As one of the hardest-hit industries during the pandemic, restaurants have had to alter cuisines, styles, service models and more to remain in business. But which changes are here to stay?

The restaurant company, known for its double drive-thru lanes, announced plans Monday to launch voice ordering bots at 267 corporate stores in partnership with Presto.

Artificial intelligence (AI) may make ordering food through a talking box easier, faster and more accurate.

Tight budgets also call for optimizing ad spend. One way to do that is to reach the most high-intent audience. Geotargeting and location-based marketing power these specific audiences for maximum targeted reach.

It is an evolutionary tale punctuated and accelerated by the pandemic.

Over the past couple of years, cloud adoption has brought in a paradigm shift for many industries. The restaurant industry however took its own pace to adapt as it was highly driven by margins, resistance to change, and high Capex.

The stores will look to take advantage of a growing off-premise business at the casual-dining brand.

This comes after the company opened its first ever Auntie Anne’s drive-thru, which was cobranded along with Jamba at a location in Wylie, Tex., last May.

"Server/ordertaker comfort and meal delivery in all weather conditions led to this design standard," Kiser said in an email to WGHP. He said that drive-thru sales typically make up about "60%-70%" of the business and have grown in the past two years.

Accelerating Demand Has Retailers, Restaurants and Investors Queuing Up

The partnership will focus on strategic advisory to help boost 5Thru's market share to digitally transform the drive-thru market.

Service at U.S. restaurants has slowed as Omicron, the latest COVID-19 variant, sickens workers and scares off others, leaving many businesses without enough staff.

Zoning officials concede Robert Balitierrez's drive-thru window isn't causing any problems. But they say it's a code violation and has to close anyway.

The Bureau of Labor Statistics’ November data shows that the quit rate for the foodservice industry has grown from 4.8% to nearly 7% in one year.

Taco Bell employee in Los Angeles was fatally shot Saturday night while working at the drive-thru window after refusing a customer’s counterfeit money, police said.

Funny story of what he did (as a 16-year old HAM radio operator) at the local McDonald’s drive thru.