Restaurant Carry-Out is Losing Out to Delivery and Drive-Thru As More Convenient Ordering Options 

More than half of carry-out orders are placed at the counter

Restaurant carry-out, which dates back to ancient Rome, has provided a convenient eating solution for time-strapped civilizations for ages. However, with consumers always looking for the next level of convenience, like not getting out of the car, delivery and drive-thru orders have taken hold, making carry-out the less convenient service mode, reports The NPD Group. Carry-out orders were lagging drive-thru and delivery orders before the pandemic...

Digital Foodservice Ordering Continues to Accelerate in Canada

Digital foodservice ordering has been among the lifelines for Canadians throughout the pandemic. Although digital foodservice ordering was growing before the pandemic, the pandemic accelerated its growth, reports The NPD Group. Over the last two years, digital orders for carry-out and delivery from restaurants and other foodservice outlets have increased by 155%, according to NPD’s continual tracking of the Canadian foodservice industry.

Ordering through mobile apps represents the bulk of digital orders. In January 2022, mobile app orders represented 75% of all digital foodservice orders. 20% were internet orders, and 5%...

P.F. Chang’s To Go Continues Florida Expansion with New Lake Mary Location

P.F. Chang’s today announced the opening of its second P.F. Chang’s To Go location in the Orlando metropolitan area, expanding its offering of iconic, wok-fired dishes with even more convenience.

Launched in 2020 as part of the company’s off-premise dining strategy, P.F. Chang’s To Go focuses on takeout, delivery, catering and third-party online delivery services for consumers on the go. Whether pressed for time at home, the office or anywhere in between, the new To Go format allows guests to enjoy P.F. Chang’s favorites their...

Smashburger® Launches New Nationwide Menu with the Addition of Two Chicken Tender Offerings

Smashburger®, the better burger fast casual restaurant, announces the launch of its brand new menu, launching nationwide today. The new revamped menu will feature two brand new menu items: Adult Chicken Tenders and Scorchin' Hot Chicken Tenders. Inspired by successful menu testing at select locations and the popularity of the 2021 Scorchin' Hot Crispy Chicken Sandwich, the new chicken offerings will be available in 3-piece and 5-piece quantities and are made of crispy, all white meat chicken, with your choice of sauce...

COVID Restrictions Thwarted the Canadian Foodservice Industry’s Expectations for a Strong Recovery

The Canadian foodservice industry entered 2021 hopeful that the industry could get back on track. The recovery seemed like it was heading in the right direction in the third quarter — with vaccination rates high, COVID infections low, and restrictions lifted, reports The NPD Group. Consumers were anxious to return to their favorite restaurants, and online and physical visits were within just five percentage points of where they were in the same quarter before the pandemic. But the onset of the omicron wave and the return of restrictions suppressed...

Consumers Prefer to Shop at Retailers that Require Masks, According to New Survey

Forty-nine percent of consumers said they prefer to shop at retailers that require masks.

Learning to live with COVID might be the new normal.

Seventy-one percent of consumers in Numerator’s newest Consumer Behavior & Sentiment Survey said they agreed or strongly agreed with the statement, "I think we will learn to live with COVID-19 rather than ever fully returning to a pre-COVID 'normal'.

Also, almost half (49%) of consumers said they prefer to shop at retailers that require masks (61% of vaccinated consumers...

Carry-out, Drive-thru, and Delivery Continue As Growth Areas for the Canadian Restaurant Industry

Online and physical visits to Canadian restaurants and foodservice outlets were flat in the year ending September 2021 compared to a year ago when traffic was down double-digits. Helping the industry recover was the growth in foodservice off-premises orders from carry-out, drive-thru, and delivery, reports The NPD Group. Although foodservice traffic has improved from the steep declines experienced last year, visits were 18% below the pre-pandemic level in September 2019, according to NPD’s continual tracking of the Canadian foodservice industry...

White Castle's 'Crave Clutch™' Comes in Clutch for Smaller Gatherings with Friends and Family

A year after its launch, White Castle's Crave Clutch has proven to be a popular addition to the brand's lineup of iconic packaging. Customers have embraced the colorful carryout box, which holds 20 Sliders, because it's an ideal size for family meals and smaller friend gatherings that have been so common during the COVID-19 pandemic.

In honor of the one-year anniversary of the launch of the Crave Clutch, White Castle is giving customers $4 off of White Castle's Share-A-Meal #9...

Canada’s Foodservice Industry Shows Promising Recovery in the Second Quarter Compared to Last Year

Through lockdowns, COVID-19 restrictions, and eventual reopening, Canadians released their pent-up demand and ordered from or visited restaurants and other foodservice outlets in the April-May-June quarter reports The NPD Group. Consumer spending at restaurants and other foodservice outlets increased by +43% in the second quarter of the year compared to the same quarter last year when spending declined by -41% from the year before. Visits, dining in and off-premises orders, improved by +31% compared to the second quarter year ago when traffic declined by -36%, according to NPD’s continual tracking of the foodservice industry.

Each area of the commercial foodservice market is recovering at a different pace. Quick service restaurants (QSR), many of which had well-developed off-premises services like carry-out and...

