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Look up in the sky: It’s a bird, it’s a drone, it’s…a burrito?

By Nicholas Upton | October 31, 2016

For futurists, technology nerds and Google fans, the cool factor of delivering food via drones is off the charts. Just type in an order via kiosk and look to the sky. But for restaurant operators hoping to dispatch delivery drones, the Chipotle test is a testament to how far the industry has to go until service by drones is feasible.

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Third-Party Delivery Fees? It’s a negotiable secret

By Nicholas Upton | October 3, 2016

By Nicholas Upton

How much does a third-party delivery cost? Well, it depends who you ask and how good their contract is. Of all the transparency and data that technology brings to the restaurant industry, what exactly the fees are for restaurants is pretty murky.

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Can Domino’s Be Stopped?

By Tom Kaiser | October 3, 2016

It’s that time of year again: leaves falling, temperatures chilling and, once again, Domino’s is the star of the quarterly earnings show. On the eve of my trip to the pizza giant’s headquarters in Ann Arbor, Michigan, I’m writing questions and wondering if this high-tech pizza brand can be stopped in light of its 22 consecutive quarters of positive sales growth. In reporting its Q3 ‘16 financial results, Domino’s reported same-stores up 13 percent during the quarter, very strong international sales growth—91 consecutive quarters of int’l SSS growth—store growth of […]

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Whether it’s coming or going, Taco Cat stands for really good food for drunk gourmets

By Nancy Monroe | October 3, 2016

By Nancy Weingartner For three and five years, respectively, Tristan Jimerson and Daniel Laeger-Hagemeister delivered sandwiches freakishly fast for Jimmy John’s. No one, Jimerson says, has delivery as dialed in as Jimmy John’s. Since the delivery zone for each store is small, their sandwiches sometimes rode in cars, sometimes in messenger bags via bicycles. “Jimmy John’s was our training,” he says. The two have taken that knowledge and passed it on to a fleet of former bike couriers who as victims of the shrinking demand for couriered legal work thanks […]

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Will there be an ‘Uber’ for everything?

By Laura Michaels | October 3, 2016

By Laura Michaels Companies everywhere are claiming they’re the Uber of their particular industry—from flower delivery to laundry, and even medical marijuana. So when the real Uber decides it’s going beyond its ride-hailing app to other on-demand global markets, people notice. Could there soon be an Uber for everything? Jason Droege, whose actual title is Head of UberEverything, confirms the company is in a unique position to leverage its extensive logistics network as its UberEats and UberRush delivery services expand to new markets. “We saw the rise from a consumer […]

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Meal Kits: Send it and they will cook it

By Nancy Monroe | October 3, 2016

By Nancy Weingartner In the mid-2000s, the rage was make-and-take concepts, where people drove to meal preparation storefronts to assemble a week’s worth of dinners using bulk ingredients and recipe cards. The idea was for customers—mostly working moms—to make it into a party, drink wine with friends, all while turning the often solitary work of making meals into a communal activity. The number of franchised concepts and independents grew quickly, but few were able to overcome the reality that cooking is work—even if you get a head start on the […]

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Domino’s partners with Roush and GM to create specialized DXP delivery car

By Tom Kaiser | October 3, 2016

Domino’s partners with Roush and GM to create specialized DXP delivery car. By Tom Kaiser After first rolling out its proprietary DXP pizza delivery cars last fall, Ann Arbor, Michigan-based Domino’s is doubling down on its funky hatchbacks with the announcement that it’s rolling out an additional DXPs across 23 markets in the United States—for a total of 155 visibility-boosting vehicles. The cars are designed to improve the pizza-delivery process, thanks to more than 100 innovations, including a remote-operated, flip-up exterior pizza-warming oven; special compartments to hold side items; and […]

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