A chaotic wait for the Popeyes sandwich spotlights Chick-fil-A's operational edge

Restaurant Dive stood in line and found that while Popeyes' sandwich may win the taste battle, its store experience could lose it the chicken sandwich wars.

By Emma Liem Beckett • Nov. 6, 2019

Bloomin' Brands explores sale, other strategic alternatives

Though it didn't provide a timeline for the review, CEO David Deno told investors that everything is on the table. 

By Julie Littman • Nov. 6, 2019

White Starbucks manager fired after Philly incident alleges race bias

The suit follows one of the most significant case studies of corporate social responsibility and HR management in recent history.

By Ryan Golden • Nov. 5, 2019

Burger King boosts 'Call of Duty' Twitch event with Grubhub delivery

Inspired by the Burger Town restaurant that appears in the hit video game, the burger chain offered free delivery from GrubHub.

By Robert Williams • Nov. 5, 2019

McDonald's chief people officer leaves company

David Fairhurst, who has been with the chain for 15 years, left on Monday. The company didn't disclose the nature of his departure, which comes on the heels of former CEO Steve Easterbrook's firing.

By Julie Littman • Nov. 4, 2019

McDonald's fires CEO Steve Easterbrook

Easterbrook's departure comes as the QSR giant struggles to meet investor expectations and drive robust same-store sales growth in the U.S.

By Julie Littman • Nov. 3, 2019

Chick-fil-A gaffe gives Popeyes easy marketing fodder amid chicken sandwich's return

A botched email communication around a Sunday holiday — when Chick-fil-A is closed — led to snarky social posts by Popeyes.

By Peter Adams • Nov. 1, 2019

McDonald's doubles down on chicken for breakfast

The QSR giant will offer Chicken McGriddles and McChicken Biscuit sandwiches during breakfast for a limited time, pitting it against Chick-fil-A's offerings.

By Emma Liem Beckett • Updated Jan. 28, 2020

Starbucks' AI project is turning past investments into data insights

"Deep Brew," an AI project launched in 2017, is a machine learning capability Starbucks is leveraging for personalization.

By Samantha Schwartz • Nov. 1, 2019

Grubhub revisits non-partnered listings as rivals erode its market share

More restaurants could find themselves offering delivery whether they want to or not with Grubhub's latest strategy to grow listings, a move analysts say was forced by DoorDash's dominance. 

By Julie Littman • Oct. 31, 2019

OpenTable looks to improve table turnover time with new features

A tool to pre-determine how many times a table will turn over and flow controls to keep the kitchen on pace are the platform's latest assets for restaurants.

By Lauren Manning • Oct. 31, 2019

Industry, government take aim at food waste in the supply chain with formal commitment

The National Restaurant Association joined a cohort of grocery and food industry groups in signing a memorandum of understanding Wednesday to reduce food waste 50% by 2030.

By Emma Cosgrove • Oct. 31, 2019

Dig pilots reusable bowl program in NYC

The fast casual chain's mobile app lets customers rent and return melamine bowls with plastic lids for $3 per month. 

By Lauren Manning • Oct. 30, 2019

How TGI Fridays uses machine learning to scale personalization

"We're not Google," said the chain's Chief Experience Officer Sherif Mityas, but leveraging the tech has been key to tripling the restaurant's off-premise revenue.

By Emma Liem Beckett • Oct. 29, 2019

Taco Bell franchisee pays $225K for allegedly requesting too much info from green card holders

It's important to remember that employers cannot impose different or more stringent employment requirements on the basis of citizenship status or national origin.

By Jennifer Carsen • Oct. 28, 2019

Popeyes chicken sandwich spurs best quarter in 20 years

Despite selling out after 14 days, the popular menu item helped increase store traffic 218% in July and attract new guests during the third quarter. 

By Julie Littman • Oct. 28, 2019

Impossible Whopper drives 5% of Burger King's Q3 US comp sales

The sandwich helped drive the chain's strongest U.S. growth rate since 2015, and could kick-start the creation of a plant-based platform both domestically and abroad for the restaurant. 

By Julie Littman • Oct. 28, 2019

Shift Change: Rave Restaurant Group appoints new CEO, Your Pizza hires first CMO

This week's Shift Change also highlights executives at Restaurant Brands International, Global Franchise Group, Paris Baguette and Muscle Maker Grill.

By Julie Littman • Oct. 25, 2019

&pizza teams with Lyft for late-night ride-share benefits

The fast casual pizzeria's three-month pilot is just one of many benefits restaurants like Starbucks, Noodles & Company and Chipotle are adding to attract and retain employees. 

By Alicia Kelso • Oct. 24, 2019

Lunch Break: White Castle's COO shares how its tech, culture help labor retention

Wearables with real-time data updates and 40-hour weeks for GMs are helping the burger chain grow talent, Jeff Carper said, but as the labor shortage grows, it is eyeing cafeteria-style payment and additional benefits.

By Emma Liem Beckett • Oct. 23, 2019

Chipotle to build 60 Chipotlanes by year's end

The company expects digital to become a $1 billion business, and mobile pickup lanes will be a growing part of the chain's strategy as it evaluates real estate needs. 

By Julie Littman • Oct. 23, 2019

Burger King lets spirits taste test new Ghost Whopper at seance

In a creative stunt, a medium invited spirits to inhabit his body and try the brand's new Halloween burger.

By Barry Levine • Oct. 22, 2019

Burger King India sales grew 66%, report says

The chain, which has found a niche with pricing and its vegetarian menu, plans to open 500 units by fiscal year 2023, which will better position it against McDonald's.

By Alicia Kelso • Oct. 22, 2019

Arkansas Pei Wei ignored complaints of managers' sexual harassment, EEOC alleges

The sexually hostile work environment the managers created forced two workers to quit, the agency alleged in its lawsuit.

By Riia O'Donnell • Oct. 21, 2019

Passport to success: How restaurants can make international expansion work

From Popeyes to Wendy's, U.S. QSRs are crowding foreign markets in places like China and the Middle East. Check out our interactive maps to see how many stores they've planted overseas and learn about the strategies needed to expand abroad.

By Julie Littman • Oct. 21, 2019