Darden could become franchisor via buyout

Jan 22, 2007

ORLANDO, FLA. Darden Restaurants Inc. —Rivals who dread competition from the industry’s largest and highest-grossing casual-dining operator may soon have new reasons to fear While green-lighting...

Hardee’s franchisee buys Caesars stores

Jan 18, 2007

CORNELIUS N.C. A 45-unit Hardee’s franchisee here said it has purchased 16 Little Caesars pizzerias in the Tennessee and Virginia Tri-Cities market from Kingsport, Tenn.-based Megan and Me Investments, a group owned by Ken and Anita Bates. Terms...

Franchisee buys Buffalo’s franchisor

Jan 17, 2007

LAS VEGAS A franchisee of the 38-unit Buffalo’s Southwest Café chain has purchased franchisor Buffalo’s Franchise Concepts Inc. with plans of expanding its Buffalo’s Express fast-casual brand. Terms of the deal were not disclosed, and the...

Frisch's 2-Q profits soar 66%

Jan 16, 2007

CINCINNATI Frisch's Restaurants Inc., operator or franchisor of 118 Frisch's Big Boy restaurants and franchisee of 34 Golden Corral units, recorded a 66.9-percent surge in second-quarter profit, as increased sales and reduced food and payroll...

Casual dinnerhouse outlook remains gloomy for 2007

Jan 15, 2007

Shortly before the end of 2006, a Houlihan’s restaurant in the Convention Center District of Austin, Texas, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection and shuttered its doors after just six months in operation.The reasons, according to bankruptcy...

Planet Smoothie to hit the road for the good of the globe

Jan 15, 2007

ATLANTA Planet Smoothie is preparing to put the nation’s ecology in the spotlight with the launch of a promotion encouraging eco-friendly behavior and healthful practices. — ...

Planet Smoothie to hit the road for the good of the globe

Jan 15, 2007

ATLANTA —Planet Smoothie is preparing to put the nation’s ecology in the spotlight with the launch of a promotion encouraging eco-friendly behavior and healthful practices. Although a number of chains ranging from...

In the era of Simon Cowell, restaurants vie for sales through talent contests

Jan 13, 2007

OKLAHOMA CITY Add Sonic Drive-Ins to the list of chain and independent restaurants that are betting on talent contest tie-ins to snag attention during the normally slow post-holiday season. With broadcasters fighting for viewers with...

In the era of Simon Cowell, restaurants vie for sales through talent contests

Jan 13, 2007

OKLAHOMA CITY Add Sonic Drive-Ins to the list of chain and independent restaurants that are betting on talent contest tie-ins to snag attention during the normally slow post-holiday season. With broadcasters fighting for viewers with...

Unclear exit strategies cloud chains’ outlooks

Jan 08, 2007

Able to drive the lane against his teenage grandsons while playing basketball at his Colorado vacation home, the 67-year-old franchisee of three budget steakhouses thought he was in great shape, financially and physically.The restaurateur, whom we...