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

Just like that, Burger King becomes a major operator of its own restaurants

The Bottom Line: Even before the fast-food burger chain bought its largest franchisee, it was buying up swaths of restaurants around the country. That's a major shift for the brand.

Financing

Red Lobster has struggled since Darden sold the chain

The Bottom Line: Olive Garden has easily outperformed its former sister chain over the past decade. Now the seafood concept is on the market.

The Bottom Line: In acquiring its largest franchisee, the fast-food chain more than tripled its investment in its revitalization and fundamentally altered its ownership structure.

The Bottom Line: Concern is already heightened about the fast-food price-value equation. What will happen come April when the country’s largest dining-out market raises the sector’s wages?

The Bottom Line: Starbucks and now Dutch Bros are giving some key executives barista training and having them work in the field. That should become standard.

The Bottom Line: Darden CEO Rick Cardenas told investors this week that demographic trends are shifting in restaurants’ favor. But some demographic trends will be a headwind.

The Bottom Line: Two California Pizza Hut operators are getting rid of their own delivery services in advance of the state’s fast-food minimum wage. The potential implications of that move are enormous.

The Bottom Line: Industry stocks performed roughly in line with the broader markets last year, with much of the gains coming in the last three months.

The Bottom Line: Restaurant sales increased much faster than prices last month. As much as consumers say they’re frustrated by prices, they continue to dine out.

The Bottom Line: The specialty beverage business generates $100 billion a year worldwide. It’s also profitable and its customers are loyal.

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