Hello!

Consider heading to Jack in the Box to honor the 18th anniversary of the summer of “Buy U a Drank”: the chain just launched the T-Pain Munchie Meal (available now through July 27th), which includes:

• Your choice of a “Burg-R-Tater Melt” or “Chick-N-Tater Melt”

• A taco

• Regular curly fries

• A stuffed cookie

• A regular drink

• And last (but certainly not least)… a T-Pain air freshener

3 Numbers

$1 billion

Reported valuation of Dave’s Hot Chicken, which confirmed on Monday that Roark Capital has acquired a majority stake in the company. Dave’s — founded just 8 years ago in an L.A. parking lot — saw its sales grow 57% last year to surpass $600 million.

141

Locations added in 2024 by drive-thru coffee concept 7 Brew, which can lay claim to unit growth of, uh, 2,000% since 2022. With 321 total stores, the chain is now the second-largest drive-thru-only coffee chain in America, trailing only Dutch Bros.

$1.3 billion

Total amount of restaurant tech funding in 2024, a substantial drop from a peak of $14.5 billion in 2018, according to PitchBook. The research company also said that while overall restaurant tech deal activity is expected to remain muted in 2025, startups incorporating AI and automation are likely to attract investor attention.

What’s Happening

Until recently, there was little incentive for a restaurant industry CEO to make waves in an interview. Or even to have much of a public persona at all.*

Collectively, billions of dollars are spent on bolstering restaurants’ brands. In the past, that meant making mascots like Ronald McDonald the face of the restaurant chain, not Ray Kroc (who may have been the “Founder,” but didn’t really have widespread recognition during his lifetime).

But times are changing. Now more and more restaurant CEOs are turning on the front-facing camera and going directly to the public — or giving spicier interviews than they might have in the past:

• Current McDonald’s CEO Chris Kempczinski is one of the most followed personalities on LinkedIn. On a series of informal videos, he’s given career advice, explained earnings results to a general audience, and taste tested the McCrispy Strips.

• More and more restaurant CEOs have a podcast or are willing to sit down for long-form interviews. In a recent Restaurant Business piece — “How podcasting took over the restaurant industry” — writer Joe Guszkowski said, “It’s not clear just how many B2B restaurant podcasts there are, but they have exploded in number since the pandemic. In an attempt to get a headcount, we recently put out a question on LinkedIn asking people to submit their podcasts. One response summed up the situation well: ‘The easier question would be, who doesn’t host one?’”

• And in lieu of a traditional press release, Red Lobster’s new CEO Damola Adamolekun posted a LinkedIn video to his personal page that detailed the chain’s turnaround efforts, including new menu items and the introduction of Happy Hour.

Then there was this interview with &pizza CEO Mike Burns, which is the early contender for Interview of the Year.

After overhauling and simplifying the fast casual pizza chain’s menu, Burns announced that he felt the concept had grown too expensive, so he’s instituting an across-the-board price cut. Here’s how he put it:

Later, Burns went full Cool Uncle in describing the price cut, saying that in the past, a pie, drink and cookie would cost $20 — and if you added a topping, you’d be at $22. Now that combo is $15, and you should feel free to “get all the toppings you want.”

How will the public treat this news? Burns went philosophical:

A combination of factors is leading to this vibe shift. Younger consumers consistently say that they value authenticity. More people than ever are interested in the inner workings of their preferred brands. And social media algorithms value companies that have a “face” — personality-driven video content greatly outperforms anonymous press releases.

I’m very on board with this new direction. Not just for the obvious reason — that it keeps content flowing into this newsletter each week — but because it’s a long time coming. The restaurant industry is supposed to be fun… and slightly ridiculous. A little edge and showmanship goes a long way.

The Headlines

• Yum Brands said it is open to more acquisitions.

• Fast-casual brand Chicken Salad Chick hit the 300-location milestone in April.

• Donatos Pizza is opening a fully autonomous location in Columbus, OH’s airport.

• Comeback watch: Red Robin reported 3.1% same-store sales growth last quarter along with net income of $1.2 million… a $10.7 million improvement over last year.

• Burger King has spent billions remodeling restaurants and improving operations — families like that.

Name That Chain!

You’ve got three guesses to name this week’s mystery chain:

• This diner concept drew two-hour-long lines after advertising free breakfast during a 2009 Super Bowl ad.

• In an episode of Breaking Bad, Walter White had a tense breakfast meeting here under the name "Lambert.”

• Nvidia founder and CEO Jensen Huang is a big fan — and former employee.

Find the answer at the bottom of the email…

#Content Recs

• How 27 Nathan’s Famous franchises have remained operating in Ukraine.

• Will you join me at the 45-minute Benihana Power Lunch?

• How nostalgia and ‘emotional time travel’ are driving Gen Z into the loving embrace of the Rainforest Cafe.

‘Member When?

Industry Bites has talked — often and admiringly — of the Pizza Hut Book It! program, a ‘90s-era bullseye in the Venn diagram for, I’d wager, a substantial number of chain-restaurant-loving readers of this newsletter.

Well, Book It! is now an app. And while it’s geared toward kids aged Pre-K through 6th grade, parents can participate by downloading the app, setting their child’s reading goals, and watching them earn free personal pan pizzas through the magic of binge-reading Goosebumps:

Thanks for reading! We’ll be back next week with more Industry Bites.

Andy

NAME THAT CHAIN ANSWER: Denny’s

*Colonel Sanders is one big obvious exception.