Operations: Page 2

  • Mobile screenshots of OpenTable's rewards program
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    Permission granted by OpenTable
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    OpenTable relaunches loyalty program

    Diners unlock Gold status after completing six reservations during a 12-month period, gaining access to six-months free of Uber One and priority status for last-minute reservations.

    By • Oct. 27, 2025
  • Rebel
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    Permission granted by GSP Retail
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    Rebel brings Hatch Chicken QSR to the Midwest

    The restaurant opened last month inside a 4,700-square-foot Rebel c-store in Romeoville, Illinois, about 35 miles southwest of downtown Chicago.

    By Brett Dworski • Oct. 27, 2025
  • Homeroom Restaurant in Oakland, California Explore the Trendline➔
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    Permission granted by Homeroom
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    Trendline

    Independent restaurants

    Dining room refreshes, menu innovation and other unique offerings can help independents stand out from competitors, win new customers and keep existing ones coming back. 

    By Restaurant Dive staff
  • An image of a digital menu board that says "Extra Value Meals are back" on the other panel there is a photo of an egg sandwich and a $5.
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    Permission granted by McDonald's
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    Toast: Burger, burrito, cold brew prices on the rise

    Football season staples like beer and wings saw slower price increases, which could play to the advantage of casual chains, according to a Toast analysis.

    By • Oct. 27, 2025
  • A man stands at a bar checking out.
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    Getty Images
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    Hospitality guests’ No. 1 AI concern: the loss of human touch

    “When consumers express concern about losing the human touch in hospitality, they aren’t rejecting the technology; they’re rejecting cold service,” Reputation’s Liz Carter said.

    By Kristen Doerer • Oct. 24, 2025
  • A photo of a convenience store in the background with fuel pumps in the foreground. A sign on the building says "Wawa."
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    Jessica Loder/Restaurant Dive
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    Wawa increases coffee program customization

    Customers can use ordering touchscreens in stores to control how much milk, sweeteners and flavors they add to their beverages.

    By Jessica Loder • Oct. 23, 2025
  • A Starbucks barista pours foamed milk into a cup.
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    Courtesy of Starbucks
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    Starbucks poised to hire around 8K assistant mangers

    The chain is testing the assistant manager role — a step between hourly shift supervisor and salaried manager — at 62 stores to fine-tune the position before expanding it to nearly all U.S. and Canadian stores.

    By • Oct. 22, 2025
  • An app screen showing reservation information.
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    Courtesy of Yelp
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    Yelp adds AI Host and Receptionist to restaurant toolbox

     The customizable solutions can answer diner questions, ask follow-ups and book reservations, reflecting restaurant interest in voice technology.  

    By • Oct. 21, 2025
  • Various burgers from Rutter's limited-time-only menu
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    Courtesy of Rutter's
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    Inside one c-store chain’s bold and greasy foodservice playbook

    As convenience chains ramp up their made-to-order menus, here’s how Pennsylvania chain Rutter’s is winning over customers with indulgent dishes like The Hangover Burger.

    By Jeff Wells • Oct. 21, 2025
  • An exterior photo of a Taim restaurant.
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    Courtesy of Taim Mediterranean Kitchen
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    Deep Dive

    4 brands growing in Cava’s shadow

    As the Mediterranean fast casual segment grows, franchised chains like Taim and Taziki’s are competing to see who will emerge as Cava’s main challenger.

    By • Oct. 20, 2025
  • A White Castle restaurant at night.
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    Courtesy of White Castle
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    White Castle opens new prototype in Ohio

    The new unit takes a page out of Chick-fil-A’s playbook with a drive-thru hospitality door and features new tech like a robotic fry cook, drive-thru voice AI and self-order kiosks.

    By • Oct. 16, 2025
  • fireside
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    Permission granted by Fireside Market
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    Fireside Market launches food-focused c-store design

    The 9,700-square-foot store in Slinger, Wisconsin, features a drive-thru and will serve as a model for future locations, a spokesperson said.

    By Brett Dworski • Oct. 15, 2025
  • An image of a building with red and orange signage. The sign says El Pollo Loco.
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    Courtesy of El Pollo Loco
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    El Pollo Loco opens 500th restaurant

    The Colorado Springs location is the third in Colorado and shows the chain’s rapid expansion outside of its home state of California.

