Chipotle Mexican Grill recently remodeled a store near the fast-casual chain’s Newport Beach headquarters, a major top-to-bottom overhaul that features pick-up shelves at the front entrance, a mix of barstools and community tables and a lower glass partition along the dine-in queue. Does this store represent the look of Chipotle’s next generation of stores? It’s… read more

Taco Bell, which has yet to jump on the plant-based protein trend, has developed two meatless menu items for international consumers including a Crunchy Taco filled with “meat” made of pulled oats and legumes. The meatless plant-based ingredient, which looks and tastes like ground beef, is seasoned with Taco Bell’s proprietary spices. The taco is topped with shredded… read more

To Our Valued Subscriber: As this is the last American Recruiters Global Foodservice Newsletter for 2019, on behalf of me and all my American Recruiters colleagues, we want to THANK all our clients and candidates for working with us this year. Regardless of which segment of the Foodservice Industry you are in, it’s still a… read more

Wingstop has appointed a new CMO, the chain announced. Christina Clarke, who had been serving as the Dallas-based fast casual’s interim chief marketing officer, will take over the role permanently. Clarke, who was a marketing executive with PepsiCo for a dozen years, joined Wingstop last year and helped create the brand’s recent “Where flavor gets… read more

Amazon said it plans to open its first new brand of grocery store in California next year, as it amps up its ambitious push to become a bigger name in food. “Amazon is opening a grocery store in Woodland Hills in 2020,” an Amazon spokesperson confirmed to CNET on Monday morning, soon after the company… read more

To Our Valued Subscribers: I hope you all had a fun and safe Halloween. My Bears are playing football like the walking dead. The Washington Nationals are the World Series Champs and my Cubs have hired Grandpa Ross as their next manager. Can it get any better? As the calendar flips to November we start… read more

Cracker Barrel is dipping deeper into the fast-casual industry. The casual leader announced Friday it’s agreed to acquire 33-unit Maple Street Biscuit Company in an all-cash transaction for $36 million. Founded 2012 in Jacksonville, Florida, by Scott Moore and Gus Evans, the emerging brand has 28 corporate and five franchised units. The stores report targeted… read more

The “Billion Dollar Buyer,” who built Landry’s in part by acquiring chains such as Morton’s The Steakhouse, Bubba Gump Shrimp Co. and Claim Jumper when their valuations were cheap or the companies were in bankruptcy, is on the prowl again, with a $37 million bid for Restaurants Unlimited. Landry’s is the “stalking horse,” or lead… read more

A new Atlanta-based franchising company is looking to grow small, emerging restaurant brands. Empire Franchise Group is the new entity from the merger of holding companies operated by Dennis McKinley of Detroit Equities and Greg George of Rising Phoenix Group. The deal will pull seven restaurant brands under the Empire umbrella, including Buzzed Bull Creamery,… read more