May 24, 2013
Industry News
Street Taco Trio Makes Its Debut at California Tortilla

The fans spoke, and California Tortilla listened. Street Tacos edged out the competition to win March’s Elito 8 Tournament; now they’re available at California Tortilla locations nationwide starting Monday, May 20. For a limited time only, customers can get all the flavors of the city streets inside their...

Read Full Story // read more about: California Tortilla, Menu Development, Promotions
Industry News
Franchise Vet Wins Perkins' Franchisee of the Year Award

Perkins & Marie Callender’s recognized its Franchisee of the Year, Dan Esmond, owner/operator of four Perkins Restaurants & Bakeries in Lawrence, Topeka, Great Bend, and McPherson, Kansas.

Read Full Story // read more about: Perkins, Beverage, Breakfast, Charitable Giving, Franchising
Industry News
Smithfield's Receives Heart-Warming Thanks from Troops

Smithfield's Chicken 'N Bar-B-Q (SCNB) recently shipped care packages with official SCNB T-shirts and all of the ingredients needed to prepare its eastern North Carolina–style chicken, barbecue, and other southern staples to U.S. troops stationed in Afghanistan.   Although the brand knew its donation would be consumed...

Read Full Story // read more about: Smithfield's, Charitable Giving
Competition
The Great Migration

On Fort Lauderdale, Florida’s 17th Street, tucked in the shadow of giants Chipotle and Panera Bread, an upstart burger joint dreams of someday entering the same upper ranks of the fast-casual world that those two brands helped create. Though the restaurant carries a familiar name, its vibe is decidedly fresh. Welcome to Shula...

Read Full Story // read more about: Larkburger, Shula Burger, Operations, Consumer Trends, Growth, Fast Casual
Menu Innovations
Coffee is King

Forget quick-serve mainstays like burgers and fries. These days, limited-service brands are looking to coffee to beef up business, and Burger King is the latest chain to get in on the action. Burger King’s customers can now enjoy 10 new specialty drinks, including iced coffees in a variety of flavors, roast coffees with a 100...

Read Full Story // read more about: Burger King, Beverage, Burgers, Ingredients & Dayparts
Alan Philips: Trends to Watch
No Business Like Show Business

A couple of years ago, I embarked on a journey into the world of pop-up restaurants. After almost a decade of consulting, I decided it was time to take on a project that was a pure representation of my passions: food, wine, and creating unique hospitality experiences. Not to be held up by things like good sense, I decided to take a shot...

Read Full Story // read more about: Marketing, Competition, In the Store, Consumer Trends, Promotions
Industry News
Mark Wahlberg, Taco Bell Team Up to Help Kids Graduate

The Taco Bell Foundation for Teens, in partnership with Get Schooled, announced the launch of Graduate for Mas, a program challenging teens to make a personal commitment to graduate high school. Actor and philanthropist Mark Wahlberg, who did not finish high school himself, also announced his support of the program.

Read Full Story // read more about: Taco Bell, Charitable Giving
Outside Insights
How to Prevent Credit Card Fraud

Every merchant that accepts credit and debit cards is required to be compliant with the Payment Card Industry (PCI) Data Security Standards (DSS), whose next set of standards will be released in October 2013. Yet despite these compliance requirements, the food and beverage industry had the highest percentage of data security...

Read Full Story // read more about: Back of House, Point Of Sale, Security, In the Store, Ordering
Small portions give customers control over health, values, and variety.
Menu Innovations
Small Portions a Big Idea

Small portions are very big these days.

Many 2013 trend predictions determined that small plates and snacking are expected to be popular among chefs and restaurant operators this year. While diners are still eating during the traditional meal times—breakfast, lunch, and dinner...

Read Full Story // read more about: Pei Wei, Qdoba, Starbucks, Taco Bell, Wendy's, White Castle, Wow Bao, Menu Development, Consumer Trends, Health, Ingredients & Dayparts
Restaurant operators learn valuable tips at restaurant industry's largest show.
Industry News
2013 NRA Show Guide
...
Read Full Story // read more about: Cosi, Competition, Growth
NRA CEO Dawn Sweeney helps protect restaurant operators interests.
Executive Insights
The Advocate

The most powerful woman in the restaurant industry isn’t intimidating, nor is she larger than life. She isn’t cold, tight-lipped, terse, or abrasive. She doesn’t talk down to you. She doesn’t double-book you and cancel at the last second.

Certainly one might expect...

Read Full Story // read more about: Healthy Menus, Competition, Women in Foodservice, Growth
Food production systems like hydroponics help restaurants use more local goods.
Ingredients & Dayparts
Can Quick Serves Save the World?

