Restaurant foot traffic on the rise

May 25, 2023

Foot traffic has increased when it comes to restaurants as consumers are prioritizing dining when it comes to discretionary spending.

Former Starbucks, Jack in the Box executive joins Smoothie King as COO

May 25, 2023

Smoothie King has hired Camille Hymes as chief operating officer to help lead it through the next phase of national growth.

Velvet Taco opening 41st location

May 25, 2023

Dallas-based Velvet Taco, which made the 2023 list of Fast Casual Top 100 Movers & Shakers, will open its 41st restaurant next month in Waco, Texas, at S.

Street Fighter 6 gamers winning Chipotle freebies

May 24, 2023

Street Fighter 6 players have the chance to earn Fighter Coins through digital entree purchases made via Chipotle Mexican Grill's app and website, and the game…

Opus lands $6.8M to fund AI-powered training for deskless workers

May 24, 2023

Opus, a training platform for businesses with a deskless workforce, has secured $6.8 million in Series A funding round led by Stage 2 Capital.

Hopdoddy tests AI to improve guest, team experience

May 24, 2023

Hopdoddy, a fast casual burger brand based in Austin, has tapped Kea, a cashier in the cloud and provider of AI operations, to help the brand streamline its…

Groucho's Deli wins Excellence in Guest Experience award

May 24, 2023

South Carolina-based Groucho's Deli, which was founded in 1941 and is still family-owned, is the winner of FastCasual's inaugural Excellence in Guest…

Bonchon promotes CFO to CEO

May 24, 2023

Bonchon, an Asian fast casual brand that recently landed No. 6 on the FastCasual's list of Top 100 Movers & Shakers, has appointed former Global CFO Bryan…

Free webinar to offer tips for recruitment, retention

by Mandy Wolf Detwiler — Editor, Networld Media Group

May 23, 2023

Ask any restaurateur what their number one issue in- house is and they're likely to say recruitment and retention. Though more restaurant roles are being…

SpotOn launching restaurant POS lineup

May 23, 2023

SpotOn is debuting the SpotOn Restaurant, a point-of-sale solution featuring proprietary, patent-pending hardware designed to meet the unique needs of a…

Smoothie King taps ChatGPT to write steamy summer novel

May 23, 2023

To celebrate the return of its X-Treme Watermelon smoothie, and the launch of its Watermelon Lemonade smoothie, Smoothie King commissioned ChatGPT to write a…

Panera preparing for IPO under new president

May 23, 2023

In preparation for its IPO, Panera Brands CEO Niren Chaudhary is stepping down to become chairman and handing the CEO reins to José Alberto Dueñas, who is…

Chipotle wins 2023 Excellence in Food Safety Award

May 23, 2023

Mod Pizza and Five Guys took home honorable mention for their food safety efforts.

Dave's Hot Chicken named FastCasual's Top 100 Mover & Shaker

2023 is the year of the chicken chain.

Tech investments on rise for driving restaurant strategies

May 22, 2023

Restaurants are investing in technology more than ever to optimize delivery channels and boost profits, according to a research report from restaurant SaaS…

Chipotle reveals Boulder as top-ordering college town

May 19, 2023

Ever since the first Chipotle opened in 1993 across from the University of Denver, it has been a go-to restaurant for college students.

Robots franchising near you

May 18, 2023

Considering that franchising spans nearly every industry these days, it was only a matter of time before someone figured out how to franchise robotics. That…

Island Fin Poke making Nashville debut

May 18, 2023

The city of Nashville will be home to Florida-based Island Fin Poke Co next week when the chain opens its 26th location and second in Tennessee.

Dig, Urbanbelly using AI to cut food, labor costs

May 18, 2023

New York-based DIG and Chicago-based Urbanbelly is combating labor and food challenges Prep Assistant, a plug-and-play AI system designed by PreciTaste to the…

2023 Fast Casual Perfect Pitch open for nominations

May 18, 2023

As part of its commitment to spotlighting up-and-coming fast casual brands, FastCasual is hosting its ninth annual Perfect Pitch contest Oct. 8 and is…