One concept is on the way out, while another makes its debut. A robotic pizza operation plans to land in Ohio. Datassential and Scription update their enterprises. Why one company thinks there will not be a recession in 2025. These stories and more This Week in Foodservice.

Donato’s Pizza will open a fully autonomous restaurant in June.Attendance at the 2025 National Restaurant Association Show declined a little compared to last year. Show organizer Informa said 53,000 people attended in 2025, which is down from the 58,000 foodservice professionals reported in 2024.

A couple of key themes emerged from this show.

One thing that stood out was the fact that beverages are really having a moment. From new flavors to new equipment, it was hard to walk five feet at the show without seeing a new product that aims to help operators capitalize on the beverage boom.

From AI to robotics and all points in between technology remains a hot topic among all industry segments. In his latest entry in Foodservice by Design, consultant Ignacio Goris takes a look at what caught his eye at the show, including the creative use of conveyors and small automated cranes performing specific, repetitive tasks. Also, Restaurant Business provided a candid look at the technology on display at the show.

Finally, it seems some foodservice equipment manufacturers are starting to develop more “cost-effective” equipment. It was a trend that began to emerge during The NAFEM Show earlier this year and it continued in the aisles in Chicago. This equipment is coming from well-established factories that are now offering new versions of their products to appeal to cost-conscious operators or those whose applications may not necessarily require all the whistles and bells of some of the companies’ more traditional, higher-end units.

Cinnabon and Carvel opened a co-branded location.Foodservice News

• CosMc’s may soon be gone, but it won’t be quickly forgotten. That’s because McDonald’s plans to audition flavors and beverages inspired by the short-lived concept as part of a U.S. beverage test the chain plans to launch. Just 18 months ago, McDonald’s made headlines around the world by launching a small-format, beverage-focused concept. Now McDonald’s plans to take the lessons learned from this experience and apply them in its existing stores.
• Multiconcept operator GoTo Foods opened its first Cinnabon Swirl location. Located in Arizona, the restaurant represents the latest co-branding initiative for GoTo Foods by combining its Cinnabon and Carvel ice cream concepts. GoTo Foods says it has inked development agreements to open more than 30 Cinnabon Swirl locations since first introducing the concept earlier this year.
• Donato’s Pizza will open a fully autonomous restaurant in June. Operating from John Glenn Columbus Airport in Ohio, the vending machine-style location will use AI-powered robotics to make pizzas 24/7, per a release from the pizza chain. This is part of a four-point strategy unveiled by Kevin King, Donato’s president, to create “new and innovative ideas that will disrupt the pizza scene.”
• Scription Maintenance continues to make progress. The tech startup raised an additional $7.8 million in funding. This brings the total amount the company has raised to $10.35 million, per a release. Its backers include venture capital firms IA Capital and Markd. Scription also hired Gerritt Graham to serve as its CEO. The company’s Scription360 program allows foodservice operators to subscribe to a maintenance plan and aligns service agent incentives based on equipment uptime rather than breakdowns, per a release. This approach “is ushering in a new era of technology adoption and reducing the total cost of equipment ownership” for quick-service restaurant operators.
• Can a smart kitchen help Wingstop take flight? The chain’s CEO says yes. The chain’s smart kitchen forecasts demand in 15-minute increments, which helps staff know how many wings to cook, per a QSR magazine story. It also features touchscreen displays at every workstation and a front-of-house order-ready screen that allows customers to track the status of their meals. The chain has rolled out its smart kitchen to 400 units and has seen wait times cut in half.
• Jollibee restaurant has rolled out a restaurant redesign as the chain prepares for more global expansion, restaurant development + design magazine reported. The Filipino fried chicken concept’s latest design elevates the dining experience and tells the chain’s story through interiors, graphic design, and signage.
• Portillo’s plans to open two smaller-format units. One will be in the Dallas-Ft. Worth Airport and the other in The Villages, Fla., per a Nation’s Restaurant News story. These units will feature a smaller, walk-up accessible footprint with multiple ordering touchpoints – including at the register, self-order kiosks and order ahead for pick up – as well as a Portillo’s Grab & Go area. The chain feels this design is suitable for high-traffic areas.
• Waffle House’s latest partnership is shocking, so to speak. The chain known for its loaded hashbrowns is partnering with BP Plus to bring direct current fast chargers for electric vehicles to 50 restaurants in the Southeast, per various published reports, including this one from Fast Company. Each site will have six charging bays.
• Datassential has acquired Brizo FoodMetrics, a food and beverage insights platform. This deal brings together operator data, consumer insights, and menu trends on one AI-powered platform. This marks Datassential's second acquisition in three years, building on the 2022 acquisition of CHD Expert.
• Global motor sports company Formula One plans to open a race-simulator restaurant and arcade concept in Chicago, per multiple published reports, including this one from CoStar News. The F1 Arcade will go into a downtown Chicago property previously occupied by a Rock Bottom Brewery. The restaurant and bar concept features high-tech race simulators. F1 Arcade has deals in place to open locations in Boston, Las Vegas, Atlanta, Denver, Philadelphia and Washington, D.C.
• Shake Shack will roll the dice on casinos as a growth vehicle. The fast-casual burger chain inked a licensing agreement to open 10 restaurants in casinos operated by PENN Entertainment, per a release announcing the deal.

Economic News

• Will there be a recession in the U.S. during 2025? ITR Economics says no. In a blog post, ITR Economics outlined eight reasons why it believes the U.S. will not go into a recession this year.
• Consumer confidence rebounded a little in May, per data from The Conference Board. Its Consumer Confidence Survey increased 12.8 points from April for a May reading of 98.0. This snapped a streak of five consecutive monthly declines, per The Associated Press. The Present Situation Index increased 4.8 points for a reading of 135.9. The Expectations Index surged 17.4 points but still came in at 72.8, which is less than the threshold of 80, which typically signals a recession ahead, per The Conference Board.
• New orders for manufactured durable goods declined 6.3% in April, per data from the U.S. Census Bureau. This followed a 7.6% increase in March. Excluding transportation, new orders increased 0.2%.
• Sales of new single-family homes increased 10.9% in April compared to the previous month, per data from the U.S. Census Bureau and the Department of Housing and Urban Development. While the increase was unexpected and welcome, the outlook for future home sales remains somewhat downbeat, per a Reuters report.
• Existing home sales declined 0.5% in April, per a report from the National Association of Realtors. The median sale price for an existing home increased 1.8% from April 2024 to $414,000, which is an all-time high for the month. Total housing inventory was up 9.0% from March 20.8% from one year ago.