News Bites – June 2025
TV Makes a Comeback for Casual Dining Brands
Chili’s return to TV in 2023 helped drive major same-store sales growth, inspiring other casual dining chains to follow. As marketing budgets rebound, brands like Applebee’s, Red Lobster, and Dave & Buster’s are ramping up television ad spending. However, smaller chains like BJ’s face budget and density challenges, so they focus on digital, social, and targeted connected TV. Meanwhile, brands without scale—like STK and Kona Grill—lean into loyalty programs and grassroots promotions to stay competitive.
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Restaurants Report Weaker Sales in High-Hispanic Areas
Restaurant traffic in high Mexican population zip codes has lagged the national average since the 2024 presidential election. According to Black Box Intelligence, fear from immigration policy is dampening spending in communities directly affected by enforcement. Meanwhile, national restaurant sales improved slightly in May, though traffic remained negative and lower-income diners continue pulling back. If inflation accelerates, middle-income consumers may trade down, favoring quick-service brands over casual or family dining concepts.
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Donatos Launches First Robot-Run Pizza Store
Donatos opened its first fully autonomous store at Columbus Airport, powered by Agápe Automation and Appetronix robotics. The robotic system assembles, cooks, slices, and serves pizzas in under six minutes, minimizing labor and food waste. Although humans still clean and restock, the store operates 24/7 with minimal intervention and high consistency. Looking ahead, Donatos plans more autonomous units in high-traffic, hard-to-staff locations like malls and travel centers.
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Wonder Unveils Plans for Personalized Meal Kits Using AI and Blood Tests
Wonder, led by Marc Lore, plans to go public by 2028 and recently removed all delivery and service fees. After acquiring Blue Apron, Grubhub, and Tastemade, Wonder aims to unify delivery, meal kits, and food media. Now, the company is developing a hyper-personalized meal service using customer bloodwork, DNA, and AI technology. With $600 million raised, Wonder continues positioning itself as a next-gen food tech platform, unlike traditional delivery services.
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Taco Bell Adds PayPal and Venmo as Payment Options
Taco Bell now accepts PayPal and Venmo for app and web orders, adding more flexibility for digital payments. Customers using PayPal can receive 20% cash back on purchases over $5 through July 31, redeemable weekly. Additionally, PayPal Debit Mastercard users can earn an extra 5% cash back on restaurant purchases. This move builds on PayPal’s partnerships with McDonald’s, Buffalo Wild Wings, and Outback Steakhouse.
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Check out last month’s news bites: News Bites – May 2025!
