Low-priced coffee chains are shifting into a kind of "snack platform," selling tteokbokki, fried chicken bites, and fried rice alongside coffee and drinks. It is a strategy to raise the average check in a structure where it is difficult to increase coffee prices. Industry observers say this comes as it has become harder to grow sales simply by adding more stores.
According to related industry officials on the 4th, low-priced coffee chains are rolling out meal-replacement items such as bunsik and ready-to-eat dishes. MEGA MGC COFFEE unveiled "MGC's whole-sausage kimchi fried rice" on the 30th of last month. It is a cup-style meal topped with a whole sausage over kimchi fried rice. Following its existing cup tteokbokki and fried chicken bites, the company widened its ready-meal lineup. COMPOSE COFFEE adopted "chewy bunmoja tteokbokki" as a regular menu item, and EDIYA COFFEE also introduced tteokbokki and fried rice as delivery and takeout ready-meal options.
The starting point of this trend lies in structural limits that prevent price hikes. Low-priced coffee chains have grown around Americanos priced in the high-1,000 won to low-2,000 won range, but with coffee bean prices, exchange rates, and labor costs all rising, it has become difficult to maintain the current price system. If they raise coffee prices on top of this, their low-price identity would inevitably be shaken.
Boosting the average check through non-coffee menu items is seen as a realistic option. By adding items such as tteokbokki, fried chicken bites (chicken), and fried rice—typically priced around 5,000 won—the structure now significantly increases sales per order. A coffee industry official said, "The cheaper you sell coffee, the more you have to make up revenue with other menu items," adding, "In particular, with the growing number of delivery orders, it is hard to meet the minimum order amount with drinks alone, so people are increasingly ordering relatively higher-priced snacks and ready meals together."
The reality of a virtually saturated coffee market is also cited as a factor prompting menu expansion. According to the National Tax Statistics Portal (TASIS), as of the first quarter of 2025, there are 95,337 coffee and beverage shops nationwide. In Seoul alone, more than 27,000 stores are clustered, making it difficult to expect sales growth through new openings alone.
Private equity (PEF) has further accelerated the expansion into snacks and ready meals. Because private equity typically must raise corporate value and exit within three to five years after acquisition, it prefers strategies that can expand sales quickly. An investment industry official said, "In the recent process of Orchestra Private Equity acquiring MAMMOTH COFFEE, securing the coffee bean supplier as well was a strategy to make the cost structure more efficient," adding, "For low-priced coffee chains, since it is hard to raise prices, they have no choice but to simultaneously pursue ways to lift the average check, such as menu expansion or new product launches. That is how they can improve profitability in the short term."
Seo Yong-gu, a professor in the School of Business Administration at Sookmyung Women's University, said, "As the market has entered a stage where growth is difficult through simply increasing the number of stores, low-priced coffee chains have no choice but to strengthen high value-added menus to raise sales at existing locations," adding, "As with private-label (PB) products in retail, the coffee industry will also move into competition to lead consumer trends through new snacks and ready meals rather than beverage-centered offerings."
A retail industry official said, "The menu expansion led by low-priced coffee chains is closer to a choice for survival," adding, "The key will be how to balance improved profitability with the burden of operating franchise stores."