BBQ Holdings Inc., the parent company of Famous Dave’s, announced Thursday a purchase agreement to acquire the assets of craft beer chain Granite City Food and Brewery. Terms of the deal were not disclosed. The move is BBQ Holdings’ first foray outside of the barbecue sector. Its other two brands are the recently created Clark Crew… read more

Mark Wolfinger is succeeding John Miller as president of Denny’s in a reshuffle of the family-dining chain’s top management. Miller retains his duties as CEO, with a focus on Denny’s strategic direction. Wolfinger, formerly CFO, EVP and chief administrative officer, will assume more of Miller’s day-to-day responsibilities, the company said. In related changes, Robert Verostek… read more

Rōti Modern Mediterranean has named Justin Seamonds its CEO, the Chicago-based fast-casual chain said. Seamonds’ background is primarily in retail; he was president of specialty grocer Dean & DeLuca and then CEO of the Snack Street shop in Houston. Most recently he was an advisor for Washlava, which allows users to reserve and pay for… read more

Whataburger Inc. has hired Janelle Sykes as its new chief financial officer, the company said. The San Antonio-based burger brand also said it has promoted Sylvester “Sly” Johnson to chief data and analytics officer. He most recently served as Whataburger’s chief accounting officer. Sykes, left, succeeds former CFO Ed Nelson, who was promoted to presidentof… read more

Less than a week after announcing the end of its exclusive agreement with airport foodservice company HMSHost — part of travel foodservice company Autogrill Group — Starbucks is already expanding its airport presence with the announcement of two major partnerships: airport retailer and restaurateur Paradies Lagardère and airport hospitality group OTG Management. Starbucks is entering a licensing agreement… read more

Eric Wyatt has been promoted to chief executive officer of Boston Market Corp. He succeeds Frances Allen, who is leaving the company for a new opportunity. In his new role, Mr. Wyatt will oversee a newly created “office of the CEO.” that includes Caryn Doyle, chief financial officer, and Randy Miller, chief administrative officer and… read more

Amazon announced that it will now work with brands to help them make custom text-to-speech voices for their Alexa skills. Imagine, for example, that you’re ordering KFC using KFC’s Alexa skill, but instead of the default Alexa voice replying to you, it’s Colonel Sanders himself. That’s what Amazon’s going for here, and it’s something that Amazon… read more

The hospitality industry has one of the most diverse workforces. It offers a huge spectrum of different career opportunities, and each has its own role to play within this vast and still expanding field. These roles, though, may or may not require a specific level of educational attainment. The only criterion that we believe is… read more

Yum Brands, under new CEO David Gibbs, on Thursday announced major leadership changes at the company’s three quick-service brands including naming KFC leader Kevin Hochman as interim president of the struggling Pizza Hut division. Hochman’s turnaround experience and ability to improve distinctive brands through innovation “make him ideally suited for this opportunity,” Gibbs said during… read more