Operations

  • A rendering of a restaurant that is both an Applebee's and an IHOP
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    Courtesy of Dine Brands
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    Applebee’s hopes renovations, dual-branding will prevent more closures

    Dine Brands will remodel 30 Applebee’s restaurants it acquired from franchisees last year to help revive the ailing casual dining chain.

    By • March 5, 2025
  • A picture of an A&W located at a gas station.
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    Permission granted by A&W
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    A&W promotes COO to CEO post

    Betsy Schmandt, who has been with the company for 18 months, will work on enhancing the brand’s position, focus on value and continue the chain’s growth trajectory.

    By • March 4, 2025
  • A picture of a restaurant interior. Empty tables, white tile, green walls.
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    Courtesy of Perkins
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    Perkins to open Orlando flagship with cocktails, new menu

    By modernizing store decor and menu items, Perkins hopes to keep its brand fresh and draw new diners. 

    By • March 4, 2025
  • An nighttime image of a restaurant with the signage "Tom's Watch Bar"
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    Permission granted by Tom's Watch Bar
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    How Tom’s Watch Bar offers guests ‘the best seat in the house’

    Building off of double-digit revenue and sales growth, the 13-unit chain will more than double its store count over the next two years.

    By • March 3, 2025
  • A rendering of a Subway restaurant with tables and green walls.
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    Courtesy of Subway
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    NRA: Restaurants are prioritizing on-premise in 2025

    About 80% of diners say they would eat at full-service spots if they had the cash, per the National Restaurant Association, incentivizing brands to create welcoming dining rooms.

    By • Feb. 28, 2025
  • The exterior of a Del Taco during the evening
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    Permission granted by Del Taco
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    Del Taco closes 18 Colorado stores

    Franchisee Newport Ventures, which declared bankruptcy in October, shuttered all of its locations after a lender refused further funding.

    By • Feb. 28, 2025
  • An exterior shot of a Red Robin restaurant, which is lit from inside, at night
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    The image by Cbraccialini is licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0
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    Red Robin may close about 70 restaurants in 5 years

    Shutting these underperforming restaurants, which had store-level operating losses of $6 million, will help the chain reinvest in its system and pay off debt.

    By • Feb. 27, 2025
  • An image of chicken wings, tacos, French fries and chicken tenders from Hurricane Grill & Wings
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    Retrieved from Fat Brands on February 25, 2025
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    Franchisees sue Hurricane Grill & Wings over mismanagement of marketing funds

    Operators claim the chain and owner Fat Brands haven’t used the funds to advertise, leading to declining franchisee profitability.

    By • Feb. 26, 2025
  • An image of fried chicken with hot sauce on top.
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    Courtesy of Dave's Hot Chicken
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    Dave’s Hot Chicken debuts catering program

    The company expects the channel, offered via ezCater, to make up as much as 10% of its business within a year.

    By • Feb. 25, 2025
  • An image of the top of a silver car that contains a rectangular logo with a red square and blue square.
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    Brandon Bell via Getty Images
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    Domino’s targets long-term growth with loyalty, website and app upgrades

    Loyalty membership reached 35.7 million at the end of 2024, and the restaurant chain will launch a revamped website and app in 2025 to boost growth.

    By Bryan Wassel • Feb. 25, 2025
  • A rendering of a building with a logo that says Golden Corral Favorites
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    Permission granted by Golden Corral
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    Golden Corral reinvents its fast casual spinoff

    Over a year after it launched Homeward Kitchen, the buffet chain will rebrand it as Golden Corral Favorites, with a menu highlighting signature items.

    By • Feb. 25, 2025
  • A photograph of a yellow sign with Denny's in red.
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    Justin Sullivan via Getty Images
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    Denny’s adds surcharge to meals with eggs

    The price of this additional charge will be determined on a market-by-market and restaurant-by-restaurant basis reflecting the bird flu’s regional impact.

