The rise of the egg bite: How these portable omelets became the star of coffee shop breakfasts

In the past few years, I have become a true aficionado of egg or omelet bites — sometimes with “sous vide” in their title — which have suddenly proliferated like no other breakfast food in cafes and coffee shops across the land.

No matter if you’re picking up a morning coffee from a widespread chain or ordering a DoorDashed coffee from a small, local cafe, you’re bound to see some egg bites on the menu. From Dunkin’s egg white, veggie and cheese sous vide egg bite to Starbucks mushroom and kale egg bite and everything in between, egg bites have become a paramount fixture on these menus at large. And trust me, I would know: I think I’ve sampled every one.

But why? Where did they come from? And are they really “sous vide?”

For me, they’re genuinely pretty stellar: handheld, portable, gluten-and-carb free, oftentimes vegetarian, strangely delicious with the most wonderful texture and seemingly high-quality. This isn’t some wonky egg-adjacent product with the dregs of the vegetable scraps; these bites often taste fresh and bright, with a subtle cheesiness or pockets of kale or mushrooms, all ensconced in an easy-to-eat, slightly jiggly, protein-packed bite. 

Interestingly enough, chains like Costco are even selling the formerly in-store only sous vide egg bites from Starbucks now, too — so clearly I’m not alone in my adoration for these. They have become one of coffee’s best partners in recent years.

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What’s not to love, really?

For those who don’t want the bread component of a breakfast sandwich but also don’t have the leisure to sit and enjoy a bowl or cereal or oatmeal, the egg bite might be the perfect compromise. That’s one of the reasons I opted to start eating them. As a New Jersey native, I am truly a fiend for bagels of every shape and size. Trying to minimize my bagel count (which could truly be an unconscionable amount per week) became a much easier taste once egg bites came into my life. 

One of the earliest mentions of the bites that I can find is this Starbucks press release from January 2017, calling them “perfectly cooked eggs with wholesome ingredients,” with a quote from brand manager Eveline Chao-Rivera stating that “many are skipping out on bread and focusing on nutritious protein to fuel their increasingly busy days.” The release also notes that the Starbucks team began developing the bites in 2015, as well as defining what exactly sous-vide really means (it literally translates to “under vacuum” in French.)

As Chef Bruno Bertin from Cuisine Solutions states in the press release, “the Sous-Vide technique is ideal for cooking as it uses water, which is the best transmitter of heat, while also maintaining the integrity of the product being cooked.” Pretty cool, then, that at least at Starbucks, the bites really are actually sous vide.

Starbucks uses cage-free eggs (or egg whites), often in combination with cottage cheese, spinach, peppers and cheeses. They also have bacon and gruyere versions and now, as mentioned earlier, my current favorite: kale and mushroom.

In January 2022, Dunkin’ released their “omelet bites,” which come in a cutesy pair of two just like most of these bites often do. Plump and almost bagel-shaped, these bites are similarly packed with protein and come in both vegetarian and carnivorous iterations (I happen to like the cheese and veggie version best). The original press release frames the nutritious egg-centric offerings in a similar manner: “Running into the new year after a busy holiday season isn’t always easy, but Dunkin’ is ready to help guests recharge with bold new offerings that help them reclaim their day.”

Again, though, this isn’t limited to Starbucks and Dunkin’. Famed coffee chain PJ’s Coffee of New Orleans, which has a branch near me, also has a tremendous egg bite offering, as do many of the smaller, super-local cafes nearby. And that’s just the tip of the iceberg: I bet if you walked into any cafe near you right this moment, you’ll probably stumble upon something with the moniker “egg bite.”

Beyond all of this, there are an astonishing amount of “copycat” iterations and imitations across the interwebs, too. Over at The Takeout, Angela L. Pagán even conducted a “battle” between the two chain version; she ultimately opted to go with Starbucks as the victor, but she was deciding between two bacon-containing bites (neither of which I eat). 

So, this is all to say, I think we’re all better off because of the existence of the egg bite — and it’s no surprise they’ve come to dominate coffee shop breakfast menus.