Rusty Taco opens 2nd Georgia restaurant

December 30, 2024

Rusty Taco opened its second Georgia store last week in Decatur, following the recent restaurant opening in the Atlanta neighborhood of Summerhill. Located at…

FastCasual reveals 10 most-read stories of 2024

by Cherryh Cansler — Editor, FastCasual.com

Stories about Chipotle, Panera, Freddy's and Schlotzsky's landed on the top 10 list.

Blaze Pizza inks deal for 25 units in Southern California

December 30, 2024

Blaze Pizza has signed a 25-unit expansion agreement with longtime franchisee SoCal Blazers, Inc. led by Reza Medali, Mehdi Khosh, Aaron Khosh and Ryan Khosh.

Pop's Beef VP reveals 3 ways to endear your brand to your community

Kacie Radochonski, Pop's Beef VP of Operations, explains how staying true to the brand, actively engaging with the community and adapting to changing customer…

Dickey's franchisee expanding brand in Arizona

December 30, 2024

Gaurav Chaudhary, a multi-unit franchisee, is making his mark on the Dickey's Barbecue Pit brand in Arizona. Since joining the franchise in April 2024, he has…

Steven King's SSIS 2024 keynote demonstrates how automation, AI, robotics are transforming industry

by Daniel Brown — Editor, Networld Media Group

Addressing a crowd of business leaders and industry operators, King shared his insights into the evolving landscape of automation, robotics, and artificial…

Paris Baguette opens 200th US location

December 27, 2024

Paris Baguette, which has over 4,000 global locations, has opened its 200th in North America at 549 Roosevelt Road in Glen Ellyn, Illinois. "Opening our…

Brooklyn Dumpling bets on casino location

December 26, 2024

Brooklyn Dumpling Shop, an Asian-inspired fast casual concept, has opened at Resorts World New York City, a casino in Queens serving 10 million visitors…

Buona ends year with 20% sales growth

December 24, 2024

The Buona Companies, the family owned business behind Buona Chicago's Original Italian beef and The Original Rainbow Cone, drove 20% growth in systemwide sales…

Smalls Sliders expanding in Texas

December 23, 2024

Smalls Sliders is adding six locations, known as "Smorange Cans," in the Southeast Houston region of Texas thanks to an agreement with entrepreneur Matthew…

HTeaO expands reach with nine openings in Q4

December 23, 2024

HTeaO, an iced tea franchise, opened nine stores during Q4 in Texas, Oklahoma and Kansas, bringing its total to 42 locations launched in 2024.

Voice AI leads AI race, bringing opportunities, challenges

by Daniel Brown — Editor, Networld Media Group

At this year’s Self-Service Innovation Summit, hosted by Networld Media Group in Tampa from December 9-11, I had a chance to sit in on the "Thought leader…

Speaker Spotlight: Robby Berg, Genghis Grill

Robby Berg, regional director of operations for Genghis Grill, shares a look at his career, his achievements and industry trends ahead of his appearance at…

FastCasual opens Top 100 nominations, changes judging process

by Cherryh Cansler — Editor, FastCasual.com

The newly created Fast Casual Index will help determine the Top 100 rankings. Nominations are open now, close Feb. 3

Pinkbox Doughnuts opening 24-hour drive-thru location

December 19, 2024

Las Vegas-based Pinkbox Doughnuts is opening Dec. 28, in Las Vegas at the Boca Park Fashion Village at 800 S. Rampart Blvd. The nearly 3,000-square-foot store…

Potbelly opening in Cleveland

December 19, 2024

Potbelly Corp. is adding a location next week in Cleveland at the Lakewood City Center shopping district, marking its 15th location in Ohio.

7 trends transforming restaurant catering sales in 2025

by Nabeel Alamgir — CEO and Co-founder, Lunchbox.io

Catering remains a high-growth segment for enterprise restaurant brands, with 2024 showcasing significant sales, technology and customer engagement…

Playa Bowls streamlining operations with Qu

December 19, 2024

New Jersey-based Playa Bowls hopes to modernize its point-of-sale, improve kitchen systems and provide real-time reporting by partnering with Qu, a cloud-based…

Jersey Mike's opens 3,000th location

December 19, 2024

Jersey Mike's Subs held a 12-store opening celebration Wednesday, which brought its unit count to 3,000. The chain has opened 322 stores in 2024.

Diebold Nixdorf powers self-service kiosks at Italian smashburger chain Smashie

December 18, 2024

Italian smashburger chain Smashie has partnered with Diebold Nixdorf to implement self-service kiosks at its restaurant in Udine, Italy, according to a press…