While Chipotle struggles to get customers through the door, Taco Bell is gaining share.

Consumers traded down or tapped out throughout 2025, making value deals essential for restaurant survival.

Major casual dining chains are bracing for weaker Q4 sales as the government shutdown and broader economic headwinds weigh on consumer spending. Brinker International maintained its outlook despite Chili’s gains, while Cheesecake Factory reported slowing momentum and Chipotle cut its sales forecast for the third straight quarter. With real income growth stagnating and menu prices continuing to rise, many consumers are cutting back on dining out. To stay competitive, restaurants need to focus on value-driven promotions and loyalty programs designed to attract price-sensitive diners and encourage repeat visits.

Drone delivery is finally taking flight in the US, with major quick-service chains launching pilot programs to test airborne burrito and chicken deliveries. Uber Eats and Flytrex plan drone pilots by late 2025, while Dave’s Hot Chicken, Chipotle, and GoTo Foods are running tests across California and Texas with partners like Matternet, Zipline, and Wing. Looser regulations and better tech are driving momentum, though most efforts remain small-scale. Still, even if drone delivery doesn’t revolutionize logistics, the buzz positions these brands as forward-thinking innovators gaining valuable PR lift.

Jack in the Box introduced an in-app, AI-powered “choose your own adventure” game to deliver more deals to customers and increase engagement. More quick-service restaurants (QSRs) are turning to gamification to reverse slumping traffic, spotlight value offerings, and attract more diners to their apps. Offering gamified experiences is an effective way for QSRs—and even retailers—to get new customers into their orbits while encouraging existing ones to order more frequently.

To promote its new NextGen Acela fleet, Amtrak invited students from New York School of Design to compete in a competition to produce “Trak Suits” in two categories: one couture look and one ready-to-wear for consumer purchase.

Value menus are the rare bright spot in an otherwise sluggish year for the restaurant industry. Traffic related to value menus rose 1% YoY in Q2, per Circana. Overall restaurant traffic fell by 1% YoY in the same period, indicating that meal deals are getting diners to open their wallets. But as restaurants have also discovered, meal deals alone aren’t enough to get customers through the door. Instead, operators need to excite would-be diners about what they’re offering—whether by emphasizing the scale of their discounts, product or service quality, or the temporary nature of offers.

Chipotle lowered its FY sales forecast after same-store sales fell more than expected in Q2, marking the second-straight quarter of declining traffic as wary consumers think twice about dining out. Chipotle’s Q2 struggles clearly show that consumers are becoming much pickier about where they choose to spend their money. The vast array of meal deals available in the QSR marketplace means Chipotle can no longer compete on value alone—making menu innovation and limited-time offerings even more necessary to drive traffic.

Chipotle sees pullback in spending tied to consumer unease: Despite those challenges, McDonald’s and Sonic have both found recent success with limited-time promotions.

Roblox has been popular with young game players for years. It brings in tens of millions of players every day. As more marketers explore activations on the platform, best practices are starting to take shape.

Chipotle prepares for a busy burrito season: The fast-casual chain plans to hire 20,000 workers—with the help of AI—in anticipation of strong demand this spring.

Chipotle and Taco Bell’s same-store sales grew around 5% in Q4: Chipotle’s smoked brisket and Taco Bell’s nostalgic menu items proved to be customer magnets.

New Starbucks CEO Brian Niccol has his work cut out for him: One can look to his former employer, Chipotle, to see how he can sharpen the coffee chain’s focus.

By automating interviews and job offers, the fast casual giant aims to improve recruitment efficiency, but risks of bias loom large.

Just Eat Takeaway expands retail media offerings with Rokt partnership: The delivery company joins DoorDash, Instacart, and Gopuff in enhancing its ad capabilities

Consumers still think fast food is too expensive, despite the value meal wars: While deals are boosting foot traffic in the short term, operators face long-term difficulties as customers either trade up to fast-casual chains or pull back entirely.

Starbucks was once considered the go-to “third place” where people could relax, work, and socialize over a cup of coffee. However, the rise of mobile ordering has compromised the company’s core identity, our analysts said. In North America, Starbucks saw a 6% drop in foot traffic, and a 2% decline in same-store sales YoY, according to its July earnings call.

On today's podcast episode, we discuss what Chipotle has that Starbucks is trying to gain, how Starbucks can turn the ship around, and what its struggles tell us about the greater retail world. Listen to the conversation with our analyst Sara Lebow as she hosts analyst Sky Canaves and vice president of content Suzy Davidkhanian.

McDonald’s sales fell for the first time since 2020: The company’s overreliance on price hikes led it to lose its “value leadership” positioning. Reestablishing that role is the key to its turnaround.

The proliferation of loyalty programs has heightened competition, so retailers will have to dig deeper into their customer data to drive active participation.