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Restaurant visits by U.S. Hispanic diners declined by 1% in 2012 at the same time that overall restaurant traffic rose by 1%, The NPD Group reports. The decline in Hispanic traffic translates to a loss of 86 million visits. Cutbacks in restaurant visits were most pronounced among Hispanic consumers ages 18 to 34, an especially [...]

Although restaurant sales showed no growth in 2010, the restaurant industry increased total ad spending, according to data from Kantar Media. Spending by the category was $5.652 billion, a 2.3% increase over 2009. According to the National Restaurant Association, restaurant sales were off 0.2% last year. For restaurants, Q1 was the strongest ($1.454 billion) for ad [...]

[Update: Boston Burger Company's Ray Malvone is the winner and will participate in the Burger Bash.]  Rachael Ray gets more than her share of criticism, in part because of her ubiquity, but the woman knows and respects burgers. Her Burger Bash at the annual Food Network South Beach Wine & Food Festival has established itself as burgerdom’s main [...]

December again, and it’s time once again for reflection. I’ll say that 2010 was an even better burger year than 2009 if only because last year’s mini-burger fad has floated downstream. Bye. This year, the economy and the burger business showed some improvement. As forecast last year, patty melts have popped up everywhere. Next year, [...]

Wendy’s national introduction this week of Natural-Cut Fries while also beginning a tryout for the Dave’s Hot ‘n Juicy cheeseburger line in Las Vegas exemplify the heightened importance of menu development for top quick-service chains. New menu items bring in customers willing to try them at least once, and in an economy this shaky, every [...]

Apparently it’s crystal-ball-prediction time and I’m already late. So I’ll give one prediction plus a few burger trend observations.  2011 will be the Year of the Stuffed Burger. Why? Because Burger King is going to show off what its new broilers can do by adding cheese-stuffed burgers early next year. Once it does, burger joints [...]

Red Robin Gourmet Burgers’ new CEO says the chain has let the new breed of fast-casual competitors erode its market position and steal its customers. And he vows to reverse that perilous, passive course. Steve Carley, the former El Pollo Loco chief who took over as CEO for the struggling burger chain in September, told analysts [...]

Ξ Looking ahead: Trend forecasting, like Christmas marketing, arrives too soon. We’ve two months left in 2010 but the prognostication about 2011 already has begun. ● Mintel’s list of consumer (not necessarily foodservice) predictions leads with the dire suggestion, “Prepare for the worst.” The researcher foresees “the need for brands to demonstrate how a product [...]

Ξ Give Wendy’s credit for making social networking truly social. So often it’s one-way nonsense like the endless “Tell us why you love us!” Facebook promotions and pointless “So what’s going on?” Twitter chatter. Most chains and indies would rather than speak than listen. After all, now that you’ve amassed several hundred Twitter and Facebook [...]

httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p0plpUs_ycIMcDonald’s strikes something close to Old Spice’s wry “New Manliness” pose in TV spots in Australia promoting the chain’s iconic Big Mac and Quarter Pounder burgers. Voiceover copy for one 30-second spot, from DDB Sydney, is “The Quarter Pounder. Cheese. Beef. Cheese. Bun. Hand. But only one hand. In case you need to open a door. Or a jar. [...]

McDonald’s this week invited Canadians to visit its Facebook page and vote for either the Big Mac or the Quarter Pounder with Cheese as their favorite sandwich. A pair of giant hot-air balloons—one for each sandwich– hovering over Landmark, Manitoba, give real-time  updates on the voting: whichever balloon is floating higher in the sky is [...]

Big Boy, the iconic American burger concept that looks retro but really just dates to 1936, is recognizing that tastes, times and business models have changed. In mid-July, Big Boy will open @burger, an upscale fast-casual burger concept with beer and wine in Ann Arbor, Mich., with intentions of opening more. That doesn’t mean the [...]

I won’t quibble with any of Bon Appétit’s choices for its “Top 10 Best New Burger Spots.” All 10 look great, and DMK Burger Bar is heavenly. But eight of the 10 opened in 2009. This week we are halfway through 2010, so how can Umami Burger, which opened in February 2009, still be considered “new”?  Yes, Minetta Tavern’s [...]

Rare Bar & Grill is serving up a bit of history to honor National Hamburger Day. Today, customers at its new location in New York City’s Fashion 26 Wyndham hotel on West 26th Street can get the famous “Louis Lunch” burger or Rare’s signature cheeseburger with fries and a beer for $20.10. After that, Rare [...]

On March 10, Alan Gaylin and partners Glynn and Jean Roberts opened BRGR Kitchen + Bar in Prairie Village, Kan., a Kansas City suburb. Gaylin brings decades of restaurant-industry experience, having served during his career as SVP-business development for Metromedia Restaurant Group (Bennigan’s, Steak and Ale), SVP-operations for Houlihan’s and as operations director at T.G.I. [...]