Wendy's hires its first diversity chief

Wendy's joins a slew of restaurant chains, including Starbucks, McDonald's, KFC and Pizza Hut, that have created diversity chief positions in a bid to improve company culture. 

By Emma Liem Beckett • March 8, 2021

Uber Eats' US and Canada head leaves after 6 months

Sarfraz Maredia, current leader of Uber's rides division in the U.S. and Canada, will take on the position vacated by Stephane Ficaja. 

By Emma Liem Beckett • March 8, 2021

Explore the Trendline➔

Back-of-house Technology

From voice AI at the drive-thru to robot-powered makelines, restaurants are investing in technology solutions to optimize kitchen operations and reduce employee turnover. 

By Restaurant Dive staff

Panda Express opens first ghost kitchen in San Francisco

The delivery-only location is Panda's initial step in offering faster dining solutions for off-premise guests, with plans to test more concepts this year. 

By Julie Littman • March 5, 2021

Applebee's launches ghost kitchen pilot in 3 cities

The ghost kitchens cropping up in Los Angeles, Philadelphia and Miami are expected to help online delivery demand where the casual chain doesn't have a strong presence. 

By Alicia Kelso • March 4, 2021

Domino's, Papa John's sales soar on pandemic delivery demand, but complications loom

Both chains reported double-digit same-store sales growth last year, but delivery aggregators' growing market share could complicate strategies when pizza sales return to normal levels.

By Julie Littman • March 4, 2021

Wendy's expects to reach 8K units globally by 2025

With a growing emphasis on nontraditional locations like drive-thru only units and dark kitchens, the QSR expects to open 250 stores globally in 2021. 

By Julie Littman • March 4, 2021

Postmates' robotics division splits off, becomes Serve Robotics

Serve Robotics closed its first funding round and will continue to develop and operate autonomous delivery robots in urban markets as it pursues new partnerships. 

By Emma Liem Beckett • March 3, 2021

Chipotle to settle 2017 overtime dispute with $15M payout

Plaintiffs alleged Chipotle switched employees who were eligible for overtime back to "exempt" status while an injunction related to the The Fair Labor Standards Act, which expanded overtime rules, was in place.

By Alicia Kelso • March 3, 2021

Texas, Mississippi and Massachusetts reopen dining rooms at 100% capacity

The states cite a reduction in cases and hospitalization rates and increased access to vaccines as cause for removing restrictions, but a CDC official says it may be too soon. 

By Julie Littman • March 3, 2021

CFO of still-unprofitable DoorDash shares growth plans, investments

The takeout and delivery app with a 48% market monopoly is investing in food preparation robots, its subscription program and partnerships with commercial retailers, Prabir Adarkar said, after its first earnings report as a public company.

By Jane Thier • March 2, 2021

Shake Shack borrows $225M to support expansion plans

The funding will be used to aid opening additional units, new store formats and drive-thrus, as well as improvements to the digital guest experience and further investments in talent development. 

By Julie Littman • March 2, 2021

Bojangles’ largest franchisee plots 45-unit expansion

Operator Jeff Rigsby of BOJ of WNC will develop restaurants in his existing markets of Georgia, Kentucky, North Carolina and Tennessee, as well as move into Columbus, Ohio.

By Julie Littman • March 2, 2021

McDonald's mulls partial sale of AI company Dynamic Yield

Following franchisee complaints, the fast food giant is evaluating the tech company's drive-thru performance and could sell the part that works with outside retailers.

By Alicia Kelso • Updated March 1, 2021

Steak 'n Shake's eyes self-service kiosks in QSR conversion

The chain hopes to generate better profitability in its dining rooms as it moves away from a high-cost, slow production full-service model. 

By Julie Littman • March 1, 2021

Packaging manufacturers compete for raw materials as takeout shakes up foodservice

There has been "an increased use of tamper-evident and tamper-resistant packaging, designed to protect food and beverage when it’s on the go," said Natha Dempsey, president of the Foodservice Packaging Institute.

By Jen A. Miller • Feb. 26, 2021

Product innovation propels Papa John's growth in 2020

Following the release of four new products, the pizza chain posted same-store sales growth of 17.6% in North America last year driven by higher check and transactions. 

By Julie Littman • Feb. 26, 2021

As restaurants recover, their success formula will change

Off-premise innovations like ghost kitchens will characterize the industry going forward, a Duff & Phelps analysis says.

By Robert Freedman • Feb. 24, 2021

Cracker Barrel to test virtual chicken and biscuits brand as off-premise grows 78%

The company has been operating its ghost kitchen facility in Indianapolis since the fall and plans to launch the concept from the location this week. 

By Alicia Kelso • Feb. 24, 2021

88% of restaurants considering swapping to digital menus, survey says

Seventy-six percent of operators plan to continue offering contactless payment options this year as well, Square's Future of Restaurants 2021 report shows. 

By Julie Littman • Feb. 24, 2021

Remote Chipotle ERG will support minority mentorship program

The group, which will hold virtual roundtable discussions and quarterly diversity and inclusion training, builds on the fast casual chain's past efforts to make talent development more accessible.

By Ryan Golden • Feb. 24, 2021

White Castle ghost kitchen to stay closed until late spring

The fast food chain originally planned to resume its operations in Orlando, Florida, for online pickup orders on Thursday, but now says its current location is too small to sustain demand.

By Julie Littman • Updated Feb. 26, 2021

California fines Burgerim $4M, orders it to refund franchise fees

The chain sold franchises to 1,550 operators who paid $57.7 million in fees, according to a complaint by the state, but didn't deliver the refunds it promised to many franchisees.

By Emma Liem Beckett • Feb. 24, 2021

Steak 'n Shake sued for $8.5M in unpaid fees

Fighting back against the restaurant chain's assertions that it is debt free, Wilmington Trust has filed a claim that it's owed millions in unpaid fees and interest dating back to 2018.

By Emma Liem Beckett • Updated April 6, 2021

Yelp adds takeout features, enhanced analytics to Waitlist

The latest updates to the company's restaurant products include guest profiles and POS integration, which give users more data on operational performance, customer preferences and ordering behavior. 

By Julie Littman • Feb. 23, 2021

Dramatic layoffs 'kindest' approach to pandemic, Lazy Dog CFO says

Innovations like a retro-styled TV dinner helped boost kitchen productivity and gave employees more hours, Robert Linder said.

By Robert Freedman • Feb. 22, 2021