No longer is local sourcing just a utopian ideal. It’s a practice coming to life and continually gaining momentum in foodservice, with the number of local ingredients on menus growing by 73 percent over the last four years, according to market research firm Mintel.

But, at its most...

Read Full Story // read more about: Chipotle, Mad Greens, Sloco, Green, In the Store, Consumer Trends, Menu Innovations
Celebrity chef Bobby Flay provides strong example of smart restaurant growth.
Alan Philips: Trends to Watch
Be Like Bobby

My idea of “inclusive exclusivity” started in a boardroom many years ago in Atlantic City, New Jersey. I was making a presentation to a group of executives at the Borgata Hotel, Casino, & Spa to explain how they could import the feel of New York’s hottest nightclubs and...

Read Full Story // read more about: Bobby's Burger Palace, Burgers, Growth
Industry News
Dunkin' Donuts Grows Healthy Menu With Turkey Sausage

Helping guests greet the warm weather with more smart choices, Dunkin’ Donuts announced a permanent addition to its DDSMART menu: the Turkey Sausage Breakfast Sandwich.

A breakfast sandwich option under 400 calories, the new sandwich features a fried egg topped with turkey sausage...

Read Full Story // read more about: Dunkin' Donuts, Breakfast, Healthy Menus, Menu Development, Sandwiches
Industry News
Offering Value Isn't Enough; Taco Bell Wants to Redefine It

It may seem like a lofty goal, but Taco Bell is dead set on not only redefining value at the quick-service level, but also delivering it to consumers in a variety of ways.

Specifically, the brand is focusing on four key areas: the low- and high-price end of the menu, new menus and...

Read Full Story // read more about: Taco Bell, Menu Development, Executive Insights, Promotions
Low calorie menu options boost quick service restaurant sales.
Health
Slimmer Items, Hefty Sales

The lower the calorie counts in restaurant menu items, the better for business, according to recent research by public policy research organization Hudson Institute.

The report analyzed 21 of the nation’s largest restaurant chains, including quick-service brands like McDonald’...

Read Full Story // read more about: Healthy Menus, Consumer Trends, Menu Innovations, Ingredients & Dayparts
Superfoods like whole grains and oatmeal offer healthy menu alternative.
Healthy Menus
The Other Side of Super

Superfoods have swept the culinary world into a frenzy, enticing consumers with a taste of the exotic and courting them with nutrition and functionality, to the point where restaurants across the country are trying to stake a claim in this fledgling movement.

Quick-service restaurants are...

See More
The Boston Fire Department was treated to free meals at Firehouse Subs.
Charitable Giving
Nurturing Boston

As soon as he learned about the April 15th Boston bombings, Dave Tucci, the New England area representative for Firehouse Subs’ DMA, called the Firehouse franchisee closest to the bombings.

Tucci was relieved to find out that all employees at Firehouse’s Copley Square location...

See More
McAlisters Deli franchisee says casual dining experience helps in quick service.
Sandwiches
What You Can Learn from Casual Dining

David Blackburn has been in the foodservice business his entire adult life. Since 1979, the McAlister’s Deli franchisee has cataloged more than 25 years of experience in the casual-dining sector, spending 16 of those as regional vice president of operations at O’Charley’s....

See More
Fast casual brands attract customers with alcoholic beverage programs
Beverage
Buying into Booze

Fast-casual restaurants were once able to claim premium food, modern décor, and all-around upscale service as hallmarks of their category. But with more quick-service chains retooling in those areas to compete for post-recession consumers, fast casuals have been left to search for new ways to...

See More
Women leaders like Flatbread Grill's owners successfully launch new brands.
Finance
Cleared for Launch

Starting any business can be a difficult prospect, but in an industry where men have historically outnumbered women, the roadblocks to doing so can be even more challenging when you’re female.

For many female foodservice entrepreneurs, being taken seriously as a business owner is...

See More
Operators must protect their quick serve business from credit card fraud.
Point Of Sale
How to Prevent Credit Card Fraud

Every merchant that accepts credit and debit cards is required to be compliant with the Payment Card Industry (PCI) Data Security Standards (DSS), whose next set of standards will be released in October 2013. Yet despite these compliance requirements, the food and beverage industry had the...

See More
Corner Bakery's new menu items use fresh ingredients to offer premium quality.
Breakfast
The Corner of Innovation

In a push to distinguish itself from growing competition in the fast-casual bakery-café space, Corner Bakery Café is doubling down on menu innovation.

The 22-year-old, Dallas-based chain recently leveraged its high-quality kitchen equipment and capabilities, as well as more than 40 fresh...

