on, such as blueberries or goji berries," she advised.

Family-friendly​

It is possible to tap into growing trends with mainstream cereal products as well. As Kellogg’s Foodservice acknowledges, consumers are now enjoying larger, brighter, more female and family-friendly pubs and bars – and attracting and keeping these audiences is key to future profits.

Kellogg’s claims both its breakfast and snacking options – which include the likes of Corn Flakes and Fruit ‘n Fibre – also meet the demand for healthier breakfasts.

One US pub has managed to use the breakfast opportunity as a way of selling more beer. In April, Piper’s Pub, in Pittsburgh, held a ‘Quintessential Beer & Breakfast Cereal Pairing’ to coincide with the city’s Craft Beer Week.

The pub offered 38 different beers, each paired with a cereal. Customers, who brought their own bowls (the pub provided spoons), were invited to try the likes of Duck Rabbit Milk Stout paired with Curiously Cinnamon, Newcastle Brown Ale with Grape-Nuts, and Guinness with Lucky Charms.

Coco cocktail​

Back in London, Berners Tavern, in Fitzrovia, has even managed to create a cocktail that includes milk infused with Coco Pops. The cocktail also features Havana rum, Kahlúa rum, white crème de cacao and two dashes of chocolate bitters.

Its name? Cereal Killer, of course.