The same week it debuted only its fourth Midwest location, at Minnesota’s Mall of America, the New York chain announced it would open its first store in South Korea. That unit will start operating in one of Seoul’s largest communities, Gangnam Avenue, later this summer, but until then, Shake Shack has built an illuminated art…

Ray Soucie, FCSI, LEED AP, has joined Webb Foodservice Design after 25 years as Principal of RSA Inc. in Portland, Ore. Soucie assumes the title of Senior Project Manager and will focus exclusively on design and project management for Anaheim, Calif.-based Webb.  He’ll remain in Portland, heading a design studio while maintaining personal contact with…

The country’s first capital has become its first major city to approve a tax on soft drinks. Last week, the Philadelphia City Council approved a 1.5-cent-per-ounce tax that will affect sodas and other sugary drinks, including teas, sports drinks and energy drinks. Drinks exempt from the tax are those that are more than 50% fruit juice, vegetable…

Small businesses are still struggling to get the money they need and to comply with government regulations, according to a survey by Babson College. Company owners who took part in the survey said they’ve been able to get only about 40% of the money they requested from all sources, including loans and investor funding. The…

Overall restaurant traffic was flat in the first quarter 2016 in the U.S., according to the latest CREST data from The NPD Group. And the Rosemont, Ill.-based research group expects more of the same. “All in all, the restaurant industry has been conducting business in a 1% world since 2010 and will continue at the…

Wholesale food prices rose in May for only the second time in eight months, according to Producer Price Index data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Prices at the final stage of demand rose 0.3% versus the month prior, while processed food prices rose 1.1% at the intermediate stage and unprocessed foods 0.1%. While, NRA…

The Oak Brook, Ill.-based burger giant is leaving the suburbs, and will move its corporate headquarters to Chicago’s West Loop neighborhood by the spring of 2018. McDonald’s also will move its “Hamburger University” training facility to a space in the city. The move will mark a return to downtown Chicago, where the company had been…

The University of Michigan’s Consumer Sentiment Index fell slightly to 94.7 in the mid-June reading. It had spiked to 94.7 in the final May reading. But the survey’s Chief Economist Richard Curtin and many economists focused on some worrisome underlying trends. Curtin said consumers rated their current financial situation at the highest levels since the…

U.S. petroleum refiners are apparently keeping up with rising demand for gasoline and diesel fuel so far this summer. The result: Average U.S. gasoline prices had fallen for nine consecutive days as of June 20 with prices down nearly four and a half cents from the previous week, according to the Daily Fuel Gauge Report…