    By • Feb. 25, 2025
  • An image of the top of a silver car that contains a rectangular logo with a red square and blue square.
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    Brandon Bell via Getty Images
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    Domino’s expects third-party delivery to be $1B sales driver

    The pizza chain’s partnership with Uber Eats represented 3% of sales last year, and Domino’s is pursuing additional delivery aggregator deals. 

    By • Feb. 24, 2025
  • A photo of a smiling person sitting at a table, about to bite into a burrito. A sign on the wall behind them says Laredo Taco.
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    Courtesy of 7-Eleven
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    3 foodservice moves 7-Eleven has already made in 2025

    While North America’s largest c-store retailer begins building hundreds of food-focused stores, it’s also making more immediate changes to its menu.

    By Jessica Loder • Feb. 24, 2025
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    Permission granted by Restaurant365
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    Sponsored by Restaurant365

    Thriving amid challenges: Key takeaways from the 2025 state of the restaurant industry report

    Rising costs and shifting trends challenge restaurants in 2025. Stay ahead with key insights and strategies.

    Feb. 24, 2025
  • Outback Steakhouse exterior
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    Courtesy of Bloomin' Brands
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    Bloomin’ Brands lays off 100 corporate employees

    The cuts at its Tampa, Florida, support center represent a 17% reduction and follow corporate layoffs at Dine Brands, Starbucks and Denny’s.

    By • Feb. 21, 2025
  • A photograph of a man wearing a gray suit.
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    Courtesy of Church's Texas Chicken
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    Church’s Texas Chicken appoints CEO

    Roland Gonzalez, who served as COO for the past two years, takes over at the chain as it aims to grow systemwide sales from $1.5 billion to $2 billion.

    By • Feb. 21, 2025
  • An exterior image of a Shake Shack restaurant
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    Brandon Bell via Getty Images
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    Shake Shack to open kitchen innovation lab in Atlanta this year

    The company will test equipment and layouts at the lab without having to build new restaurants, accelerating the rollout of processes and optimizations.

    By • Feb. 20, 2025
  • Exterior of a Potbelly restaurant
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    Permission granted by Potbelly
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    Q&A

    What’s behind Potbelly’s unit growth momentum

    The chain, which has signed over 300 store deals since it began accelerating franchising in 2022, aims to grow from roughly 440 units to over 720.

    By • Feb. 19, 2025
  • An image of a co-branded Applebee's, IHOP restaurant
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    Courtesy of Dine Brands
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    Dine Brands opens first US dual-branded Applebee’s/IHOP restaurant

    The company will debut a total of 15 co-branded units stateside through 2026, bringing its total count of global co-branded units to nearly 30.

    By • Feb. 19, 2025
  • A Torchy's Tacos sign shot from a low angle.
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    Tornado98 via Getty Images
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    Torchy’s Tacos hires GoTo Foods vet as CEO

    Paul Macaluso, who most recently served as president and CEO of Another Broken Egg Cafe, joins the brand as it invests in tech ahead of a growth push.

    By • Feb. 19, 2025
  • An interior photograph of a Wendy's restaurant with digital kiosks for ordering.
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    Courtesy of Wendy's
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    Wendy’s hits the gas on drive-thru AI, digital menu boards and kiosks

    Early results revealed this technology has simplified ordering and helped free up employees to enhance the customer experience. 

    By • Feb. 13, 2025
  • Wendy's
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    Thai Phi Le/Restaurant Dive
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    Wendy’s will expand chicken, beverages and value in 2025

    The burger chain will also enhance its loyalty platform with limited-time offers only available through the app.

    By • Feb. 13, 2025
  • A Denny's location in Emeryville, California.
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    Justin Sullivan via Getty Images
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    Denny’s to increase store closures

    The chain expects to shutter 70 to 90 restaurants in 2025 due to low volumes and lease expirations, compared to 88 store closures last year.

    By • Updated Feb. 18, 2025
  • EG America
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    Retrieved from EG America.
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    EG America names new head of branded QSR operations

    The retailer has appointed a leader for its department that recently launched three fresh restaurant concepts.

    By Brett Dworski • Feb. 12, 2025