QSR August 2022

YEAR 1 OF COVID-19 WAS DEFINED BY DIVERGENT REALITIES. Quick-service outlets fared far better than competitors. Once the initial wave of uncer tainty passed (was it even safe to get food at the drive-thru?), the sector’s long-standing strength outside its four walls crystalized. Not only that, however, but the agility and innovation that’s always defined the category. And now? You could argue quick service, especially drive thru, has become the hottest retail ticket in town. As this year’s QSR 50 shows, many concepts aren’t recalibrating in the wake of the pandemic; they’re rocketing upward. Major growth prospects—at times in the four digit realm—are on the table for fast casuals and fast-food icons alike. But the coast isn’t free of obstacles. This past year provided frequent hurdles, from Omicron to a continued labor battle that’s stretching well past the crisis. Buzzing topics like robotics, AI, automation, and integration, have popped up in response and handed operators more threads to connect with guests than ever. And in the end, we might just be headed for a golden era of quick service growth unlike anything we’ve seen in decades. È

1 McDonald’s

The top-earner in fast food rewrote its own record book in 2021. McDonald’s system wide sales bumped 21 percent to more than $112 billion—a new high mark in company history. Domestically, McDonald’s same store sales climbed 13.8 percent against a 0.4 percent lap in 2020. This, too, raised the bar; it signaled the highest-recorded comps performance since McDonald’s began reporting the metric in 1993 (and the sev enth consecutive calendar of positive U.S. same-store sales). Naturally, the top-line burst worked through the franchise system, which com prises roughly 95 percent of McDonald’s domestic base. Operators posted record snapping cash flow, with average growth of $125,000 per restaurant. The end result: North of $500,000, or a 50 percent increase over the past three years. Additionally, McDonald’s posted unprecedented operat ing income of more than $10 billion. How McDonald’s got there was a famil iar tale for restaurants a year removed from COVID’s initial assault on routines. The chain’s same-store sales benefited largely from average check growth as pricing rose about 6 percent (this number was 8 percent

/ BY DANNY KLEIN & BEN COLEY

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JUMP STRAIGHT TO THE CHARTS P.50

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WHY 2021 WAS A MIXED BLESSING FOR QSR 50 BRANDS P.62

ADOBE STOCK / WOLTERKE

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AUGUST 2022 | QSR | www.qsrmagazine.com