Juice It Up reports 13% systemwide sales growth through midyear

July 22, 2026

Juice It Up reported 13% year-over-year systemwide sales growth through the first half of 2026, driven by higher customer traffic, menu innovation and…

True Food Kitchen names Jeff Chandler as CEO

July 21, 2026

Jeff Chandler has been synonymous with Hopdoddy Burger Bar over the last decade, but the Texas-based executive is now leading True Food Kitchen, a…

What the data says about restaurant catering today

by Mandy Wolf Detwiler — Editor, Connect Media

As corporate catering transforms into a critical growth engine for the restaurant industry, top brands will share their battle-tested, data-driven playbooks…

Toastique Founder Brianna Keefe details growth from single toast bar to national franchise

Toastique founder Brianna Keefe opened her first location at 24 with no investors, a personal guarantee, and a vision for a concept that didn't yet exist. In…

City Barbeque opens 2nd Tennessee location in Murfreesboro

July 21, 2026

City Barbeque has expanded its Tennessee presence with the opening of a second restaurant in the state. The Dublin, Ohio-based barbecue chain launched its…

The 'Slutty' Empire: How Pinky Cole turned vegan burgers into a national brand

Slutty Vegan founder and CEO Pinky Cole Hayes joins Fast Casual Nation hosts Paul Barron and Cherryh Cansler to share her journey from television producer to…

Opus launches tool to turn franchise data into action

July 20, 2026

Opus Training, a training operations platform used by multi-unit brands, has launched Opus Recommendation Engine, a product designed to convert operational…

FDA says Taylor Farms Cyclospora test a false positive as outbreak weighs on restaurant traffic

by Valerie Gritton

Taylor Farms is reporting the CDC has found a fast-positive for the cyclospora outbreak linked to its products.

Jersey Mike's launches IPO, plans to list on NYSE

July 20, 2026

After months of speculation, Jersey Mike's Subs Inc. said Monday it has begun a roadshow for its initial public offering, moving forward with plans to sell…

Rock N' Roll Sushi opens 1st Virginia restaurant

July 20, 2026

Rock N' Roll Sushi has entered Virginia with the opening of its first restaurant at 11458 Belvedere Lane in Midlothian. The restaurant opened on July 20 at The…

4 ways AI-using restaurants are cutting food, labor costs to outpace competitors

by Cherryh Cansler — Publisher, FastCasual.com

Restaurant365's mid-year survey of nearly 10,000 U.S. locations shows exactly how AI adopters are pulling ahead — creating what the company calls the…

Build your leadership team: The team that reports directly to you

by Kathleen Wood — Founder, K. Wood Partners

True organizational growth and scalability require distinguishing between mere managers and genuine leaders.

5-state Cyclospora outbreak linked to Taco Bell shredded lettuce

by Valerie Gritton

The Cyclospora illness is being linked to Taco Bell locations in the Midwest. The brand is taking precautions and removing the affected producer's products…

Smalls Sliders celebrates first Ohio opening

July 17, 2026

Smalls Sliders is opening its first location in Ohio. The location, in South Point, Ohio, will be led by local operators and brothers Beckett and Sam Gue and…

Fuzzy’s Taco Shop launches summer menu, rewards offers

July 17, 2026

Fuzzy's Taco Shop has launched its Fuzzy's Beach Club summer campaign, featuring limited-time menu items, rewards offers, branded merchandise and a National…

bb.q Chicken partners with Stray Kids member Felix on new menu item

July 17, 2026

Fort Lee, New Jersey-based bb.q Chicken has introduced Feel Crunch Chicken, an entree developed in partnership with Felix, a member of global K-pop group Stray…

Former Taco Bell Latin America CMO Karla Patino named Pollo Campero VP of marketing

July 16, 2026

Patino joins the company after nearly two decades in brand marketing at major quick-service chains, including Taco Bell, KFC, Burger King Chipotle and Subway.

Wonder raises $650M in Series D funding at $9B valuation

July 16, 2026

Food technology platform Wonder announced Thursday it has closed a $650 million Series D funding round at a pre-money valuation of $9 billion, which will fuel…

Taco Bell responds to Cyclospora outbreak, becomes first major chain to pull at-risk ingredients

by Valerie Gritton

A Cyclospora outbreak has restaurant leaders on alert.

Hot dogs jump 3.6%, coffee up 7.1%: Toast's June price data

by Cherryh Cansler — Publisher, FastCasual.com

Toast's June 2026 data shows hot dogs, cold brew and coffee posting the steepest year-over-year price increases across the industry.