QSR August 2022

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which RBI CEO Cil called one of the largest quick-service chicken markets in the world. Popeyes also expects to expand further in China, Spain, Brazil, Philippines, Mexico, Vietnam, Switzerland, and Sri Lanka. The China note, without much debate, could be the biggest as Popeyes has only “a couple of hun dred restaurants” in Asia today, brand president Sami Siddiqui said earlier in the year. KFC appreciates 26 per cent of its total system sales from China alone.

16 Dairy Queen

The cult-favorite ice cream chain kicked off the spring with the rollout of its new Signature Stackburgers menu—the chain’s most significant product rollout in the past two decades. The lineup comes in five varieties, including FlameThrower, Loaded A.1., Bacon Two Cheese Deluxe, Two Cheese Deluxe, and Original Cheeseburger.

18 Panda Express

Panda Express, the largest Asian dining concept in the U.S., brought back plant-based Beyond The Orig inal Orange Chicken for a limited time in November 2021. After a successful launch in New York City and Southern California the previous summer, the fast casual expanded the experiment to 70 locations across California, New York, Georgia, Illinois, Texas, Florida, Washington, Pennsylvania, Maryland, and Virginia. Following the introduction of the meatless orange chicken, Panda Express doubled down on its partner ship with Beyond Meat by launching Mapo Tofu with Beyond Beef and String Beans with Beyond Beef. The dishes cater to flexitarians, who eat both plant-based proteins and traditional meat. Little Caesars spent much of its time bolstering its development pipeline in 2021 after closing a net of 125 restaurants from 2018–2020. The pizza chain announced several benchmarks throughout the year, including 50 more venues in New England, 35 in St. Louis, at least 15 in Denver, 25 in Charlotte, up to 10 in New Orleans, more than 50 in the Pacific Northwest, at least a dozen in New York, and 30 in Tampa Bay. The strategy is backed by industry veterans with years of experience. Craig Sherwood, who joined in September 2020 as vice president of U.S. development, previously worked for Yum! Brands, Fazoli’s, and Sonic Drive-In, and Jeremy Vitaro, who was announced as the new chief development officer in spring 2021, previously worked as vice president of domestic development for Dunkin’ Brands. 19 Little Caesars

PANDA EXPRESS CONTINUES TO PUT MENU INNOVATION FRONT-AND-CENTER IN ITS EXPANSION.

Dairy Queen finished 2021 with 4,339 restaurants nationwide, all but two of them being franchised-oper ated units. It was a net decline of 22 locations compared to 2020.

17 Arby’s

Arby’s found opportunity to launch multiple pieces of menu innovation throughout 2021. Known for its curly French fries, the chain decided to add crinkle fries as a permanent item in March of that year. The brand fol lowed by launching a new kid’s meal with all-white meat chicken nuggets and rolling out buffalo wings for a limited time with Classic Buffalo Sauce and Hot Honey Sauce. The roast beef chain stepped up innovation even fur ther in 2022 by releasing the Wagyu Steakhouse Burger, the first of its kind in the company’s 58-year-history. The 6.4-ounce burger—cooked using sous vide style— was 50 percent larger than McDonald’s Quarter Pounder, Arby’s claimed, and used a blend of 52 percent American Wagyu and 48 percent ground beef. Arby’s U.S. same-store sales increased 5.2 percent in 2021 compared to 2020, and lifted 11.7 percent versus 2019. The brand opened a net of 40 restaurants last year, after debuting a net of 10 stores in 2020.

ARBY’S EVEN GOT INTO THE BURGER GAME RECENTLY WITH ITS WAGYU STEAKHOUSE LAUNCH.

DAIRY QUEEN / DAVID PAUL SCHMIT, ARBY’S, PANDA EXPRESS

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AUGUST 2022 | QSR | www.qsrmagazine.com