The Mexican QSR chain’s new location in Colorado Springs is the first of three slated to open this year in the Centennial State. Taco Bueno also has four new locations in Oklahoma and another two ready to open in Texas this year, including its first on-campus restaurant, located at the University of North Texas in…

Little Big Burger, a popular Portland, Ore., burger chain, has been acquired by Chanticleer Holdings. The deal includes cash and stock in Chanticleer, the Charlotte, N.C.-based holding company and owner of Hooters of America, which operates 412 Hooters restaurants. The acquisition adds another “better burger” chain to Chanticleer’s portfolio, which includes American Burger Co., BGR:…

Is beer a food? Some would say yes, but craft breweries—and now lawmakers in Virginia— say no. State agencies there have been duplicating regulation of the state’s 117 craft breweries, and operators in the fast-growing segment cried foul when the health department started trying to enforce restaurant-style regulations on free-standing breweries. Virginia’s health department is supposed…

Through the hard work of an FCSI taskforce, the Revit Foodservice Equipment Standards document has been updated for 2015. All files and documents pertaining to the standards can now be found on FCSI’s Revit Standards Page and is available for all members and non-members to access. Highlights include newly clarified standards for line subcategories, including…

Ecolab Inc. will acquire the U.S. operations of Swisher Hygiene for approximately $40 million in cash. Charlotte, N.C.-based Swisher Hygiene offers a range of products and services for the institutional foodservice industry, including warewashing and foodservice cleaning and sanitizing products and services. Operations included in the purchase agreement generate $176 million in annual sales and…

David Wightman, considered one of the foodservice equipment industry’s most creative technical minds of the past 20 years, died suddenly on July 29. He was 53. Since 1999, Wightman had served as president and CEO of XDX Innovative Refrigeration, which focuses on improved refrigerant flow properties, heat transfer and thermodynamics to assist customers in driving…

In case you missed the news before we went on vacation, here’s some end-of-summer optimism: Thanks to the strongest foodservice operator market since before the Great Recession and continuing demand in all three of the key domestic markets for equipment and supplies, Foodservice Equipment Reports is forecasting E&S sales at the manufacturer level will grow…

Equipment and supplies manufacturers raised list prices an average 3.3% during the year ended June 30, according to data from AutoQuotes Inc. released during Foodservice Equipment Reports annual President’s Preview E&S Market Forecast meeting held July 28 in Rosemont, Ill. Based on data for more than 407,000 product items from more than 500 manufacturers in…

Restaurant operator concerns about mandated minimum wage increases and other factors is affecting their outlook about the future, according to data from the June Restaurant Performance Index survey fielded by the National Restaurant Association. But those concerns didn’t stop them from buying and planning to buy equipment and supplies. The overall RPI fell a moderate…

Rob Geile, Vice President-Consultant Services for Ali Group North America, has received the Daryl Van Hook Industry Award from the National Association of College & University Food Services. The award is presented annually to an individual and/or organization based on outstanding support to the association. Geile, a NACUFS board member for the 2014-15 term, was…