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Reset and recovery

Reset and recovery: How Top 100 independents fared during the pandemic

RB Top 100 independent operators share how they've managed to quickly adapt since the pandemic began.

The Culinary Institute of America celebrates its 75th anniversary this year.

Employees have left the industry in droves since the outset of the pandemic. Restaurants have been scrambling to find ways to keep them.

As a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, restaurants are moving faster than ever to adopt new technology. Things like ghost kitchens, mobile ordering and robots are no longer distant innovations—they are real tools that operators are implementing today.

These brands are innovative and trendy and have a close connection with their customers. Here is a look at this year’s Buzzworthy Brands and how they got here.

The $15 wage is increasingly common throughout the U.S., either as a government mandate or a market reality. Its impact touches the entire restaurant industry, its employees and its operators.

2020 was a year like no other and played a massive role in the Technomic Top 500 Chain Restaurant report.

For many restaurants, the past 12 months have been measured by one, simple metric: survival.

For this year’s Power 20 list, RB is recognizing restaurant folks who amplified their community outreach efforts during the pandemic. These operators stepped up in a big way to feed the hungry, organize relief programs for unemployed restaurant workers, advance social justice in the industry and raise funds to help those in need. Meet our 20 local heroes.

Flavor exploration slowed down a bit in 2020, as operators streamlined menus and focused on bestsellers and customer favorites.

The editors of Restaurant Business this week explore the Evolving Kitchen and what its change has meant to the foodservice business.

The kitchen has changed. In recent years, as restaurants adapted to changing consumers and looked for new methods of getting food into their hands, the back of house has evolved along with it.

Restaurants in the Top 100 grossed nearly $1.8 billion in a tight labor market amid increased competition, outearning the prior year’s total. But 2020 has presented even greater challenges, and RB takes a look at how indies are weathering those as well.

See the full ranking of the Top 100 concepts, which account for more than $1.8 billion in annual revenue, and learn how they are putting hospitality first.

2020 has been a disruptive year for restaurants, and no part of the industry has been left untouched, including menu development.

Restaurant Business has collected same-store sales data from publicly traded restaurant chains. Look below for a complete list of sales data organized by calendar quarter.

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