The Bottom Line

Jonathan Maze The Bottom Line

Restaurant Business Executive Editor-in-Chief Jonathan Maze is a longtime industry journalist who writes about restaurant finance, mergers and acquisitions and the economy, with a particular focus on quick-service restaurants. He writes daily about the factors influencing the operating environment, including labor and food costs and various industry trends such as technology and delivery.

Jonathan has been widely quoted in media publications such as the New York Times and the Washington Post and has appeared on CNBC, Yahoo Finance and NPR. He writes a weekly finance-focused newsletter for Restaurant Business, The Bottom Line, and is the host of the weekly podcast “A Deeper Dive.”

Financing

Wendy's again proves the difficulty of breaking into breakfast

The Bottom Line: The fast-food chain, which debuted the morning daypart in 2020, is giving operators the ability to stop serving breakfast following a brutal 2025.

Financing

McDonald's takes a victory lap on value

The Bottom Line: The fast-food giant argued that its value push helped it win over lower-income customers and it expects franchisees to maintain the company’s low-priced reputation.

The Bottom Line: The founder and majority owner of the restaurant chain operator has long been a controversial figure. That has not changed since the company filed for bankruptcy.

The Bottom Line: The longtime activist, the burger chain’s largest shareholder, is targeting David Goebel with a “vote no” campaign in one of the restaurant industry’s most unusual proxy fights.

The Bottom Line: This week’s edition of the weekly restaurant finance newsletter looks at the challenges at Pizza Hut and a huge reason why it fell behind longtime rival Domino’s.

The Bottom Line: The two Mexican chains have long been among the industry’s most consistent performers. But that changed last year, at least for one of them.

The Bottom Line: Yum Brands bought Habit Burger in 2020 with the intention to grow the brand. The company does not even mention the brand in its earnings calls.

The Bottom Line: Two large franchisees blamed merchant cash advances on their recent bankruptcy filings and Fat Brands used it at least once. But the funds are expensive and dangerous.

The Bottom Line: The pizza chain’s shift from a full-service model to takeout and delivery was the biggest service model shift in restaurant industry history. But it has not spurred the growth for which the company hoped.

The Bottom Line: This week’s episode of the restaurant finance newsletter contrasts news about Chili’s and rival Ruby Tuesday, which are going in different directions.

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