Hawaiian Bros signs 52-unit Florida development deal

October 16, 2026

Hawaiian Bros Island Grill has signed a 52-unit development agreement with Southern Rock to enter Florida.

Dave’s Hot Chicken hits 500 restaurants, adds 100 units in 6 months

October 9, 2026

Dave's Hot Chicken opened its 500th restaurant Thursday in Phoenix, marking a milestone for the fast-casual chain that has added about 100 locations since…

Matternet unveils autonomous drone delivery system through Dave’s Hot Chicken partnership

September 29, 2026

M3 Portal Drop Box, courtesy of Matternet Matternet has unveiled M3, a next-generation autonomous drone delivery system designed to handle high-volume…

Little Caesars, Jersey Mike's franchisee adding Mike's Red Tacos to Michigan portfolio

September 1, 2026

Mike's Red Tacos, a San Diego-born birria concept named a Yelp Top 100 U.S. restaurant in 2023, has signed a 15-unit franchise agreement to expand into…

Dave's Hot Chicken CMO reveals when and when NOT to use AI

Dave's Hot Chicken CMO Brandon Rhoten joins Fast Casual Nation to break down how the fast-growing chicken chain uses AI on the back end for customer data and…

Presented by Mountaire Farms

Wonder, Dave’s Hot Chicken Real Estate VPs reveal growth strategies

by Cherryh Cansler — Publisher, FastCasual.com

Real estate strategy is central to growth for restaurant brands, and Wonder and Dave's Hot Chicken are taking different approaches to scale. In a podcast…

Yelp's 2026 growth data: Fast casual brands, customization devouring the competition

by Cherryh Cansler — Publisher, FastCasual.com

Fast casual is dominating when it comes not only to specific brands — 7 Brews, Dave's Hot Chicken, Cava and Chipotle — but also to the culture it has helped…

'You’re not annoying; you’re marketing': Top takeaways from the Restaurant Marketing Workshop

by Cherryh Cansler — Publisher, FastCasual.com

Check out these 10 highlights of the Restaurant Marketing Workshop.

Swig signs 6 unit franchise deal to fuel South Texas growth

June 4, 2026

Swig continues its Texas expansion with a new six-unit franchise agreement that will bring the beverage brand to communities across South Texas. The St.

Matternet raises $33M, goes public to expand restaurant drone delivery

June 1, 2026

Matternet, an autonomous aerial logistics technology company, has raised $33 million in an oversubscribed private placement offering. Concurrent with the…

The 'dirt' on dirt: 4 restaurant real estate trends revealed at ICSC

by Cherryh Cansler — Publisher, FastCasual.com

Interviews at the International Council of Shopping Centers conference revealed top trends in real estate. Success in the restaurant industry isn't just about…

Cava named No. 1 Brand of 2026 at Fast Casual Top 100 Gala

Cava secured the top honors following a year of monumental growth, including a 22.5% revenue increase and reaching $1.1 billion in annual sales.

Diving deeper: Looking beyond sales for improved restaurant marketing

by Bradley Cooper — Editor, Connect Media

At the Restaurant Marketing Workshop in Boston from June 2 to 3, panelists will discuss how to do a deep dive into your brand's marketing and menu decisions.

Dave’s Hot Chicken fires up expansion with 8 openings

April 15, 2026

Dave's Hot Chicken is boosting its national expansion, with plans to open eight locations on April 16.

The birria playbook: How Mike’s Red Tacos is using the Dave’s Hot Chicken strategy to scale

In this episode of Fast Casual Nation, host Cherryh Cansler sits down with Lance Salsman, SVP of Operations & Training at Mike's Red Tacos, recorded live at…

Secret Burger Kitchen targets 'institutional-grade' scaling with trio of industry heavyweights

by Cherryh Cansler — Publisher, FastCasual.com

Dave Bloom will oversee development discipline and governance; Douglas Fry is in charge of menu discipline, throughput, training systems, decision architecture…

A tale of 2 Mike’s: Jersey Mike’s franchisee adds Mike’s Red Tacos to portfolio

March 5, 2026

When it comes to franchising, Mike seems to know Mike. Michael McGuire, a Minnesota operator who runs dozens of Jersey Mike's Subs locations, has signed on to…

Can Dave’s Hot Chicken leaders conjure magic from Mike's Red Tacos?

by Cherryh Cansler — Publisher, FastCasual.com

Mike's Red Tacos, a beef birria concept born just four years ago, has deals in place to open more than 200 locations. While the rapid expansion is turning…

Ovation secures $3M in funding led by customers

February 10, 2026

Ovation, a guest experience and operations platform for multi-unit restaurants, has raised $3 million in a funding round backed entirely by its own customers.

Founderology Growth Summit honoring inaugural 'Visionary Restaurant Founders'

by Cherryh Cansler — Publisher, FastCasual.com

To celebrate the spirit of innovation, the Founderology Growth Summit, being held Feb. 2-4 in Austin, will host a special ceremony to honor the "Top 5 Movers …