McDonald's US corporate stores reach gender pay parity

The Latest

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  Restaurants are plotting aggressive franchise expansion. Here's where — and why.

  Surging diner demand, strong franchising sales and second-generation real estate left by shuttered eateries have created a market primed for expansion, with chains targeting Southern states with lax COVID-19 rules.

  Corporate Operations

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  Report: 50% of operators plan to deploy automation tech in 2 to 3 years

  Eighty-seven percent of restaurant owners/operators believe that technology adoption has been critical for survival throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, according to Lightspeed's Global State of Hospitality report. 

  Consumer Trends

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  Opinion

  Restaurants need to break past third-party delivery apps

  Never underestimate the internal efforts needed to get your organization aligned for digital growth, writes Matt Carinio, VP of strategy and consulting at Hathway.

  Delivery

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  Tracing the restaurant franchising boom

  Why are so many chains investing in rapid franchise expansion? What states and segments are the most attractive? Restaurant Dive explores these questions and more in a four-part article series.

  Finances and Deals

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  NRA: Declining disposable income dampens demand for on-premise eating

  Diners want to eat at restaurants and order off-premise more often than they currently do, the association's SVP Hudson Riehle shared at DoorDash's Main Street Strong Conference on Wednesday.

  Consumer Trends

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  Popeyes heats up Megan Thee Stallion collab with merch drops, new chicken sandwich

  A partnership with the hip-hop star, who is now a franchise owner, spotlights a sauce inspired by her sassy personality and an Easter egg-loaded video.

  Consumer Trends

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  Deep Dive

  How host kitchens are propelling virtual brands forward

  Despite the rapid expansion, many experts question whether delivery-only concepts have long-term sustainability.

  Delivery

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  BLS: Hospitality worker quit rate is more than double national average

  Over 890,000 workers left the industry in August, marking a quit rate of 6.8%, and Moody's reports that restaurants will be "forced to increase wages."

  Labor and Policy

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  Chick-fil-A customers sue chain over 'deceitful' delivery costs

  The proposed class action lawsuit claims that though the QSR promised a flat, low-price delivery fee of $2.99 to $3.99, it charged 25% to 30% more for food ordered online for delivery than food ordered in-store or for pickup. 

  Corporate Operations

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  Delivery by the numbers: What third-party platforms are offering restaurants to survive the pandemic

  DoorDash will offer grants of $10,000 through its $1 million Restaurant Disaster Relief Fund, created in partnership with Hello Alice, to local restaurants impacted by natural disasters throughout the next year. 

  UPDATED: Oct. 13, 2021 at 10:53 a.m.

  Consumer Trends

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  Wendy's to use AI, machine learning to improve customer experience

  Through a partnership with Google Cloud, the fast food chain will offer diners tools like speech-to-text, Google Maps and Search.

  Operations

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  Deep Dive

  Can QSRs meet marketing's new imperatives without alienating franchisees?

  National brand building is often in conflict with the needs of local operators — a dichotomy that has only become more apparent in the past 18 months.

  Corporate Operations

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  Caribou Coffee adds franchising to its US system for the first time

  The chain is seeking franchisees for multi-unit deals and will open a mix of its smaller, drive-thru-focused Caribou Cabin prototype and traditional stores.

  Finances and Deals

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  BurgerFi acquires pizza chain for $161.3M

  Just over a year after it went public, the fast casual burger chain landed its first purchase, making Anthony's Coal Fired Pizza & Wings part of its strategy to become a multibrand platform.

  M&A

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  61% of restaurant operators disagree with vaccine mandate, study shows

  Fifty-nine percent of operators believe employees will quit rather than comply with the requirement, but a majority also believe the mandate will make diners more comfortable.

  Labor and Policy

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  DoorDash beefs up ad capabilities for restaurants, CPG brands

  The delivery platform is working to generate additional revenue as its growth slows from the highs reached during the pandemic's peak.

  Delivery

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  TGI Fridays will launch 300 ghost kitchens with Reef Technology

  This is Reef's first deal with a global casual chain, which comes just a few months after the firm announced major expansion plans with 800 Degrees Pizza and Wendy's. 

  Delivery

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  Deep Dive

  Want to expand through host kitchens? Here's what you need to know.

  Brands should keep in mind how they plan to maintain consistency in food quality and the customer experience.

  Delivery

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  Reef Technology acquires logistics partner Bond

  The acquisition strengthens Reef's distribution capacity, which will now include Bond's last-mile delivery nano-warehouses.

  Delivery

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  Los Angeles will require proof of vaccination for indoor dining

  Unlike mandates passed by other major restaurant metros, the city's rule requires diners to be fully vaccinated.

  Labor and Policy

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  Deep Dive

  Recipe for revenue: Why restaurants are becoming host kitchens

  Restaurants are leveraging unused kitchen capacity to facilitate the delivery of other brands and rake in extra cash.

  Delivery

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  BBQ Holdings will buy Tahoe Joe's Famous Steakhouses

  This acquisition comes just a few months after the restaurant group bought Village Inn and Bakers Square for $13.5 million.

  Finances and Deals

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  Chipotle agrees to $8M settlement in manager trainee classification suit

  If approved by a court, the agreement — the latest in a string of labor-related settlements at the chain — will end nine years of litigation.

  Corporate Operations

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  Half of Raising Cane's corporate staff will work in restaurants to fight labor shortage

  Office workers will also help with store-level recruitment as the chicken chain aims to hire 10,000 hourly employees in the next 50 days.

  UPDATED: Oct. 6, 2021 at 2:05 p.m.

  Corporate Operations

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  Gov. Gavin Newsom signs law requiring delivery companies to disclose fees

  California's legislation requires third-party aggregators to provide an itemized cost breakdown of each transaction to both diners and eateries. 

  UPDATED: Oct. 6, 2021 at 12:08 p.m.

  Delivery

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