Activist investor says Cracker Barrel's fast casual concept is 'destined to fail'

Sardar Biglari, the chain's largest shareholder, urged CEO Sandra Cochran to sell Holler and Dash in a letter on Wednesday and cited concerns over the holding company's fast pace of expansion. 

By Kevin Whiteley • March 14, 2019

Delivery search engine FoodBoss gains $2M in funding

Former McDonald's CEO Don Thompson led the investment round in the platform, which allows consumers to compare delivery times and costs from major third-party aggregators like Uber Eats and Postmates.  

By Kevin Whiteley • March 13, 2019

Chipotle touts loyalty program with $250K in Venmo payouts

The Mexican food chain is expanding its Chipotle Rewards program nationwide, and the deal could help capture more of its target diners. 

By Robert Williams • March 12, 2019

52% of U.S. diners with exclusion diets struggle to order at restaurants

Research from Spoon Guru shows that 86% of consumers with diets including paleo, keto, vegan and gluten-free want restaurants to "go above and beyond current regulations" to provide ingredient transparency. 

By Kevin Whiteley • March 12, 2019

Shift Change: Smoothie King, Church's Chicken hire CMOs; Bojangles' top marketing leader to retire

The latest installment of Shift Change highlights executive changes at Starbucks, Church's Chicken, Smoothie King, Bojangles' and more. 

By Julie Littman • March 8, 2019

Postmates integrates reviews from The Infatuation

Lines between review, reservation and delivery sites are blurring as diner demand for convenience grows, but it's unclear if this offering will be enough to gain long-term converts. 

By Kevin Whiteley • March 8, 2019

McDonald's drives 8.4K in-app actions by tying geofenced billboards to Waze

A campaign with the Google-owned app and agency Outdoor Media Group sent users a call to action message when their car came to a full stop. 

By Peter Adams • March 7, 2019

Wendy's trolls McDonald's on Frozen Food Day

A frozen cake for "you know who" reminded Twitter followers that its rival uses frozen beef and offered a free burger through Wendy's mobile app.

By Robert Williams • March 7, 2019

Yum China's Innovation Center could help fend off US transplants

The Yum Brands spinoff believes product experimentation is key to its success in the fast-changing market, where American heavyweights Shake Shack and Starbucks are testing their own new concepts. 

By Kevin Whiteley • March 7, 2019

KFC's crowdfunding campaign gauges interest in half-baked ideas

Contributors to the Indiegogo site could win branded swag for supporting potential products like a Kentucky Fried Hot Tub or location-tracking necktie.

By Erica Sweeney • March 6, 2019

Dunkin' trolls McDonald's over Donut Sticks launch

The coffee chain mockingly tweeted "blueprints" of new donut packaging, which emulate the burger giant's Big Mac box, suggesting McDonald's copied its Donut Fries offering.

By Kevin Whiteley • March 5, 2019

Papa John's eyes sports stars, social influencers as brand rehabilitation efforts continue

The strategy, which follows a campaign focused on the chain's franchisees, was announced amid a reported 8.1% slide in same-store sales in North America for Q4.

By Erica Sweeney • Feb. 28, 2019

Burger King, KFC revamp brand mascots as chicken rivalry heats up

Burger King has debuted the "K.F.G.," or King of Flame Grilling — which mocks Colonel Sanders — while KFC rolls out a RoboCop iteration of its mascot.

By Erica Sweeney • Feb. 25, 2019

Baskin-Robbins sees 12% lift in store visits from Spotify ads

The ice cream chain matched 430,000 U.S. store visits to an audio ad via new measurement partner Placed.

By Robert Williams • Feb. 22, 2019

Bojangles' debuts 'flour-tossing' billboard for NBA All-Star weekend

For the sporting event taking place in its hometown of Charlotte, North Carolina, the chain is also holding a social media contest tied to the interactive billboard. 

By Erica Sweeney • Feb. 14, 2019

McDonald's rolls out Donut Sticks amid lackluster breakfast traffic

Growing QSR competition in the morning daypart and the chain's all-day breakfast menu may be undercutting the morning rush, but LTOs may not be enough to make sales rise and shine. 

By Kevin Whiteley • Feb. 13, 2019

Shake Shack's first CMO tasked with revisiting self-order kiosks

BarkBox vet Jay Livingston may have his work cut out for him, as the chain's first brush with cashless payment kiosks failed following customer backlash. 

By Alicia Kelso • Feb. 12, 2019

Burger King's 'Whopper Detour' generated 1.5M app downloads

Trolling McDonald's helped catapult Burger King's app to the top of Apple’s App Store rankings, Restaurant Brands' CEO said during a conference call with analysts this week.

By Robert Williams • Feb. 12, 2019

Chipotle offers behind-the-scenes look at its kitchens in new campaign

As part of "Behind the Foil," the chain broadcast live its food prep on Facebook from a restaurant in California. 

By Erica Sweeney • Feb. 12, 2019

Restaurant reservations to spike 433% on Valentine's Day, study projects

Research from OpenTable and Toast also found that the holiday will yield a 7% jump in online orders, and businesses will need to be proactive with staffing to reap the full benefits of this influx. 

By Alicia Kelso • Feb. 11, 2019

Starbucks Canada pledges to donate 100% of leftover food

The company has partnered with food rescue organization Second Harvest to donate perishable items like yogurt and milk alongside pastries and breads, a move that could further boost the coffee giant's brand halo. 

By Kevin Whiteley • Feb. 11, 2019

KFC readies Valentine's Day contest on Reddit with Colonel-inspired rug

Customers can post KFC-themed artwork on Reddit to win a date-night package including the rug, fried chicken pajamas, gift cards and subscription to an online streaming service.

By Erica Sweeney • Feb. 8, 2019

OpenTable's Matchmaker tool helps ease Valentine's Day reservation stress

The platform, which gives personalized restaurant recommendations after a series of questions, could help the service differentiate from competitors on one of the biggest dining days of the year.

By Kevin Whiteley • Feb. 7, 2019

Chick-fil-A leads QSR space in loyalty, survey says

As the fast food segment continues to anchor its offerings around speed and convenience, the chicken chain is piquing consumer interest through strategic limitations and quality experience.

By Kevin Whiteley • Feb. 6, 2019

T-Mobile teams with Taco Bell, Lyft for freebies via mobile app

An expanded T-Mobile Tuesdays promotion serves up free tacos and free rides from the participating companies.

By Robert Williams • Feb. 5, 2019