A Downtown Disney staple prepares to go dark, while a popup restaurant celebrating the television show Golden Girls prepares to shine. McDonald’s prepares to make some organizational changes. These stories and more This Week in Foodservice.

Restaurant industry performance was essentially flat in February, per the latest data from the National Restaurant Association.

The association’s Restaurant Performance Index came in at 102.7 in February, down 0.1 from January. Any reading that exceeds 100 indicates growth for the industry. The NRA attributes the stability to positive results in two areas: same-store sales and consumer traffic.

In addition, 60% of restaurant operators expect to have higher sales in six months – the highest proportion in a year, according to the NRA.

The Current Situation Index, which measures current trends in four industry indicators, stood at 103.0 in February, which was unchanged from January.

Interestingly, the February Expectations Index declined only 0.1% from the previous month. Although restaurant operators have a positive outlook for sales in the months ahead, they are not as optimistic about the direction of the overall economy, per the NRA.

Operators continue to invest in their businesses, with 59% saying they made a capital expenditure for equipment and other items in the past six months. Looking ahead, 64% plan to make capital expenditures in the coming months.

Foodservice News This Week

• Is a big shakeup on the horizon at McDonald’s? Numerous publications continue to cite a Wall St. Journal report saying the Chicago-based burger chain is closing its U.S. offices for a few days this week in anticipation of layoffs associated with a corporate reorganization. This news did not come completely out of the blue as earlier this year the company hinted it might have to make some difficult decisions by April or so, per a Fast Company story.
• Catal, one of the original restaurants in Downtown Disney in Anaheim, Calif., will close its doors for good on April 14, per published reports. Uva, the outdoor part of this operation, will close, too. This move will pave way for what’s described as a “major new development for Downtown Disney,” which opened in 2001.
• With consumers’ appetites to enjoy their food off-premises showing no signs of abating, drive-thru design has never been more important. From order accuracy to the use of technology, no detail is too small to overlook as this restaurant development + design article on drive thrus points out.
• The National Restaurant Association Educational Foundation received a $500,000 Signature Employment Grant funding from Kessler Foundation. The NRAEF will use this donation to “strengthen its work readiness training for people with disabilities through its “Hospitality Pathways” project.” The “Hospitality Pathways” project builds on the NRAEF’s commitment to attracting and retaining restaurant and foodservice workers from all backgrounds by equipping them with training and education. Originally awarded as a $250,000 Signature Employment Grant in late 2022, the project was recently approved for a second year of Kessler Foundation funding worth an additional $250,000.
• A pop-up restaurant celebrating the hit television show “Golden Girls” will open in Chicago in May, per Chicago’s NBC affiliate. Known as The Golden Girls Kitchen, the operation promises an immersive experience. “inspired by the girls' favorite iconic Miami hangouts, as well as other memorable moments from the beloved franchise.”
• Despite the many challenges the industry faces, restaurant designers continue to have a positive outlook for 2023. In fact, 90% of operators polled by restaurant development + design reported feeling optimistic about restaurant openings for both 2023 and 2024.
• The James Beard Foundation announced the nominees for its 2023 chef and restaurant awards. JBF will present its 2023 Humanitarian of the Year Award to the co-founders of the Black Farmer Fund: social entrepreneur and impact investor Olivia Watkins, and farmer and activist Karen Washington. JBF will present its 2023 Lifetime Achievement Award to cookbook author, writer, teacher, and actress Madhur Jaffrey CBE.
• TH International Limited is now the exclusive operator and developer of Popeyes in mainland China. The company, which goes to market as Tims China, opened more than 600 Popeyes locations in China in less than 5 years, per a release announcing the deal. Tims China is the parent company of the exclusive master franchisees of Tim Hortons coffee shops in mainland China, Hong Kong, and Macau and Popeyes restaurants in Macau and now the mainland. Both Popeye’s and Tim Horton’s are owned by Restaurant Brands International.
• Growth Chains: Jinya Ramen Bar wants to grow to 200 locations from its current level of 52 in 10 years, as Restaurant Dive reports. Mr. Gatti’s Pizza opened a location in Dripping Springs, Texas. Penn Station East Coast Subs opened a location in Clinton, Tenn. and Dallas, N.C.

Economic News This Week

• Personal income increased 0.3% and disposable personal income increased .5% in February, per the U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis. Personal consumption expenditures increased 0.2%. The PCE price index increased 0.3%. Excluding food and energy, the PCE price index also increased 0.3% and the real DPI increased 0.2%. The good news is these increases are less than most economists anticipated and are less than January’s 0.4% increase, per published reports.
• Initial unemployment claims totaled 198,000 for the week-ending March 25, 2023, per the U.S. Department of Labor. This represents an increase of 7,000 from the previous week. The 4-week moving average was 198,250, an increase of 2,000 from the previous week.
• Real gross domestic product increased at an annual rate of 2.6% in the fourth quarter of 2022, per the third estimate released by the Bureau of Economic Analysis. This is 0.1% less than the second estimate and is based on more complete data, per the BEA. The revision primarily reflected downward revisions to exports and consumer spending (refer to "Updates to GDP"). Imports, which are a subtraction in the calculation of GDP, were revised down. In the third quarter of 2022, real GDP increased 3.2 percent.
• Consumer sentiment fell to a three-month low due to continuing worries about a recession, per the March University of Michigan Index of Consumer Sentiment. This marks the first time in four months that consumer sentiment declined, per a University of Michigan spokesperson. It’s also important to note that overall sentiment rates were higher than they were one year ago. Still, as a telling sign of the times, the March 2023 study posted across-the-board declines, with the overall index dipping 7.5%. Consumers' assessment of current economic conditions dipped 6.2% and the index of consumer expectations declined by 8.5%.