Americans who work late night shifts, enjoy night-time socializing, or simply prefer nocturnal hours, may not find as many late-night meal options as they might have during pre-pandemic times.

Bear Robotics, a startup headquartered in Redwood City, California, that is setting out to make hospitality management easier is being backed by LG Electronics for $60 million.

Despite the trend being a price hike for most restaurants in California due to the rise in the state’s minimum wage for fast-food workers, one chain is committed to keeping prices where they are for customers.

The Mexican grill is giving new hires plenty of incentives to remain on the job.

Restaurant chain TGI Fridays has abruptly closed 36 restaurants as part of the brand’s ongoing growth strategy.

Restaurants are increasingly turning to AI to revolutionize menu creation, from Shake Shack to local spots. AI removes personal bias, allowing…

Restaurant employment in the U.S. has rebounded to pre-pandemic levels, a milestone achieved for the first time in three and a…

Yelp has unveiled its list of the 25 most photographed restaurants in the U.S. based on user uploads between January 2022…

Wendy’s has unveiled its first “next gen” restaurants that prioritize technology and digital ordering, with a focus on drive-thru, dine-in, and…

Redditors in Los Angeles are collaborating to create a list of restaurants in the city that impose additional fees on diners’…

Restaurant-tech firm Toast, which works with 85,000 restaurants, has faced backlash from both customers and restaurants over a new 99-cent fee…

Middle-tier restaurants in the U.S. and Europe are embracing the trend of adding luxury handbag stools for diners to place their…

Netflix is opening its first pop-up restaurant, “Netflix Bites,” showcasing creations from chefs featured on shows available on the streaming service, including Chef’s Table, Iron Chef, Is It Cake? and Drink Masters.

Americans are growing weary of being asked for tips at every turn. That’s the conclusion of two new and separate studies on the subject.

Third party delivery workers may not be employees of Chick-fil-A, but they are critical to the restaurant’s performance as it expands in NYC. The chicken chain has opened a storefront pop-up where gig workers can take a break between deliveries. How do you expect Chick-fil-A’s Brake Room to affect its relationship with delivery workers in New York?

Tipping fatigue has been trending as a topic in the media and has sparked angry debates on social media for nearly a year. The arguments now appear to center on two different phenomena: “tipflation” and tip creeping. Do you see tipflation or tip creeping as the bigger driver of tipping fatigue?

In an open letter last week, McDonald’s USA president Joe Erlinger blasted proposed California legislation related to conditions for fast food workers as stemming “almost entirely at the behest of organized labor’s firm grip on many of the state’s lawmakers.”  Have public perceptions changed to the point where retailers need to be more open to working with unions?

The biggest U.S. fast food chain is planning some corporate job cuts even as it pursues a nationwide store expansion. Where do you see the biggest opportunities for McDonald’s to grow its business in the U.S. through its “Accelerating the Arches” strategy?

Falling coronavirus case levels and fewer restrictions drove a strong recovery in spending on experiences in 2022 and they appear to be continuing to take significant discretionary dollars away from retail. How much of a factor has the spending shift toward experiences (i.e., travel, dining out, live events) been on retail in recent months?

McDonald’s last week opened its first partially automated restaurant, with machines handling everything from taking orders to delivering the food. The opening sparked both positive and negative responses on social media. Will the efficiencies gained from an automated restaurant such as McDonald’s pilot offset any aspects lost from removing human interaction?

Panera Bread has announced plans to roll out two smaller concepts to reach to-go customers in dense urban areas. Urban Core is about 40 percent smaller than Panera’s traditional bakery-cafes, and Panera To-Go doesn’t have any dine-in seating and features all-digital ordering. Are digital-only or digital-first restaurants the future of fast food and fast casual?

Justin Lindsey, a Chick-fil-A operator, has been getting a lot of press attention for designing a full-time three-day-a-week work schedule that has eliminated turnover at the restaurant and made it a magnet for job seekers. What do you think are the biggest challenges for retailers looking to recruit and retain frontline associates and managers?

The restaurant industry is debating the merits of dynamic pricing as the expansion of digital menus over the pandemic has made instant price changes easier. The big unknown is how patrons will react. Do you see more potential benefits or drawbacks to dynamic pricing at restaurants and other foodservice establishments?

Wonder, the latest venture from serial entrepreneur Marc Lore, supplies customers with chef-designed meals cooked from vans parked outside the their home. What do you think of the potential for the Wonder food truck service?

McDonald’s is beginning a small test of the sale for a limited time of select Krispy Kreme doughnuts at nine restaurants in Louisville and the surrounding area. Does the collaboration between Krispy Kreme and McDonald’s make sense for both companies?

According to a recent survey, 67.7 percent of Americans feel pressured to tip when picking up takeout food or coffee if the POS system prompts them to, and 44.8 percent only tip because a POS tablet prompts them to do it. Do you think touchscreen payment tablets with tip suggestions for takeout orders are irritating and/or manipulative?

P.F. Chang’s has launched a paid subscription program that offers its members special perks in exchange for a $6.99 monthly fee. Do you see more potential revenue drivers than margin eroders in P.F. Chang’s Platinum Rewards paid-subscription program?