    By • Oct. 15, 2025
  • An image of a white building with First Watch signage
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    Permission granted by First Watch
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    How First Watch’s expansion is outpacing casual dining growth

    The breakfast chain recently reached 600 units and anticipates opening nearly 60 restaurants in 2025 — making it one of a handful of casual chains to boast positive unit growth this year.

    By • Oct. 15, 2025
  • A diamond sign with red and blue and a white words that say "Domino's"
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    Joe Raedle via Getty Images
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    Domino’s posts biggest US comparable sales growth in 6 quarters

    The chain has had two consecutive quarters of growth driven by deal promotions and the popularity of Parmesan Stuffed Crust.

    By • Oct. 14, 2025
  • An evening image of a building that says Papa Murphy's
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    The image by Rick Obst is licensed under CC BY 2.0
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    Papa Murphy’s shutters underperforming stores

    The take-and-bake pizza chain has faced significant competition from other pizza brands that have invested heavily in aggressive marketing campaigns.

    By • Oct. 14, 2025
  • Food worker in a blue shirt hands a takeout bag to a customer.
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    Smallhands Creative

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    Sponsored by Toast

    How 75% off-premise traffic is reshaping restaurant operations

    Here’s what the off-premise evolution means for operators—and how they’re adapting to succeed.

    Oct. 13, 2025
  • Toast for Hotel Restaurants
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    Permission granted by Toast
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    Restaurants battered by inflation, turnover: report

    Improving profits and traffic are the main strategic goals for restaurant leaders in 2025, according to a Toast survey.

    By • Oct. 9, 2025
  • An image of a red sign with white logo that says "Wendy's." Above the sign is an cartoon image of a girl with red hair and pigtails with blue bows.
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    Brandon Bell via Getty Images
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    Wendy’s to invest at least $20M to boost AUV

    After same-store sales dropped two quarters in a row, the burger brand shifted money from development funds to in-store labor and equipment.

    By • Oct. 9, 2025
  • One of Serve Robotics' delivery robots.
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    Courtesy of Serve Robotics
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    Serve Robotics partners with DoorDash

    The companies will initially deploy bots in Los Angeles, where DoorDash is already offering bot delivery with Coco, and where Serve works with Uber Eats.

    By • Oct. 9, 2025
  • A close up image of a wrap with chicken.
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    Permission granted by Potbelly
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    Potbelly adds wraps to core menu

    The chain will offer two signature wraps and allow guests to make any sandwich into a wrap in its latest menu innovation.

    By • Oct. 8, 2025
  • A worker uses a Square tablet.
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    Courtesy of Square
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    Square debuts voice ordering, boosts AI assistant

    As tech firms compete to build up an all-in-one restaurant management platform, features like back-office AI and phone ordering could become important points of competition. 

    By • Oct. 8, 2025
  • Aerial photograph of a Cracker Barrel sign.
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    Joe Raedle via Getty Images
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    Cracker Barrel traffic nosedived after logo backlash

    Visits dropped by 10% in the weeks following the chain’s logo reversal, only improving to a 7% dip in the last week of September, according to Placer.ai.

    By • Oct. 7, 2025
  • A person stands in a parking lot with a blurred building with Swig signage in the background.
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    Courtesy of Swig
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    Swig plots aggressive growth with new president, franchise chief

    The dirty soda brand promoted Todd Smith from chief commercial officer to president and hired Shannon Swenson as chief of franchise partnerships.

    By • Oct. 7, 2025
  • Fiserv Clover point of sale CardFree mobile ordering payments
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    Bruce Bennett via Getty Images
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    Dunkin’ hits 10K stores in the US

    The coffee chain is the latest brand to pass this milestone, joining Starbucks, McDonald’s and Subway in an elite — but sometimes troubled — cohort.

    By • Oct. 7, 2025
  • An image showing some of Dunkin's branding pasted on the side of a building.
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    Courtesy of Dunkin'
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    Dunkin’ changes its rewards redemptions, again

    A Restaurant Dive analysis of new discount rates shows the coffee chain has largely made it more expensive to redeem items.

    By • Oct. 6, 2025