See More
Innovations like the Marinara Tower were featured on the NRA Show floor.
Back of House
Recapping the NRA Show

As the lights went out on the National Restaurant Association’s Restaurant, Hotel-Motel Show (NRA Show) in Chicago on Tuesday, there was plenty to consider about the future of the industry.

The show featured no shortage of technological advancements, not just in computing hardware...

See More
 
Women in Foodservice
The Power of Mom

In the spirit of QSR’s Year of Women in Foodservice initiative, we’re dedicating a monthly section to recognizing the issues that affect women in foodservice and the contributions they make in our industry. If you know a woman with an inspiring story to share or an issue you think needs to be addressed, send your ideas to YearofWomen@qsrmagazine.com.

The number of U.S. households with kids under 18 is about 39 million—33 percent of the country—and moms run more than twice as many single-parent households as dads.

Read Full Story // read more about: Doc Popcorn, Moe's Southwest Grill, Marketing, Competition, Consumer Trends, Promotions, Health
Industry News
Mowi Wowi Franchisee Focuses on Environment, Sustainability

A Maui Wowi Hawaiian franchisee in Wimberly, Texas, has recently put sustainability at the forefront of her daily operations. Through her composting program, nothing goes to waste, and the local community benefits with beautiful gardens to enjoy all year long.

"Whether it's at an event or our store location, we always save the used coffee grounds and banana peels so that people who would like to use them as compost can easily come by and pick them up," says franchisee DuAnne Redus.

Read Full Story // read more about: Maui Wowi, Beverage, Green, Women in Foodservice, Sustainability
Industry News
Fazoli's Cathy Hull Recognized as Top Marketing Exec in 2012

Cathy Hull, Fazoli’s chief marketing officer, has been selected by the ranking committee of ExecRank as a “Top Private Company Marketing Executive” for 2012.

The rankings are the result of two years of research and feedback from evaluation committees and top chief marketing officers that yielded an algorithm for how to rank marketing executives based on their performance in 24 key areas.

Read Full Story // read more about: Fazoli's, Marketing, Menu Development, Women in Foodservice, Outside Insights
Industry News
Katherine Schieffelin Joins NRAEF as SVP

The National Restaurant Association Educational Foundation (NRAEF) announced that Katherine Speyer Schieffelin has joined the foundation as senior vice president and chief development officer.

Schieffelin brings more than a decade of experience in management, fundraising, and campaign planning to the NRAEF and will aid in the foundation’s mission to enhance the industry’s service to the public through education, community engagement, and the promotion of career opportunities. 

Read Full Story // read more about: Operations, Women in Foodservice, Human Resources
Industry News
Industry Recruiting Co. Earns WBENC Accreditation

Patrice Rice, CEO and founder of Patrice & Associates Hospitality Recruiting—which helps thousands of managerial candidates find rewarding jobs in the restaurant and hospitality industry—announced that Patrice & Associates has earned accreditation from the Women’s Business Enterprise National Council (WBENC).

Read Full Story // read more about: Women in Foodservice, Human Resources
Industry News
Maui Wowi Franchisee Raises $1,200 for Make-A-Wish

An Illinois franchisee of Maui Wowi Hawaiian Coffees & Smoothies recently donated more than $1200 to the Make-A-Wish Foundation as part of the Ultimate Gymnastics Tournament that was held November 30–December 2, 2012 at Harper College.

The 13th-annual Ultimate Wish Classic has raised more than $400,000 for the charitable foundation.

Read Full Story // read more about: Maui Wowi, Beverage, Charitable Giving, Women in Foodservice
Industry News
Maui Wowi Surfs into Southern California

Maui Wowi Hawaiian, a tropical island-themed franchise concept serving fresh Hawaiian-grown coffee and all-natural smoothies, embodies the Aloha spirit and laidback lifestyle that its newest franchise operator has lived and breathed all her life.

Maui Wowi welcomes Pa 'Akai Ventures, operated by Jenna Roberts, to join the company's growing West Coast presence as a new franchisee in El Cajon, California, near San Diego.

Read Full Story // read more about: Maui Wowi, Beverage, Women in Foodservice, Franchising, Growth
Industry News
NRA President Recognized for Healthy-Living Initiatives

National Restaurant Association (NRA) president and CEO Dawn Sweeney has been recognized by the Campaign to End Obesity for her work in helping inspire and guide the foodservice industry’s nutrition initiatives.

Sweeney, in recognition of her efforts, received the award at a December 6 awards gala at Discovery Channel Worldwide headquarters in Silver Spring, Maryland. 

Read Full Story // read more about: Healthy Menus, Women in Foodservice