CHICAGO - During a year when restaurants experienced steep declines in traffic, sandwiches and burgers saw growth at QSRs and full-service restaurants last year, the NPD Group reports.

"Sandwiches, burgers and wraps were the most resilient food category in this economic downturn," said Bonnie Riggs, NPD??s restaurant industry analyst. "The reason is it??s one of the few categories that has mass appeal. Sandwiches, burgers and wraps are accessible, customizable, affordable, portable, and can be dressed up, gourmet-style, or dressed down."

NPD??s CREST service noted that total servings of deli/other, chicken, and wraps servings totaled 12 billion in 2009, a 1 billion servings increase since 2005. Total burgers served in 2009 were 9.3 billion, up 800,000 servings since 2005.

Lunch contributed 48% of the 2009 growth in the category, with six out of ten sandwiches and burgers coming from QSRs.

"Moving forward we??re likely to see more operators and chains jump on the sandwich, burger and wraps band wagon, capitalizing on the growth of this category," Riggs said. "Considering how well-established the category is, it??s amazing to me to see that there still is room for more growth."