Weekly Roundup – Week of 10.26.26
October 30, 2026
This week’s top foodservice stories all ask one question: who is earning it? Chili’s keeps compounding growth, Burger King is outrunning Popeyes, Toast is in court over fees, Kroger is cutting out middlemen, and nobody can define ultra-processed food. Here they are, all curated by our team of strategists and food enthusiasts:
Chili’s Turns Labor Spending Into a 52% Sales Run
Chili’s same-store sales are up 52% over three years, including 10% last quarter. Brinker International says traffic is up 28% in that stretch, and average unit volume has reached about $5 million. Added visits drove roughly two-thirds of this quarter’s gain. Brinker is spending on labor rather than trimming it. Servers are getting handheld order devices, host stands now have separate greeters and seaters, and managers help seat large parties. CFO Mika Ware said a 2.6% wage-rate increase barely moved margins because productivity offset it. For casual-dining operators, front-of-house throughput may be a stronger growth lever than another discount. Read More
Burger King Pulls Away While Popeyes Trims the Wings
Restaurant Brands International reported Burger King U.S. same-store sales up 8.4% in the third quarter. Chicken nuggets and kids meals drove the gain, with nugget sales up 35%. Executive chairman Patrick Doyle said the chain beat its peers by nearly 10 points. Popeyes went the other way. Its U.S. same-store sales fell 2.2%, its marketing chief was dismissed a day earlier, and the chain is scaling back the chicken wings it launched in 2023. The focus now is bone-in chicken, tenders and sandwiches. When a menu add-on drags results, cutting it can be the smarter growth move. Read Article
Toast Lands in Federal Court Over Fees Restaurants Say They Did Not See
The FTC and several states sued Toast on Thursday in federal court in Northern California. The complaint alleges hidden fees, charges for services restaurants never requested, and 24/7 support that customers could not reach. It also calls cancellation a multi-step ordeal. The suit says the “$0 per month” plan covers only one POS terminal. Toast serves about 200,000 businesses and says it disagrees with the claims. It plans to fight the case in court. We covered its AI scheduling agent earlier this month. Operators should pull their POS contracts now. Confirm every fee in writing, count the terminals each price actually covers, and know exactly how to cancel. Read On
Kroger Wants to Take Layers Out of the Chain
Kroger plans to source more than 10% of its goods directly, up from under 1% today. CFO David Kennerley laid out the target at the company’s October 20 investor day. About 40% of the imported grapes for the November season now come straight from Peruvian growers. Citrus, shrimp and frozen vegetables are next. Kroger is building sourcing hubs in South America and Asia, with the Asia buildout planned for 2027. Kennerley described the goal as removing layers from the supply chain. Last week we covered Kroger’s $40 billion private label push. Suppliers, brokers and distributors that sell into grocery should expect pressure to justify every handoff they add. Learn More
Shoppers Are Avoiding Ultra-Processed Food That Washington Has Not Defined
The FDA and USDA have worked on a federal definition of ultra-processed food for more than a year. A draft has sat at the Office of Management and Budget for about two months. Meanwhile, a survey of 2,000 adults found 71% try to avoid these foods. University of Chicago researchers estimate a federal definition would cost about $14 billion a year, mostly in reformulation and higher ingredient costs. The article says that bill would likely reach menu and shelf prices. Until a definition lands, operators should be careful with “not ultra-processed” claims and ready to explain their ingredients. Read Story
Find more of this week’s top foodservice stories every Friday on the Omnivore blog.
Frequently Asked Questions
What are this week’s top foodservice stories?
This week’s top foodservice stories include Chili’s 52% three-year sales run, Burger King’s 8.4% U.S. same-store sales gain, the FTC lawsuit against Toast, Kroger’s push to source over 10% of goods directly, and the stalled federal definition of ultra-processed food.
Why did the FTC sue Toast?
The FTC and several states allege Toast used hidden fees, charged for services restaurants did not request, and advertised 24/7 support customers could not reach. Toast, which serves about 200,000 businesses, disputes the claims and plans to fight the case.
How did Burger King do compared with Popeyes last quarter?
Burger King U.S. same-store sales rose 8.4% in the third quarter, while Popeyes U.S. sales fell 2.2%. Both brands belong to Restaurant Brands International.
