Study: QSR and Fast Casual only restaurant segments to see traffic growth in '17

January 3, 2017

If there's a bright spot in the restaurant industry outlook for the year ahead, at least one data analysis and research company believes it will be in the…

Pushing boundaries: Top 10 menu trends of 2017 revealed

by Cherryh Cansler — Editor, FastCasual.com

Combining cuisines from all over the world will be 2017's No. 1 trend. Other trends include spicier flavor profiles, more vegan and veggie options and DIY…

Delivery data: Mac and cheese, oxtail soup top 2016 at-home orders

December 15, 2016

The market for home-meal delivery grew substantially over the past year, and Grubhub, a mobile food-ordering company, has used data about those deliveries to…

Q3 restaurant visits decline, fast casual is no exception

December 6, 2016

Although traffic growth at U.S. restaurants remained flat during the first half of 2016, Q3 results were even worse, according to The NPD Group, which found…

Technomic downgrades restaurant growth projections

November 29, 2016

The company said its May results released for the two-year period were overly optimistic and that declining traffic across food service has prompted the…

McDonald's hoping tech upgrades will level playing field with fast casuals

by Cherryh Cansler — Editor, FastCasual.com

After a successful pilot of the chain’s "JustForYou experience" at 500 revamped U.S. restaurants in New York, Florida and Southern California, McDonald's has…

Will the menu trends of 2017 turn to the dark side?

by S.A. Whitehead — Food Editor, Net World Media Group

Charcoal, heavy fats and lots of bubbles may not sound like they belong on 2017's list of menu trends, but the Canadian food-centric marketing consultancy…

Report: 4 top pizza industry growth factors

by S.A. Whitehead — Food Editor, Net World Media Group

Good news came this morning in the form of a new report on the global pizza market for the next three years. Technavio's latest research shows that the market…

Going global: Restaurant Franchising & Innovation Summit adds European event

Early-bird registration is now open for next year's London and Dallas summits.

Spreading the love: Chains offering freebies in honor of National Sandwich Day

Fast food chains are offering discounts in honor of National Sandwich Day.

Fast casual industry to hit $67B by 2020

November 2, 2016

The fast casual restaurant market in the U.S. is expected to reach $66.87 billion by 2020, according to the latest study released by Technavio. 

Now trending: Restaurants offering gender-neutral bathrooms

by Cherryh Cansler — Editor, FastCasual.com

Many restaurants are ditching signs indicating separate men's and women's restrooms.

Pei Wei Test Kitchen stirs up 'priceless' ROI

by Cherryh Cansler — Editor, FastCasual.com

Pei Wei has opened an official test kitchen that also serves as a fully functioning restaurant.

Fazoli's sees record growth

October 20, 2016

Fazoli's franchise-owned restaurants reported a 5.1 percent same-store sales increase during the fiscal year second quarter, ending Sept. 30, according to a…

Rooting out today's top culinary trends

by S.A. Whitehead — Food Editor, Net World Media Group

Root vegetables are the food service trend of the moment, according to research on the top plant-based edibles in restaurant kitchens and menus from market…

Free webinar: How to Create Loyal Guest Behavior

September 1, 2016

Restaurant chains across the country are continuing to build and execute loyalty programs that provide immediate and sustainable results.

College kids still love fast food, but they're pickier than ever

by S.A. Whitehead — Food Editor, Net World Media Group

Today's coeds have high expectations for even the fastest food that they order.

Technomic report says customers blame restaurants for third-party delivery service failures

August 23, 2016

Technomic Inc. found that 76 percent of consumers polled hold restaurants responsible for all errors on online portals and delivery services. In fact, the…

RSR reveals digital gift card winners

August 23, 2016

 Retail Systems Research has published the report, "Digital Gift Cards In 2016: Where Omni-Channel Strategy Meets Customer Expectations." 

The true effects of food photos: part 1

by Matthew Harper — Intern, Networld Media Group

Back in the 1800s when photography was first invented, it would have been hard to imagine people using the technology to document lunch. As restaurants are…