February 2, 2022
Matt Cook, Editor
Plenty of drive-thru related news this week…both company announcements/deals/news and great analysis regarding trends and opportunities. Of particular note is the National Restaurant Associations State of the Industry Report.
Grab a cup of coffee and take your time reading this week’s Drive-Thru Digest. It is our best yet. And please share it with colleagues and clients who are also in the business!
And now, the news…
Key findings illustrating how the restaurant industry continues its recovery.
In its 2022 State of the Restaurant Industry report, the NRA projects the foodservice industry to reach $898 billion in sales in 2022. Further, the foodservice industry workforce is projected to grow by 400,000 jobs, for total industry employment of 14.9 million by the end of 2022.
The doughnut and coffee shop opened its first Florida concept with no indoor seating.
As the restaurant industry moves toward contactless service, Box’d is working to create a blueprint for the future of restaurants.
Buffalo Wild Wings, known for its massive dining rooms and dozens of large-screen TVs tuned to sporting events, has been rolling out more express to-go stops during the pandemic.
The brand extension comes after Peter Piper saw off-premise sales skyrocket in 2021 with strong demand for its scratch-made pizza and menu items.
Wildly popular restaurant is trying to address the fact that they have far more customers than their drive thru lanes and parking lot can accommodate.
This past year, the company successfully executed 90 new commitments towards new restaurants, attributing 39 units to existing franchisees and 51 units to new franchisees. The company is expected to open more than 60 new sites in 2022.
Atomic Wings, a New York-based franchise with dozens of locations, is unveiling its first drive-thru restaurant in Hagerstown, Maryland.
The two-story building could be converted into a branch of the restaurant chain German Doner Kebab.
In this episode, drive-thru expert Joanne recommends four key ways that restaurant operators can adjust their drive-thru strategy to give the consumers what they want.
Domino's carryout credits incentivize off-premise ordering, but may also relieve some of the labor pressure facing the chain's self-delivery operations.
The drive-thru has always been a big business for the quick-service segment, generating about 70% of sales at several chains.
The fast casual has signed a 50-store deal with a franchisee, all of which are slated to include drive-thrus.
The low-commission channel continues to look like a no-brainer for restaurants.
Key considerations must include a strong mobile strategy with location capabilities that facilitate fulfillment, automation, and self-service.
How to create a digital menu to boost your restaurant’s marketing strategy?
Operators improve sales and targeting with access to better data.
While the pandemic continues on, the once looked-for “new normal” has evolved into an ever-changing “next normal.” For the restaurant industry, the next normal is largely focused on capitalizing on increasing sales from to-go and off-premise dining.
The 'invisible' digital guest is just as important as the customer in front of you.
The younger generation is far more likely to use modern innovations like alcohol delivery and digital ordering. Their habits point the way to future growth.
Krystle Mobayeni aims to deepen the relationship between restaurants and customers by merging off-premises and on
The data comes from Square, which provides a variety of financial products, including point-of-sales systems, to hundreds of thousands of small businesses in Canada.
Quits are high, but hires are higher, signaling a slow recovery this year for restaurants who can offer competitive pay, benefits and culture.
Major chains have been able to adjust operations and shift to off-premise channels more quickly than their independent peers, which better insulated the bigger concepts during the initial shutdowns of 2020, as well as the subsequent delta and omicron variants.
There were no votes for "Yes: Use Drive-Thru Less."
To-go packaging today must deliver a convenient experience.
Sales growth, aided by strong off-premise trends combined with the proliferation of ghost kitchens and virtual brands, continues to improve month-over-month despite ongoing labor challenges.
The spat started with a disagreement at the restaurant's drive-thru window, which involved a DoorDash driver who was angry with the contents of an order they were trying to fill. While it's good to see someone so passionate about getting the order right, this is a little extreme.
Nearly every major fast food chain across the nation has taken a dip into the plant-based community pool. Some are still just testing the waters, but others are diving right in. The team here at OnTrend Concepts is looking forward to the time when someone announces meat-based vegetables...like "Announcing veggie-less kale chips, made with 100% bacon!"
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