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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

Uber is apparently trying to buy Grubhub

 By Jonathan Maze on May 12, 2020

Multiple reports suggest the two big delivery providers are talking about a deal, which would be the first in an inevitable consolidation in the growing business, says RB’s The Bottom Line.

Financing

Why the downfall of Garden Fresh Restaurants is so maddening

 By Jonathan Maze on May 08, 2020

The owner of Souplantation and Sweet Tomatoes was investing in units and planning an expansion. And then the coronavirus hit, says RB’s The Bottom Line.

Financing

Investors find opportunity in public casual-dining chains

By Jonathan Maze on May 04, 2020

First Cheesecake Factory, then BJ’s Restaurants, now Dave & Buster’s. RB’s The Bottom Line looks at the latest trend in investing amid the coronavirus.

Financing

Bankruptcy proves to be another problem for the PPP fund

By Jonathan Maze on May 01, 2020

Why can TooJay’s get Paycheck Protection Program loans but Cosi can’t? The fund’s rules appear to be inconsistent, says RB’s The Bottom Line.

Financing

Lenders weigh a new restaurant landscape

By Jonathan Maze on Apr. 28, 2020

With a lot of operators in dire straits, expect banks to give them breaks—but the post-pandemic lending market could be very different, says RB’s The Bottom Line.

Financing

Is this the end of the buffet?

By Jonathan Maze on Apr. 27, 2020

As restaurants reopen, many regulations explicitly forbid buffets and self-service. That could require massive changes at buffet concepts, or their end altogether, says RB’s The Bottom Line.

Financing

The Great Reset: The coronavirus shutdown will overhaul the retail and dining environment

By Jonathan Maze on Apr. 24, 2020

With tens of thousands of retail and restaurant closures, the pandemic will accelerate consumer trends, says RB’s The Bottom Line.

Financing

Poorly designed PPP fund has restaurants fighting over scraps

By Jonathan Maze on Apr. 23, 2020

Chain-shaming has taken on a life of its own, even as Congress adds more funding. But anger should focus on the program’s design, says RB’s The Bottom Line.

Financing

The coronavirus shutdown isn’t stopping some from selling franchises

By Jonathan Maze on Apr. 22, 2020

Despite mass closures, some franchisors view the shutdown as an opportunity to find operators, even if it means giving strange history lessons, says RB’s The Bottom Line.

Financing

Restaurants reveal problems with federal PPP loans

By Jonathan Maze on Apr. 20, 2020

Yet most of the chains that applied for the funds weren’t exactly megachains, and most of them had existing problems, says RB’s The Bottom Line.

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