May 20, 2013
Emerging Concepts
One to Watch: Muscle Maker Grill

Rod Silva, founder of Muscle Maker Grill, says making America healthier requires diners increasing the number of healthy choices they make each day. And Muscle Maker Grill is helping them do just that. In fact, it’s difficult to make an unhealthy choice at a Muscle Maker Grill restaurant. There are no fryers on the premises; the...

Read Full Story // read more about: Muscle Maker Grill, Healthy Menus, Franchising, Growth, Health
Industry News
Guests Can Now "Dew" Lunch at Honey Dew Donuts

Honey Dew Donuts is no longer just a morning go-to for coffee and breakfast sandwiches. Now it’s also a lunch spot. The New England–based company is excited to announce its very first official lunch sandwich, Willow Tree Chicken Salad on a multi-grain croissant. Made to order, this hearty sandwich is full of fresh, all...

Read Full Story // read more about: Honey Dew Donuts, Breakfast, Menu Development, Sandwiches
Industry News
Rita’s Serves Up New Sundaes, Cookie Dough Cream Ice

Rita’s Italian Ice, the nation’s largest Italian Ice concept with over 625 outlets in 20 states, announces their newest Cool Treat, Sundaes with Unlimited Toppings. Also making its debut is the Cookie Dough Cream Ice, a flavor with chocolate chips and cookie dough pieces. Cookie Dough Cream Ice is available for a limited time...

Read Full Story // read more about: Rita's Italian Ice, Desserts, Food & Beverage, Menu Innovations
Industry News
Panda Express Rolls Out Samurai Surf & Turf

Panda Express introduces its newest premium entrée, Samurai Surf & Turf. Samurai Surf & Turf features premium marinated shrimp combined with Angus Top Sirloin, wok-seared, with sweet red bell peppers, string beans, and diced potatoes in a new zesty Samurai sauce. 

Read Full Story // read more about: Panda Express, Menu Development, Food & Beverage, Menu Innovations
Industry News
Hopeful Restaurateurs Take a Bite Out of Iowa

Six months of free rent, thousands of dollars in food inventory, television and other marketing materials, and $40,000 each in operating capital and kitchen equipment—all at no cost. Sounds like a dream, right? Well, for one concept, it’s going to become a reality. Iowa’s Best Bite Restaurant Challenge is kicking...

Read Full Story // read more about: Finance, Operations, Promotions
Industry News
DQ Debuts Choco Covered Pretzel Blizzard

Sweet and salty is one of the trending flavor profiles that the Dairy Queen system has turned into a new Blizzard Treat flavor.

Read Full Story // read more about: Dairy Queen, Desserts, Food & Beverage, Menu Innovations
Industry News
Orange Leaf Celebrates 3rd Birthday with New Cake Flavors

This month, Orange Leaf Frozen Yogurt celebrates three years of growth by sharing two new cake flavors with customers: Chocolate Cake, the official birthday cake of Orange Leaf, and Carrot Cake, one of America’s favorite cake flavors.

Read Full Story // read more about: Orange Leaf Frozen Yogurt, Menu Development, Food & Beverage, Menu Innovations, Promotions
Industry News
Cinnabon Eases Tax Stress with Tax Day Bites Promotion

Tax Day is known far and wide as one of the most stressful days of the year. To ease that pressure, participating Cinnabon Bakeries across the country are offering up free bite-sized treats on April 15 as part of its fifth annual Tax Day Bites promotion.

Read Full Story // read more about: Cinnabon, Marketing, Promotions
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
Industry News
At Chick-fil-A, Old Salads Just Don't Cut It

Chick-fil-A isn’t one to back down from a challenge—even one that’s self-imposed. That’s why, despite the fact that customers weren’t complaining about current salad offerings, the chicken chain decided to scrap its salad lineup in favor of three brand new options...

Read Full Story // read more about: Chick-fil-A, Digital Signage & Menuboards, Healthy Menus, Menu Development, Operations
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
Restaurant operators can promote their brand using restaurant review websites.
Denise Lee Yohn: QSR’s Marketing Guru
From Negative to Positive

Q: What's the right way to handle a negative online review?

A: If you're like most restaurateurs, you're a perfectionist. So a negative review on Yelp...

Read Full Story // read more about: Marketing, Competition, Consumer Trends, Promotions
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...

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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...

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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...

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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...

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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...

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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....

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Tin Drum Asia Cafe used equity firm investment to stay debt free in growth.
Finance
Striking Gold

Steven Chan’s business was at a crossroads last year. His Atlanta-based fast casual Tin Drum AsiaCafé launched in 2000, sold its first franchise in 2001, and was growing slowly due to Chan’s determination to keep it debt-free. At the beginning of 2012, Tin Drum had 10 franchises in...

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Secure quick serve restaurants improve sales and have high return on investment.
Back of House
Safety, Security, Sales

Traditionally, when quick serves plan security strategies, they address three main industry challenges: prevent shrinkage, guard against in-store and drive-thru robbery, and protect the company from fraudulent lawsuits. Operators need to carefully examine security solutions that will provide the...

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