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Eggs Up Grill, a breakfast-focused concept with nearly 100 locations, faced a significant challenge in early 2025 as egg prices soared due to the worst avian flu outbreak in recent history. At its peak, wholesale egg prices tripled, and the brand saw a 25% hit to franchisee margins. Given that eggs are a core ingredient in nearly 90% of the menu, this was more than a temporary disruption—it was a crisis.
Unlike some competitors that reacted immediately with surcharges or menu price hikes, Eggs Up Grill took a different approach. Through a combination of staying true to their brand DNA, leveraging guest data, and pivoting their LTO strategy, they have reinforced their commitment to community-based hospitality and everyday value.
In our recent fireside chat with Haley Hendrix, Senior Manager of Guest Insights and Off-Premise Strategy at Eggs Up Grill, shared how the brand has navigated the crisis while keeping guest trust at the forefront. Here are the top takeaways from that conversation.
While competitors like Waffle House and Denny’s introduced egg surcharges, Eggs Up Grill’s franchise partners unanimously rejected this approach, seeing it as a violation of the brand’s core ethos of affordability and transparency.
“Our franchise partners felt that surcharges were not intuitive to our brand DNA,” Hendrix explained. “There’s a lot of talk about tip fatigue and service charges in the restaurant industry, and it just leaves a bad taste in customers’ mouths. We don’t feel it’s the job of the consumer to pick up costs that affect how the restaurant does business.”
Instead, the brand gave franchisees pricing flexibility, allowing them to opt into their annual menu refresh a few months early, rather than reacting with temporary surcharges. About 40% of franchise partners opted for an immediate price adjustment, while the remaining 60% chose to wait until the scheduled menu refresh. This ensured consistency for guests while providing operators with tools to manage profitability.
The brand’s commitment to local ownership played a crucial role in this decision. Hendrix noted that franchisees often serve as the face of their restaurant in their communities, making it even more critical to maintain trust and authenticity.
“Guests started calling our local restaurants asking, ‘Are you doing surcharges?’” she recalled. “And our franchise partners took pride in being able to say, ‘No, we’re not.’”
With just three weeks before the planned Spring LTO launch, Eggs Up Grill made a critical shift in response to the egg crisis. Originally, the LTO featured a new Steak Scrambler—an egg-heavy offering that would have been both expensive and potentially offputting given the circumstances.
“We realized this wasn’t going to look good,” Hendrix said. “Franchise partners were already feeling the pain, and customers were aware of the egg shortage. We had to pivot—fast.”
The team quickly developed a new lineup focused on non-egg-centric items, including:
Eggs Up Grill’s ability to make such a rapid shift demonstrated operational agility while still following its typical LTO framework: “something sweet, something savory, a fun beverage, and a breakfast/brunch appetizer.”
Additionally, the original scrambler dish wasn’t abandoned—it was rescheduled for a summer launch, displaying both flexibility and foresight in menu planning
When determining how to proceed with the Steak Scrambler, Eggs Up Grill leaned heavily on guest data to guide decision-making. Using Bikky, their long-time CDP partner, they gathered customer feedback on scrambler dishes, analyzing portion sizes, value perception, and overall satisfaction.
By segmenting customers who had ordered other scrambler dishes and gathering feedback on portion size, value, and presentation, they determined that reducing egg content would negatively impact guest satisfaction.“We asked guests, ‘Does this dish feel like a good value?’ and ‘Is the portion size right?’” Hendrix explained. “We found that guests were happy with the portion sizes and that reducing egg content would have negatively impacted guest satisfaction.”
Instead of making knee-jerk menu changes, they used this data to validate their approach and ensure menu shifts were rooted in data. Moreover, they are continuing to track LTO success by measuring guest acquisition, visit frequency, and item performance.
While egg prices have moderated from their peak, they remain nearly double the previous year’s levels. Looking ahead, the brand is keeping a close eye on market trends, particularly the expected Easter price spike that could further strain supply chains.
Despite the challenges, Eggs Up Grill’s experience offers valuable lessons for other restaurant brands:
By maintaining a focus on community, guest satisfaction, and long-term brand equity, Eggs Up Grill has turned a potential crisis into an opportunity to strengthen their position in the breakfast segment.
For restaurant operators facing similar supply chain disruptions, Eggs Up Grill’s response serves as a masterclass in how to navigate a crisis while staying true to your core values.
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