The U.S. Restaurant Industry Recovery Through Second Quarter has Been Slow and Steady

The second quarter of this year reflects a period during which state and local governments lifted pandemic restrictions, restaurants reopened, people got vaccinated, and consumers used restaurants more than they did throughout the pandemic, reports The NPD Group. Consumer spending at restaurants was up +32% in the April-May-June 2021 quarter compared to the same quarter last year, and for a pre-pandemic view, flat compared to the same quarter in 2019. Restaurant visits, dining in or off-premises, increased by +22% in the quarter compared to the same quarter last year and were down -7% compared to the second quarter of 2019, according to NPD’s daily tracking of the U.S. foodservice industry.

Quick service restaurants (QSRs), representing 81% of restaurant visits in the U.S., realized a gain of +15% in visits in the second quarter compared to a year ago and a -5% decline compared to the second quarter of 2019. Throughout the pandemic, QSR restaurants, particularly...

ANALYSIS: Jumbo Chicken Wings: A Countdown to the Coin Toss

With the first kickoff of college football season practically at our doorstep, the topic of chicken wings has begun to weave its way into market related conversations.

Jollibee Announces the Launch of New Jollibee Ordering App

Jollibee announced the launch of its new Jollibee Ordering App. The ordering platform allows new customers and Jollibee fans to order the brand's food directly from their mobile devices. The app supports orders for delivery and in-store pickup and is live across the United States and Canada now via the Apple App Store and Google Play.

To celebrate the launch of the new app, Jollibee is running a two-week promotion giving customers the brand's Peach Mango Pie for free on every order placed with an account through the new platform. This offer can be redeemed by entering the promo code "JoyOnline" at checkout. The promotion is currently...

P.F. Chang's Expands To Go Concept to Meet Consumer Demand for Takeout

P.F. Chang’s is expanding its P.F. Chang’s To Go concept with two new locations in key markets as the global restaurant chain continues to meet demand for easily accessible Asian cuisine, adapting to the evolution of dining across the country.

The concept, which launched in 2020, features a smaller footprint, creating access to elevated Asian cuisine in high-density metropolitan communities, allowing more guests to experience the P.F. Chang’s Asian favorites they know and love. P.F. Chang’s To Go is a convenient format that provides a solution for...

Domino's Rolls Out Carside Delivery 2-Minute Guarantee
Domino's Pizza is launching a new guarantee to offer customers the most convenient carryout experience possible. Domino's Carside Delivery 2-Minute Guarantee is simple: order Domino's Carside Delivery online, check in when you arrive, and as soon as your order is ready, a Domino's team member will head to your car in less than two minutes or your next pizza is free.

Domino's and DraftKings Inc., a leading sports entertainment and technology company, have launched Domino's Carside Delivery 2-Minute Guarantee Over/Under Challenge as well, giving customers the chance to predict if Domino's Carside Delivery nationwide will be quicker than...

Technomic's Take: Roadblock to Recovery for Restaurants

By all accounts, the restaurant industry is roaring back to life as vaccination distribution spreads, dine-in restrictions are lifted and improved weather throughout most of the country sends consumers flocking to restaurants to dine with friends and family. Operators are reporting same-store sales approaching, and in some cases exceeding, pre-pandemic levels as pent-up demand drives the dine-in surge and off-premise orders remain strong.

For restaurant operators eager to return to full capacity, however, significant headwinds remain as the restaurant industry struggles to fill jobs to meet this booming demand. The biggest challenge facing operators in this current recovery period is finding staff willing to work. There are numerous other factors that are impacting...

Nearly Half of Canadians Plan to Dine On-Premises Now that Pandemic Restrictions are Relaxed

Canadians were anxiously awaiting COVID lockdowns and restrictions to be eased and lifted, and so were restaurant operators. It’s been a long 15 months and 46% of Canadians told The NPD Group that they plan to physically eat at a restaurant, bar, or coffee shop now that COVID-19 restrictions have been eased. Restaurant operators are eager to greet them back and pick-up their dine-in business, which was most impacted by mandated pandemic restrictions.

Dine-in or on-premises restaurant orders/visits have improved since the beginning of the pandemic but, as a basis for comparison, were still down -85% in April 2021 compared to April 2019. Off-premises orders and visits, which include...

US Foods Summer Scoop Lineup Takes Aim at Restaurant Labor Shortage

US Foods Holding Corp. announced the launch of Summer Scoop™. Themed “Dining Out Is In Again,” Summer Scoop features 18 on-trend, versatile, profit-driving products designed to reduce back-of-house preparation and skilled-labor demands. With 62% of operators saying they are concerned about finding skilled workers during the pandemic, restaurant operators struggle to balance the resurgence of on-site diners and existing take-out and delivery operations ramped up during the pandemic. Summer Scoop helps address these challenges with innovative products that can drive higher profits and help operators save approximately 85-95% in back-of-house preparation time compared to making from scratch, helpful for restaurants operating with fewer and less experienced kitchen staff.

“Through each phase of the pandemic, our commitment to helping our restaurant operators ‘Make It’ with product innovation and expert resources has remained our number one priority,” said Stacey Kinkaid, vice president of product development and innovation for US Foods. “As restaurants quickly move closer to...