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finance

Financing

Denny's completes $620M sale following shareholder OK

 By Joe Guszkowski on Jan. 20, 2026

The acquisition by TriArtisan Capital, Yadav Enterprises and Treville Capital takes the diner chain private for the first time since 1997.

Financing

What restaurants are expecting from 2026

 By Joe Guszkowski and Lisa Jennings on Jan. 16, 2026

The Week in Restaurants: On this episode of the weekly restaurant news discussion podcast, we discuss the buzz from the ICR conference, Dutch Bros' first acquisition, and how Minneapolis restaurants are responding to a surge of ICE activity.

Emerging Brands

Why a bundt cake concept sees booming growth ahead

By Joe Guszkowski on Jan. 15, 2026

Nothing Bundt Cakes has found success with one menu item and a simple operating model. Most people still haven’t heard of it, but the chain is working to change that.

Financing

Pollo Tropical owner hints at long-term IPO plans

By Joe Guszkowski on Jan. 14, 2026

Authentic Restaurant Brands, which also owns Primanti Bros, P.J. Whelihan’s and other regional chains, suggested that it could go public in three to five years. It also wants to acquire more brands.

Operations

Drive-thru coffee giant Dutch Bros to acquire 20-unit Clutch Coffee Bar

By Lisa Jennings on Jan. 14, 2026

The move will give the rapidly growing Dutch Bros more of a foothold in the Carolinas as it pushes to reach 2,029 units by 2029.

Financing

Lessons in investing from David Rubenstein

By Jonathan Maze on Jan. 13, 2026

The Bottom Line: The cofounder of The Carlyle Group, an active investor in the restaurant space, revealed the private-equity firm’s return on its McDonald’s China investment and dished out wisdom.

Operations

Noodles & Company to double its planned restaurant closures in 2026

By Lisa Jennings on Jan. 12, 2026

The fast-casual chain showed continued momentum in the fourth quarter. But the company said it plans to cull more underperforming units this year to focus on those with the strongest performance.

Financing

Kura Sushi sees signs of a thawing consumer

By Joe Guszkowski on Jan. 08, 2026

Traffic is improving at the conveyor-belt sushi chain despite a recent price increase that was larger than usual. Bacon sushi helped.

Technology

Presto raises $10M to fuel its AI drive-thru system

By Joe Guszkowski on Jan. 08, 2026

The technology company now works with 12 restaurant brands and wants to establish itself as the clear market leader this year, said co-founder Krishna Gupta.

Leadership

Clay Dover named CEO of Savory Fund

By Jonathan Maze on Jan. 07, 2026

The private-equity firm’s cofounder, Shauna Smith, was named managing director. Dover had previously been chief executive of the fast-casual chain Velvet Taco.

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