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Reality Check

Peter Romeo

The blog from award-winning journalist, RB Editor-at-Large Peter Romeo. Peter taps into his decades of experience covering the restaurant business at a variety of publications to discuss any number of issues related to the operations and general direction of restaurants.

Food

What might be the next Cronut, McRib or Pumpkin Spice Latte? We have some thoughts.

By Peter Romeo on Jul. 20, 2023

Reality Check: The RB staff put down its forks long enough to speculate on what could be the next big thing menu-wise. Here are our bets, longshot and otherwise.

Operations

3 great restaurant mysteries Agatha Christie couldn't solve

By Peter Romeo on Jul. 13, 2023

Reality Check: Missing coalitions, mystery associations and fair food are head-scratchers that have us vexed. And we've read all of Sherlock Holmes.

Marketing

Forget Threads. Casual restaurants are going retro in their latest marketing

By Peter Romeo on Jul. 12, 2023

Reality Check: 3-for-$10 (or thereabouts) and buy one/take one home deals are back in vogue.

Leadership

Someone forgot to tell Gene Lee this business is for losers

By Peter Romeo on Jun. 23, 2023

Reality Check: The retiring Darden Restaurants chairman blazed a career that should shush assertions the restaurant industry will take you nowhere.

Workforce

Get ready for a new push to raise wages

By Peter Romeo on Jun. 15, 2023

Reality Check: With housing costs at nosebleed levels, pressure is building to adjust pay rates accordingly.

Operations

The restaurant industry appears to be losing it

By Peter Romeo on Jun. 14, 2023

Reality Check: If a friend or relative were acting the way restaurateurs recently have, we'd all be calling someone.

Workforce

These teens couldn't be more eager to work in restaurants

By Peter Romeo on May 05, 2023

Reality Check: Indeed, they wouldn't mind owning one. They were already working hard toward that goal at the National ProStart Invitational competition.

Operations

The restaurant of tomorrow sounds a lot like yesterday's

By Peter Romeo on Apr. 20, 2023

Reality Check: With the pandemic fading, it may be back to the future for broad-market restaurant concepts. Just ask participants of a CEO's panel at the Restaurant Leadership Conference.

Workforce

Restaurants show their best and worst as employers

By Peter Romeo on Apr. 07, 2023

Reality Check: McDonald's sets a new low with virtual layoffs, while Jersey Mike's wins the public's favor.

Workforce

The restaurant industry may have grown a spine

By Peter Romeo on Mar. 31, 2023

Reality Check: After two years of wimpy defense, the industry has come out swinging at its labor adversaries.

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