Speaker Spotlight: Guy Carmeli, Pasta di Guy founder/chef

by Judy Mottl — Editor, RetailCustomerExperience.com & DigitalSignageToday.com

Guy Carmeli, founder and chef at Pasta di Guy, is participating in a panel talk on crafting kiosk experiences at the upcoming Automated Retail & Kiosk Innovation show being held this December in Tampa, Florida.

Top 3 learnings from Cava's Q3 earnings about growth in tight economy

by Cherryh Cansler — Editor, FastCasual.com

Cava reported Q3 2025 revenue of $289.8 million, up 20% year over year, with same-restaurant sales growth of 1.9% and restaurant-level profit margin of 24.6%.

Apple Pie Spice: The sequel no one saw coming (except us)

by Suzy Badaracco — President, Culinary Tides Inc

Although pumpkin remains dominant, apple, caramel and cinnamon blends are surging. Is there room for all three on this year's fall menus?

Leading with flavor, heart, vision: The Tacodeli way

by Kathleen Wood — Founder, K. Wood Partners

In this episode of the Founderology Podcast, Roberto Espinosa, the Founder of Tacodeli, discusses how his taco shop has grown into one of the most authentic and respected fast casual restaurant brands in the country.

Mountain Mike's Pizza

For over 45 years, Mountain Mike’s Pizza, a leading family-style pizza chain known for its legendary crispy, curly pepperonis and Mountain-sized pizzas, has been quietly building one of the largest regional pizza franchises in the West. Today we're developing coast-to-coast with 300+ restaurants, and we're primed for explosive growth nationwide

Labor Forecasting 2.0: Predicting Future Demand and Staffing for Efficient Growth with AI

Labor is your most significant controllable cost—but leveraging labor as a growth driver is more complex than ever. Enter labor forecasting 2.0: an AI-driven approach that helps multi-location units match staffing to real-world demand, while optimizing schedules for labor compliance, operations efficiency, and sales.

Using AI to increase restaurant revenue by improving customer satisfaction and operational efficiency

Guests want faster service, personalized interactions, and consistent experiences—across every location and every channel. Restaurants that meet these demands see higher ratings, more repeat visits, and stronger revenue growth. Discover how leading restaurants are using AI to increase satisfaction, streamline operations, and grow repeat visits.

2025 Fast Casual Top 100 Movers & Shakers

This year, the exceptional caliber of leadership across the industry led to a slight adjustment in our numbers—we were compelled to recognize 100 brands and 25 executives instead of our usual 75- 25 split. We also added an extra executive, a testament to the fierce competition and outstanding contributions within the fast-casual arena.