Noodles & Company’s comeback doesn’t discard the playbook. There are complex components, from a massive menuboard initiative to one of the most successful product launches in recent fast-casual history, but the foundation sparks a familiar tale. And that’s why it’s lasted well beyond the burst stage. Noodles & Company’s turnaround has sustained, chief executive Dave Boennighausen… read more

Seattle-based health-oriented concept Evergreens has purchased a similar concept, Garden Bar in Portland, Ore., for an undisclosed sum, the two chains announced. Garden Bar is being renamed Garden Bar by Evergreens and its staff will become Evergreens employees. Its founder, Ana Chaud, will be the restaurants’ new vice president of brand development. The price of… read more

Wendy’s is taking its breakfast menu nationwide in 2020 and will hire 20,000 new employees to support the morning meal, the company announced. The fast-food chain, which has been a holdout in the breakfast area among major national chains, currently has breakfast in 300-plus restaurants. Items on Wendy’s breakfast menu includes the Breakfast Baconator, Frosty-ccino and… read more

In China, where it operates about 4,000 restaurants and plans to have 6,000 by 2023, the chain is still expanding at breakneck speed with a new location every 15 hours. Globally, the company is opening a store roughly every four hours. While Starbucks has been in China for two decades, more rivals are popping up,… read more

Guillermo Perales knows he has to be patient with the turnaround that he wants for Taco Bueno. That’s difficult for Perales, who built his 1,000-unit franchisee, Sun Holdings, with a particular aggressiveness. He builds dozens of new restaurants every year under brands such as Burger King, Arby’s, Popeyes Louisiana Kitchen and Krispy Kreme. Since buying the Dallas-based… read more

Burger King will launch a plant-based burger imitating meat called the “Rebel Whopper” in Brazil in November, the company said, amid an international rush for mass-market chains to cater to vegetarian and vegan diners. Burger King will sell the vegetarian burgers developed by meatpacker Marfrig Global Foods SA for 29.90 reais ($7.26) in Brazil, representatives… read more

Like many casual-dining icons, Ruby Tuesday has faced some hard times of late. In 2018, its revenue dipped nearly 13 percent. In 2016, it shuttered 95 stores alone and in 2018 it closed an additional 50 locations. Similar to many chains, Ruby Tuesday is shrinking its overall footprint and strengthening its top performers. Today, there are… read more

Fazoli’s introduced a fresh new restaurant design in its hometown with plans to bring the new look to fans at every location across the country. The new modern design with communal seating is a nod to the family-friendly atmosphere Fazoli’s is known for. The new design also includes artwork that highlights the brand’s “made to… read more

As the digital revolution sweeps across the globe, impacting employees, organizations, and industries in its wake, restaurants have a unique opportunity to measure technology’s impact on not just the way work gets done, but the way people work. On one hand, the benefits of automation are endless, particularly in the restaurant and hospitality industry, where… read more

On Monday, Kentucky Fried Chicken announced that they have partnered with Beyond Meat, a Los Angeles-based producer of plant-based meat substitutes, to create a plant-based menu option for KFC customers — KFC Beyond Fried Chicken. The vegan KFC menu option will be sold as chicken nuggets with a customer’s choice of dipping sauces, or boneless… read more