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Cava is tapping into Mediterranean heritage this fall with the debut of a Greek Goddess lineup across its nationwide fast-casual footprint, headlined by an all-new Greek Goddess dressing and a seasonal Pomegranate Apple house beverage. The brand will mark the launch on Oct. 15 with an interactive consumer activation in
If you told me five years ago that a massive, mainstream fast-casual giant like Chipotle — a publicly traded company with over 4,200 locations — was going to launch a major national marketing campaign centered around the words "Big Ass," I probably would have laughed. That's the kind of naming convention you expect fro
Lime Fresh Mexican Grill has launched "Lime Lover," a customer loyalty program operating under the brand's "Lime Loves You Back" campaign to reward guests across its Florida locations. The initiative debuted Oct. 6 in conjunction with National Taco Day. New members who register receive a free OG Taco reward, while memb
Colorado-based Teriyaki Madness is taking delivery airborne, partnering with autonomous drone service Zipline to drop its Seattle-style teriyaki bowls directly to Texas doorsteps in under five minutes. The partnership launched Thursday at the brand's Denton, Texas, location, with plans to expand across the Dallas-Fort
Star Burger has partnered with University of Miami Athletics to become the official burger of the Miami Hurricanes for the 2026–2027 season, marking the restaurant's first collegiate partnership. The announcement follows the opening of the fast-casual concept's 2,750-square-foot flagship location at 4901 SW Eighth St.
Boston-based tech platformToast has introduced AI-powered labor management tools and expanded its digital marketing capabilities. The tech and upgrades are geared to automate time-consuming tasks by using restaurant data from sales, employees and customers. Improved labor management Toast IQ Team, one of company's new
Dallas-based Wingstop has teamed up with Sour Patch Kids to create Wicked Punch, a limited-time wing flavor for Halloween. Wicked Punch features a sour-then-sweet redberry glaze topped with Sour Patch Kids Bitz. The flavor will be available across all proteins. Club Wingstop members can try the flavor starting Oct. 23,
Five Guys has launched a five-episode docuseries on Prime Video highlighting the high-stakes world of its internal crew competition. Titled "On The Line: The World Burger Games," the series follows store employees from local qualifying rounds around the globe to the ultimate Five Guys Games championship. The series was
Hawaiian Bros Island Grill has signed a 52-unit development agreement with Southern Rock to enter Florida. Led by Max Piet, Southern Rock plans to develop restaurants in Jacksonville, Gainesville, Tampa and Orlando over the next six years. Twenty-four locations are planned within the first three years. The agreement is
Cafe Rio Fresh Modern Mexican teamed up with beauty brand Poppy & Pout to create a limited edition of beverage-based lip balms. Café Rio's Mucho Mint, Lotta Horchata and Berry Bueno lip balms will be available as long as supplies last. The balms cost $9.95 each or $26.95 for three, with customers able to mix and match
Aiming to capitalize on the soaring consumer demand for elevated drive-thru beverages, Fork Hospitality co-founders Matt Bailey and John Brennan have launched Sunfly, a tropical beverage concept engineered specifically for quick-turn drive-thru conversions. Positioned between premium coffee houses and specialty beverag
Every restaurant brand's capital journey has three phases. The first unit gets built with savings, friends and family. Somewhere past 20 units, private equity and big credit facilities start returning calls. The hard part is the middle, units two through 20, where banks say "too risky," venture capital says "not softwa
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