McDonald’s announced for the first time the release of a Happy Meal aimed at adults in a limited-edition collaboration with cult streetwear label, Cactus Plant Flea Market Box. And you should know what comes in adult happy meal.

Many European restaurants use table-side credit card authorization terminals, irrespective of type or level of service and price points. These devices have yet to approach critical mass in the U.S. Do you expect table-side credit card authorization terminals to become commonplace in U.S. restaurants?

The conventional wisdom has long been that you are financially better off making food at home than splurging on eating out. But the inflationary economy might be flipping that logic on its head. Will U.S. consumers shift more food dollars to restaurants through the balance of 2022?

In pursuit of new ways to cut grocery costs as inflation continues to threaten household budgets, families have begun turning to apps that let them circumvent paying full price by pointing them right to the food that is nearing its sell-by date. How do you see the increasing popularity of food waste apps affecting the grocery and foodservice industries?

These days, products on the grocery shelves and items on menus in fast food and fast casual restaurants usually have some sort of health label. However, a new study finds that most customers do not pay much attention to them. Is there a better, more effective way for food health labeling to be done?

McDonald’s has launched “Camp McDonald’s,” a campaign offering 27 consecutive days of food deals, menu hacks, musical performances and limited-edition merch drops — available only via the McDonald’s App. Do you see a month-long campaign such as Camp McDonald’s working for other food establishments and retailers trying to overcome summer traffic doldrums?

If you live far from your favorite restaurant in New York, Los Angeles, San Francisco or Miami that you lament not being able to order from, Uber Eats may have a solution for you. Does it make sense for Uber Eats to include a ‘get far off cravings shipped’ feature as a part of its app?

Contact-free retail became a priority at the beginning of the pandemic. Some efforts to cut down contact with customers, however, is raising questions about the threat of compromising the customer experience.  Do you think Starbucks and other QSRs should provide pickup-only locations that offer customers contact-free service?

While ingredient scooping and burrito rolling remain in the hands of human staff at Chipotle for now, tortilla chip-making duties at the chain may soon be managed by robots. What roles do you see robots playing  in restaurants over the next five years?

Landry’s Inc., the parent of Morton’s steakhouse, Bubba Gump Shrimp and a number of other restaurants, recently introduced the first bitcoin loyalty program in the hospitality space. Is cryptocurrency likely more of an enticement for many loyalty members than cash-back and other traditional rewards?

McDonald’s recently announced that for a limited time, starting today, January 31, patrons will be able to purchase four special menu items via a new “Menu Hacks” section of its app, or at participating restaurants.  What can retailers learn from McDonald’s hacks menu program?

According to a new report, the restaurants that go “digital-first” are the ones that are set up for success. Do you think that QR code-based menu and payment solutions, and pay-at-table technology, are what customers are looking for from restaurants?

Solutions that let customers shop via text message could soon be a hot trend in the U.S., and there are some big names in retail trying to make it happen. Do you see text-to-shop conversational commerce catching on in the U.S. for general retail?

There’s nothing cheap on Sweetgreen’s menu, which may explain a new program from the chain that offers customers daily discounts of up to 30 percent on purchases.  Do you see Sweetgreen’s Sweetpass program more as a means to build connections with existing customers or as a draw to attract new patrons?

Can you imagine a grocer with a large cluster of stores in a major metro like Los Angeles, Dallas or Chicago building their own ghost kitchen to service their own stores? How would you weigh the pros and cons in grocers building or utilizing outside ghost kitchens to support to-go offerings?

P.F. Chang’s last week became the latest retailer to open an online retail store. Why have retail merchandise offerings, whether year-round or limited-time, become such a possible tactic for fast-food chains and restaurants?

One of the biggest app-based delivery services is offering customers in select markets a service that will get them their grocery orders even faster than usual. Do you think DoorDash’s ultra-fast delivery service will catch up to those who entered the market earlier?

Some of the biggest gig economy employers in the U.S. are facing federal scrutiny for allegedly misleading potential employees about how well their gigs actually pay. Do you think companies that use gig workers present a deceptive image of earning potential for the jobs they advertise?

Grocery prices have been increasing steadily in the U.S. for a number of months, but at restaurants food is getting more expensive at an even faster rate than on grocery shelves.  How important are price considerations for consumers choosing whether to dine at home or at a restaurant?

A new study finds that New York City’s app-based delivery workers regularly face nonpayment or underpayment, unsanitary or unsafe working conditions and the risk of violence.  Do the continuing issues around gig worker employment and third-party services risk holding back the full potential of online delivery?

Taco Bell is testing a one-month subscription program, Taco Lovers Pass, offering one taco per day. Do you think a daily taco subscription program will be attractive to Taco Bell’s customers and beneficial to franchisees and the chain?

Restaurants are finding unique advantages in launching “virtual brands” to draw in new groups of customers or to test out new menu items. Do virtual brands represent a good way for restaurants to appeal to customer bases they wouldn’t normally do business with?

While wage hikes amid a tight labor market are expected to contribute to higher prices for consumers, a new study finds a favorable tradeoff in higher levels of customer service. Do you see the productivity gains resulting from higher wages largely offsetting the related expenses for many retailers?