'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 …

How Dave’s Hot Chicken went from a parking lot to a $1 billion sale

by Mandy Wolf Detwiler — Editor, Connect Media

Dave's Hot Chicken began in a parking lot. It recently sold for $1 billion. The leaders behind the brand will speak at the Founderology Growth Summit on Feb. …

Dave's Hot Chicken hires Joshua Liggins as VP of franchise development

January 12, 2026

Dave's Hot Chicken announced Monday the appointment of Joshua Liggins as vice president of franchise development, a move intended to accelerate the brand's…

Dave’s Hot Chicken promotes Jim Bitticks to CEO

January 8, 2026

Bitticks will join the founders of Dave's Hot Chicken as the keynote speakers at the Founderology Growth Summit, Feb. 2-4 in Austin.

FastCasual opens nominations for 2026 Top 100 Movers & Shakers

January 7, 2026

Nominations close Feb. 8.

Dave's Hot Chicken tops Yelp's 2025 'Most Loved Brands'

December 12, 2025

Three of the top five spots went to fast casual chains, with Korean fried chicken franchise bb.q Chicken taking No. 3 and California burger icon In-N-Out…

Former Wendy's, Potbelly exec leading marketing at Dave's Hot Chicken

December 8, 2025

Dave's Hot Chicken has named Brandon Rhoten as its chief marketing officer, bringing on the former Wendy's and Potbelly executive to lead the chain's marketing…

The next great restaurant differentiator: Staying 'always on'

by Amir Hudda — CEO, Qu

Jack in the Box, Golden Corral, Dave’s Hot Chicken, Blaze Pizza and Golden Chick didn't miss a beat in October when a massive cloud outage brought parts of…