Restaurants dish out savings to soothe the stressed tax filer

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

Restaurants are doing their part to calm the masses with money-saving deals on Tuesday, the nation's day of shared tax-paying pain.

Capturing today's diners? A lot of it is still about 'the money'

Even with the surprises that the AlixPartners diners' preferences poll has shown this week, in many ways it still all comes down to the fact that customers…

Yelp's restaurant review data gets much easier to use

April 14, 2017

Restaurant social media managers at the Restaurant Franchising and Innovation Summit in Dallas last month clearly identified Yelp as the go-to source of…

Study: Wanderlust is stealing restaurant dollars

April 12, 2017

Consumers' love of travel is slicing into the food service sector's pie, potentially creating a defining moment for the restaurant industry.

New joint venture partners get 'fresh' with the Sunshine State

April 11, 2017

For the most  part, the terms "fresh" and QSR are typically not used together in the same sentence. But, a new joint venture partnership aims to change that…

Pie Five, Firehouse, First Watch,Pei Wei execs discuss 'the good, the bad and the ugly' of online reviews

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

A recent survey found that 61 percent of the dining public check online reviews before visiting a restaurant. How those reviews can help or hurt sales was a…

How fast food can be good food: London's LEON co-founder shares strategy for success

by Cherryh Cansler — Editor, FastCasual.com

LEON CEO John Vincent, who will keynote the Restaurant Franchising and Innovation Summit being held July 18-20 in London, talks with FastCasual about how he…

ICX Summit: Neuroscience, millennials and measuring customer experience

The upcoming June ICX Summit boasts top leaders in customer experience speaking on a range of topics from CX strategy to measuring customer experience…

Pressure grows to make restaurant kiosks 'disability-friendly'

by Elliot Maras — Editor, Kiosk Marketplace & Vending Times

A recent lawsuit on behalf of a blind customer against Eatsa, a restaurant that uses self-order kiosks, has put the kiosk industry in the spotlight.

Hot Heads & Rapid Fired Pizza founder on a regional growth approach

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

Hot Heads Burritos founder, Ray Wiley, is on a roll again, this time with a fast pizza concept, called Rapid Fired. The chain has taken a regional approach to…

Cowboy Chicken, Elevation Burger execs: Pay supply chain due respect or pay consequences

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

In a world, where customers are demanding that restaurants use ethically produced, sustainable and healthful ingredients, supply chain management has grown in…

Papa John's gets 'down to earth' in the Bluegrass

April 5, 2017

Papa John's is really getting down-to-earth about its toppings this spring, beginning right in the heart of the Bluegrass State, just in time for the great…

Krystal's new look puts 'round-the-clock' service up front

April 5, 2017

Krystal today opened the first location featuring its new store design, as well as a frozen treat lineup that includes new additions such as hand-spun…

Why playing the 'right' background music increases sales

by Cherryh Cansler — Editor, FastCasual.com

Restaurants that play a carefully selected mix of music reflecting their cultures can increase sales by more than 9 percent, according to a 2016 study.

Study: UK restaurateurs need to improve customer experience

April 4, 2017

U.K. restaurateurs and retailers are not providing a rewarding customer experience despite the fact that consumers are more likely to buy if they have a…

Food trucks and restaurants – a symbiotic relationship

by Elliot Maras — Editor, Kiosk Marketplace & Vending Times

While many limited service restaurants are clearly interested in expanding into food trucks, veteran food truck operators are using the skills they develop on…

DoorDash partnership turns Jack in the Box to 'Jack at your door'

April 3, 2017

Jack in the Box's San Francisco pilot with DoorDash went so well that the company has expanded the home delivery program to more than 200 cities across 14 new…

C-Speak: PDQ president using tech to get rid of the back office

PDQ President Steve Erickson and David Cantu, co-founder of HotSchedules, discuss how the brand uses technology to control operations and deliver better…

Keynoter: Want to motivate employees? Try ‘trust and track’ instead of ‘command and control’

by Elliot Maras — Editor, Kiosk Marketplace & Vending Times

Creating an employee training system that delivers outstanding customer service requires making employees feel engaged and providing regular feedback…

Study: Consumers receptive to chatbots

March 30, 2017

A majority of consumers are comfortable talking with a chatbot yet only a fraction have engaged with one, according to the 2017 Mobile Consumer Report from…