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Mario Guerrero was named the 2023 Taco Bell Franchise Manager of the Year. Guerrero, who began working for Taco Bell at the age of 16, is general manager of a Taco Bell restaurant in Jacksonville, Texas. “I’m very grateful for the team that I have,” he said. Guerrero also said he wants to show current and future employees the opportunities available to them through Taco Bell and Southern Multifoods.
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Catalina Naki-Alforte was awarded a $10,000 Live Más Scholarship, which she will use to pursue a career in law enforcement. Naki-Alforte is a team member at the Nanakuli Taco Bell in Oahu.
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After Starbucks reported its sales dropped for the first time since early 2020, former Starbucks CEO Howard Schultz said that the company should "own the shortcoming without the slightest semblance of an excuse.” Senior leaders need to reinvent the mobile ordering and payment platform, Schultz said. “Starbucks will recover — of that, I am certain,” he said. “The brand is incredibly resilient, but it’s clearly not business as usual.”
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Wendy’s CEO Kirk Tanner said the company is planning to increase sales through breakfast, value and digital. During Wendy’s Q1 earnings call, Tanner said that building the daypart of breakfast "gives a lot back to the franchisees." He added that "value at Wendy’s is going to be done with everyday value like our platform in Biggie, and we’ll continue to use digital value to drive loyalty and build our customers on our platform.”
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During Shake Shack’s Q1 earnings call, CEO Randy Garutti discussed how its marketing initiatives have proven successful in driving new and existing customers and that testing of a new labor model is allowing its restaurants to adjust for format, menu and channel mix including kiosks. “There’s no question we’re living in, whether it’s us or the largest online companies who are all seeing a consumer who’s seeking value, a consumer who’s seeking discounts, in a lot of cases, promotions. You’ve seen a lot in our industry,” he said.
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Krispy Kreme is celebrating Mother's Day with a new collection of mini-doughnuts that will be available beginning May 6. The Minis for Mom Collection includes new mini-doughnut flavors like iced rose, Oreo and strawberry icing.
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Sonic has unveiled the new, limited-time Orange Cloudiscle Slush Float. The new slush float features slushed ice mixed with Orange Cloudsicle Syrup and Orange Vanilla Flavor Bubbles, topped with vanilla soft serve and more Orange Vanilla Flavor Bubbles.
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Restaurants added 6,600 jobs in April. The industry employs 12.3 million workers, according to new data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, which shows little change from the past few months. On average, restaurants have added fewer than 10,000 jobs per month so far this year, compared with an average of 26,000 jobs per month in 2023.
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Denny’s has doubled down on its virtual brands during the past six months. The company has offered two virtual brands, The Meltdown and The Burger Den, since 2021 and rolled out a third, Banda Burrito, last year. Banda Burrito is expected to add 200 more locations in California in the coming months, with a national rollout expected to follow in Q4. “Denny’s off-premise guests skew younger than dine-in. Approximately 70% of our Gen Z and millennial guests utilize our off-premise channels compared to the same groups utilizing dine-in at approximately 40%,” Denny’s CEO Kelli Valade said.
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Burgerville said new investors, including former Dutch Bros CEO Joth Ricci, have taken an unspecified ownership stake in the company. Ricci will become executive chairman and CEO Ed Casey will remain at the helm. Over the past two years, Burgerville has seen double-digit sales, Casey said recently, and sees a lot more room for filling in existing markets across Oregon, Washington and into Idaho. The company will open its 40th store later this year in Oregon.
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Texas Roadhouse's Bubba’s 33 and Jaggers concepts are pulling in strong numbers. Bubba’s 33’s, which is a sports bar concept with pizza, burgers and beer as its focal points, has averaged over $120,000 in weekly sales during Q1, with about $6 million in average unit volumes. Jaggers, the company’s quick-service concept, has generated nearly $68,000 in average weekly sales. The company plans to open Jaggers’ first international franchise later this year, in South Korea.
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TGI Fridays has paid back about half of its existing asset-backed bonds after selling a licensing business to Kraft Heinz. The deal allows Kraft Heinz to continue selling TGI Fridays food products and control the license. The proceeds of the sale were used to pay down $137 million of the dining chain’s whole business securitization.
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President Joe Biden vetoed a Congressional bill, which would have ended the National Labor Relations Board’s effort to expand the definition of joint employer. In vetoing the legislation, Biden said he did so to protect the right for workers to “organize and bargain collectively.” Congress can overturn the president's veto.
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Florida has banned the manufacture and distribution of lab-grown meat. The measure is meant to protect cattle ranchers and the "integrity of American agriculture," said Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis. Florida is the first state to outlaw cultured meats, however, Alabama, Arizona and Tennessee have recently considered similar bills.
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