Recap of Friday, August 18, 2023: Taylor Swift's Tour Boosts Restaurant Sales, Rent Struggles 63% Paying More, Gen Z's Bar Tab Quirks Explained
Welcome to Restaurant News Roundup presented by LiveFlow, your go-to source for the latest updates and happenings in the restaurant industry.
In this special recap article we roundup stories on NYC Mayor signs outdoor dining bill, DoorDash creates salad bowl brand, Fogo de Chão gets purchased, delivery robotics company goes public, New Jersey Boston Markets get shut down, restaurants support Maui fire victims, and more breaking news.
Our mission is to bring you a rapid-fire of the 10 top stories covered in under 10 minutes. We strive to keep restaurant professionals informed of the current affairs of the industry.
To watch the Videocast of this installment of Restaurant News Roundup, click here
Taylor Swift's Smash Hit Tour Shows Restaurants Can Harness Concert Hype by Teddy Tsang - Restaurant Dive
In the zip code around Nissan Stadium in Nashville, Tennessee, restaurants’ average transaction count was up approximately 35% year-over-year for the three days that Swift played, Toast data shows.
Debate: Should restaurants chase the hype to capitalize on these types of opportunities or stay with their core model?
Article Link: Read More
63% of Independent Restaurants Paying More Rent vs. January by Alicia Kelso - Restaurant-Hospitality
According to Alignable’s June Small Business Rent Report, 45% of operators were unable to pay rent in June. In addition to rising rent prices, most small business owners – 53% - said they’re earning half or less of the revenues they generated this time last year.
Opinion: The typical casual and full service dining concept restaurants do not have the proper business model to afford rent, so why do landlords and brokers keep pushing through bad leases for operators?
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Gen Z is under scrutiny for avoiding bar tabs, but people are pointing out that's the norm outside the US by Aimee Pearcy - Insider
While some Americans agreed that paying for your drinks after each round was unusual, as a tab for the evening tends to be the norm, others said that it's not typical in many parts of the world.
Several people questioned the logistics of running a tab and asked how it would be possible to split the check if you're waiting until the end to pay it.
Debate: Pay as you go vs tab at the end? Where do you stand?
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New Jersey shutters 27 Boston Market restaurants over unpaid wages, related worker issues by AP News
State labor officials shut down the stores after finding multiple violations of workers’ rights, including more than $600,000 in back wages owed to 314 employees. The state also imposed nearly $2.6 million in penalties against the firm.
Spotlight: Restaurants need to make sure their accounting service providers are on top of rapidly changing labor laws to stay compliant. These increasing legal actions are not only being levied on scumbags stealing from their employees, though that’s many cases, some are ignorance of the law.
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DoorDash Builds Its Own Virtual Salad Bowl Brand as it Tests Vertical Integration by Matt Newberg - hngry.tv
DoorDash has quietly been testing its own virtual brand called Plentiful, a “healthyish” take on bowls and salads.
DoorDash seems to have aspirations of competing with its existing brick-and-mortar merchants as well as ghost kitchens by creating its own brands from scratch sold via its own facilities or its network of host kitchens.
Opinion: DoorDash will be coming for all the major food categories once it figures out their model. Pizza, Burgers, Tacos, etc are going to be competing with them on their own Marketplace.
Article Link: Read More
NYC Mayor Signs Outdoor Dining Bill, Announces Next Steps by Veronica Rose - Cityland NYC
Mayor Eric Adams signed “Dining Out NYC,” allows for permanent sidewalk dining year-round and roadway dining seasonally from April to November.
The Department of Transportation, and impacted city agencies needed to pass agency rules for the zoning, design, siting, material and operational rules for the program.
Spotlight: This is a major step for restaurants. Many municipalities across the country will be looking at outdoor dining and more importantly, other changes to long-standing, often arcane, zoning and licensing standards, including to-go alcohol and public canna consumption.
Article Link: Read More
Serve raises $30M for delivery robots, goes public by Joe Guszkowski - Restaurant Business Online
Funding came from existing investors including Uber, software giant Nvidia and Wavemaker Partners. Serve simultaneously merged with the publicly traded Patricia Acquisition Corp., making it a public company.
“Serve's delivery volume has grown over 30% month-over-month on average for the past 18 months,” said co-founder and CEO Ali Kashani
Question: Have you utilized river delivery robots yet? What was your experience?
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The Battle Over Tipped Minimum Wage Heats Up in Chicago by Ashok Selvam and Naomi Waxman - Chicago Eater
Mayor Brandon Johnson wasn’t subtle when he donned a One Fair Wage apron supporting the abolition of the subminimum wage which enables restaurants to depend on tips to make up the difference between an $8 to $10 hourly wage and the standard minimum of $15.80 in Chicago.
Restaurateurs Mario Ponce of Takito Street and TJ Callahan of Farm Bar, members of the Illinois Restaurant Association, co-authored a column published in the Tribune that objected to the abolition of tipped wages: “If Chicago makes the wrong move, restaurants will close, worker earnings will significantly decline and the quality of service will suffer.”
Debate: I want to know, if this isn’t a one-size fits all issue, in your market what factors will affect the continued use of ai minimum wage or its abolition?
Article Link: Read More
Bain Capital buys Brazilian steakhouse chain Fogo de Chão in $1.1 bln deal by Abigail Summerville - Reuters
Bain Capital has backed several big names, including Burger King, Dunkin’ Brands Inc, Domino’s Pizza Inc and Bloomin’ Brands Inc.
Spotlight: We’re seeing a lot of restructuring of the industry with consolidation of brands, mergers and acquisitions, IPOs, from the likes of Cava, Ruth’s Chris, Pollo Tropical and even Subway is looking to sell. What’s this mean for the restaurant market?
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In the aftermath of Maui's wildfire, restaurants step up to help by Lisa Jennings - Restaurant Business Online
Fires razed an estimated 2,200 structures (with another 3,000 damaged), causing an estimated $3.2 billion in insured property losses.
World Central Kitchen is there, of course, and a group of chefs are also working with local charity Chef Hui (“hui” means tribe in pidgin Hawaiian), which is currently serving about 10,000 meals per day at the University of Hawaii Maui College.
Support is coming from names like LeeAnne Wong, Sheldon Simeon, Mark “Gooch” Noguchi, Ravi Kapur, Bruce Brombert, Maui Brewing Co., L&L Hawaiian, Panda Express and so many more.
Opinion: “Ohana” meaning “family”, is a spirit that restaurant people exemplify more than any others. Restaurants don’t ever hesitate to step up and take care of their community and feed those in need.
Our mission is to amplify the worth and work of those who feed their community. It’s moments like this that help remind me why we do this!
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Thanks for joining us for this week's recap from Restaurant News Roundup presented by LiveFlow.
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We hope these summaries keep you informed about the latest industry updates. Remember to follow along with our fast-paced show every week, where we deliver ten stories in under ten minutes. Fridays at 8am EST on Best Served Podcast Facebook and YouTube pages.
