This week, on the Extra Serving podcast, a product of Nation’s Restaurant News, NRN editors Holly Petre, Sam Oches and Leigh Anne Zinsmeister talked about how off-premises locations can thrive.
The NRN editors talked about Jack in the Box’s drive-thru-only prototype. Considering the past three years, many brands have pivoted to off-premises-only units and this one by Jack in the Box has proven to work. The company said on its latest earnings call that the unit was performing better than expectations, with average weekly sales of about $43,000. What does this mean for the future of both the drive-thru and off-premises-only units in light of some casual dining chains closing their own prototypes?
Plus, the NRN editors talked about Taco Bell and Taco John’s. The two chains are in the news because Taco Bell wants to “liberate” Taco Tuesday. Taco John’s, a 400-unit chain, owns the rights to the term “Taco Tuesday” in 49 states, with a small chain owning the rights in New Jersey. Taco John’s thanked Taco Bell for the free press, as the larger company outranks its adversary in terms of units by the thousands. Was this just clever marketing, or real, and who truly came out on top here?
Finally, the editors talked about Starbucks — again. This time, the chain is in the news not for its alleged union-busting or more stores voting to unionize — it’s quite the opposite. Three Starbucks stores have filed for decertification with the National Labor Relations Board. What does this mean internally at Starbucks, and has the company recovered its image?
This week’s guest is Shane Schaibly, the corporate chef at First Watch.