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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

Starbucks took a step back, and made a giant leap

 By Jonathan Maze on Oct. 22, 2021

RB’s The Bottom Line examines a key decision in the coffee giant’s 50-year history: Its decision to close hundreds of stores during the Great Recession.

Financing

The pandemic has overhauled attitudes on drive-thrus

 By Jonathan Maze on Oct. 20, 2021

With dine-in still a long way from recovering and heavy demand for takeout, the controversies surrounding the lanes have faded away, says RB’s The Bottom Line.

Financing

As costs increase, so do questions about Domino’s value offers

By Jonathan Maze on Oct. 18, 2021

The pizza chain has had the same $5.99/$7.99 offers for years. Higher labor and food prices have some analysts wondering if the company will change it, says RB’s The Bottom Line.

Financing

Restaurants are doing a lot more with a lot less

By Jonathan Maze on Oct. 15, 2021

Despite store closures and 1 million fewer workers, sales have more than recovered from the pandemic. Higher prices and more takeout have made the business more efficient, says RB’s The Bottom Line.

Financing

Domino’s weaker sales suggest the industry may be losing its momentum

By Jonathan Maze on Oct. 14, 2021

Labor challenges and the end of stimulus payments left the company with its first same-store sales decline in 40 quarters and may portend to a slowing recovery, says RB’s The Bottom Line.

Financing

The flurry of IPOs is apparently driving up valuations

By Jonathan Maze on Oct. 11, 2021

The CEO of Papa Murphy’s owner said larger companies are asking for higher prices, but smaller company valuations are “more reasonable,” says RB’s The Bottom Line.

Financing

When will urban markets come back?

By Jonathan Maze on Oct. 07, 2021

People are moving back to New York City. But not necessarily its offices, says RB's The Bottom Line.

Financing

J. Alexander's shareholders win after a long, weird process

By Jonathan Maze on Oct. 04, 2021

Shareholders ultimately got the better end of the deal, but it took years, a pandemic and some strange proposals to get there, says RB's The Bottom Line.

Financing

Why sandwich chains struggle so much

By Jonathan Maze on Oct. 01, 2021

Subway, Quiznos and Blimpie were rapidly growing before they met the sandwich curse. The reason for their problems? They depend too much on lunch, says RB’s The Bottom Line.

Financing

5 reasons to be cautious about the restaurant chain recovery

By Jonathan Maze on Sep. 29, 2021

While sales are back up over 2019 levels, even with the latest coronavirus surge, plenty of uncertainties remain about the future, says RB’s The Bottom Line.

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