Fast-Casuals Set the Pace According to The NPD Group, fast- casual restaurants have experienced the largest growth rate during the 2013– 2017 period of all restaurants segments, increasing 7% in units, to a total of 25,118, and 6% in visits, primarily because of new store openings. The increase in traffic has slowed somewhat, to 4% during Q4 2017 and Q1 2018, compared to 7% during Q3 2017. For the year ending May 2018, traffic increased 5%. Adults 18–24 and households with incomes of $100,000 were primarily responsible for much of the increase in visits. Chipotle, Panera, Panda Express and Raising Cane’s were the traffic- growth leaders.

Fast-Food “Food Fight” The quick-service/fast-food segment continues to be highly competitive and McDonald’s self-ordering kiosks, delivery via UberEats and promotion of mobile ordering and payment are just a few examples of the innovations driving that competition. The burger sub-sector may be the most competitive, but McDonald’s continues to dominate with $37.5 billion in total 2017 sales; followed by Burger King, $10.0 billion; Wendy’s, $9.3 billion; Sonic Drive-In, $4.4 billion; and Jack in the Box, $3.5 billion. Not surprisingly, Chick-fil-A leads the chicken sub-sector with $9 billion in 2017 sales; Taco Bell the ethnic sub-sector at $9.8 billion; Subway the sandwich sub-sector at $10.8 billion; and Starbucks the snack sub-sector at $13.2 billion.

Drive-Thru Service at Its Best QSR magazine’s October 2017 Drive- Thru Study saw the emergence of new names in drive-thru performance, specifically Zaxby’s, Tim Hortons and Raising Cane’s, as their speed and accuracy were as good restaurants with decades of drive-thru experience. In fact, this was Raising Cane’s first time being noted in the study, achieving the #1 position in speed of service, order accuracy and menuboard appearance, replacing Wendy’s and Chick-fil-A, which had dominated those categories. There were also some less-than-stellar performances at some QSR chains. For example, Panera Bread had the largest percentage of inaccurate drive-thru orders, at 17.10%; KFC, unsightly pickup window, 3.6%; and Tim Horton’s, incorrect receipt, 10.5%.

Mexican Restaurants: Where Independents Thrive CHD Experts reported in its 2018 Mexican Restaurant Trends that there were more than 62,000 restaurants in the US with a Mexican-type menu as of March 2018, a 3.7% increase from the 59,800 as of April 2017. Mexican restaurants are almost totally independently owned, or 97% of all full- service establishments. Mexican restaurants represent 8% of all restaurants and there are more total units than restaurants with either a pizza or burger menu. Not surprisingly, the three states where Mexican restaurants are most popular are Texas, 20% of all restaurants; California, 18% of all restaurants; and Florida, 5% of all restaurants.

Savory Selections According to CHD Experts, there were 45,300 restaurants in the US with a sandwich-type menu and they accounted for 6% of all US restaurants, but just 10% of independent restaurants. Americans spend more than $26 billion at sandwich restaurants annually with 88% of the checks $7 to $10. The top 5 sandwich restaurants as of October 2017 were Subway, Arby’s, Jimmy John’s, Jersey Mike’s and Firehouse Subs (in no particular order). In Business Insider’s 2018 report of the top 21 food trucks in the world, the top 4 in the US were Lobos Truck, Los Angeles, CA (#4); Hail the Chairman, San Francisco, CA (#6); American Poutine, Arizona (#8); Van Leeuwen Ice Cream, NYC and Los Angeles, (#9).

Advertising Strategies Although 18–24 are not a prime TV demographic, recommend that local fast- casual restaurants use late-night programming to promote breakfasts as well as sections of your station’s Website that are more likely to attract young adults. Independently owned Mexican restaurants, especially those with multiple locations in your market, can use TV to promote their brands and position themselves as a more authentic and healthier alternative to QSR/fast-food national chains. The Media Audit data on page 4 of the Profiler, relating to light-vehicle ownership and restaurant diners, could provide an opportunity to recommend a cross- promotional partnership of restaurants and car dealerships.

New Media Strategies Suggest local, independently owned QSR/fast-food restaurants ask some customers to time the speed of service at the restaurants’ drive-thru, comparing the results to the table on page 2 of the Profiler, and asking those customers to post their time on social media. Independently owned Mexican restaurants can reinforce their brand building on TV with YouTube videos of the owner or chef explaining and showing the authenticity and healthiness of their ingredients, compared to national chains. Restaurants may be able to attract more adults from LinkedIn by cross-promoting with local job-recruiting agencies a drawing from those who have been hired during the past week or month for a free dinner.