El Jannah to shake up ‘stagnant’ breakfast market
The Aussie fast-food chain is banking on its Lebanese heritage to offer something better.
El Jannah, known for its legendary charcoal chicken, is revamping its menu, with a relatively small investment to enter the breakfast market.
“It’s a daypart we have been thinking about for a long time,” Adam Issa, head of marketing at El Jannah, told QSR Media. “We know it (breakfast) has been quite stagnant for a long time. Typically, you get a sausage burger, egg wrap, muffin or croissant for breakfast. But lately, no one has taken on anything that’s new.”
“With our Lebanese heritage, we could do a lot better than what’s currently out there,” he added.
The breakfast menu, the first for the family-owned Aussie fast-food chain, is being tested in Smithfield and Bankstown in New South Wales, and Campbellfield and Braybrook in Victoria.
It includes the Kaki Charcoal Sandwich. Kaki or kaak is a Lebanese sesame-crusted bread, grilled over charcoal and filled with savoury and sweet ingredients like cheese, lamb, or chicken.
El Jannah has eight versions, each with different fillings. The fillings come from cheese and knafeh to meats like lamb, chicken, and turkey. El Jannah also serves the Loaded Hommous, its take on the classic creamy dip.
The fast-food chain has partnered with Allpress Espresso to launch a coffee product with their breakfast. Issa said they kept El Jannah’s Lebanese heritage as part of the developmental process.
“We thought back on what we would typically eat within the culture,” he said. “That was the starting point. Then we thought about how we would put an original twist on it. Sweet cheese or knafeh that Lebanese would eat, so how do we make it more like us?”
Issa also figured that being known for their charcoal-grilled chicken, they needed to put chicken on the menu. He noted that many diners enjoy their charcoal-grilled chicken before noon. The new range offers a convenient format, ideal for early morning consumption.
However, El Jannah knows that most consumers would not associate their brand with breakfast but instead target consumers looking for convenience.
“The breakfast range targets tradies — yes, people on the go. It targets families that are going and dropping off their kids. It targets a large number of consumers who are predominantly looking for more convenient options,” Issa added.
This is why El Jannah is prioritising the launch of its breakfast menu at drive-thru locations. It may also offer it at shop-front locations and across its network of more than 30 restaurants.
Issa said they have optimised operations by forming dedicated breakfast and lunch teams, with the breakfast team including staff from both the front and back of the restaurant.
They also had to open four hours earlier at 6:30 AM, whilst staff members were trained to handle new equipment and prepare new product lines.
“When we’re running at about 150,000 transactions a week, it’s hard to move at a fast pace,” Issa said. “Lunch and dinner are quite similar because the menus don’t change but for breakfast, it’s quite different.”
Issa said El Jannah could disrupt the market with its unique selling point of charcoal-grilled chicken. Its new breakfast range, which costs $6.90, is more than half the price of their rivals.
Their test runs have been favourable. Issa said daily sales have tripled from a week earlier, and they expect a return on investment within months.
