During the early days of the state of Israel, residents of a kibbutz ate their meals in a communal dining hall.[2] It was common for the residents to eat a light snack early in the morning, and then work in the fields for several hours. Then they returned to the dining hall for a hearty mid morning buffet meal, similar to a brunch.[2] By the 1950s, Israeli hotels were promoting the "Israeli breakfast" in a style similar to the kibbutz meals.[3] In 1979, members of the Jerusalem Hotel Association and the Israeli Hotel Owners Association decided to phase out the full Israeli breakfast as a part of their basic hotel room rate, substituting a more modest Continental breakfast instead, in order to reduce costs.[4] The effort was not successful, and the tradition of a hearty breakfast buffet continued.