Food & Beverage News

Reusables will see more widespread adoption: It’s been well over a year since plastic straws were at the epicenter of sustainability debates, and in that time the lens has widened considerably to include, well, pretty much everything else that might hold a takeout meal. Single-use takeout containers, cups and utensils are all under increased scrutiny.…

The restaurant industry added 25,300 jobs in November, or nearly 1 out of every 10 new jobs in the economy, as the business continues to expand with little sign of a slowdown. New U.S. Labor Department data released Friday shows that the industry now employs 12.3 million people, up more than 300,000 over the past year.…

European food-delivery giant Delivery Hero has agreed to buy a South Korean rival for $4 billion, heating up the global battle to meet growing consumer demand for delivered meals. Online food-delivery businesses around the world are joining forces and attracting investment as more consumers opt to have their meals brought to their homes or offices,…

The National Restaurant Association’s Restaurant Innovation Summit keynoter David Robertson, MIT senior lecturer, consultant and student of innovation, explained the big power of little ideas and the concept of a “third way” of innovating that’s not inside the box, not outside the box, but around the box. It’s the credo behind his approach to innovation…

Cracker Barrel Old Country Store Inc. is celebrating its 50th anniversary by taking a tiny-sized store to the streets of New York before it launches its first sponsorship of a float in Thursday’s annual Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade. “As we celebrate our golden anniversary, this is a big moment for Cracker Barrel, and we wanted…

Olive Garden has lived by this creed for the better part of a year: Give up traffic, but make decisions with the long-term health of the business in mind. And it boils down to the state of the industry, Darden CEO Gene Lee said during the company’s latest quarterly review. The luxury to plan ahead…

There are two ways to look at any pain point, and that’s the case with Darden and labor. First, the rough side, which is a sounding-board subject for restaurants: Regulation by outside parties, perhaps not invested in the success of the business, are putting up costly roadblocks that make it difficult to create more and…

Smokey Bones appointed longtime restaurateur James O’Reilly as its new chief executive officer. O’Reilly joins Smokey Bones from Long John Silver’s, where he served as CEO for four years. He was selected by private equity firm Sun Capital Partners for his track record of leadership, brand building, and value creation. O’Reilly’s plans are to improve…

The global scope of the clean label trend was on display on the opening day of Food Ingredients Europe, taking place Nov. 28 – Nov. 30 in Frankfurt. It is clear the trend has gone mainstream globally and is beginning to move into ingredient and finished product processing techniques. Processing techniques that may be perceived…

A former McDonald’s employee revealed on social media that he didn’t give customers the proper amount of McNuggets. Fortunately, this man was a generous rule-breaker and his customers’ lives were made better due to his actions. I worked at McDonald’s for two and a half years and I put 11 nuggets in almost every 10-piece I…