The Wilbur Curtis Co., the family-owned maker of commercial coffee and tea brewing systems, has promoted two key executives. Kevin Curtis is the Montebello, Calif., firm’s new president and CEO; his brother, Michael Curtis, is the newly named executive v.p. The announcement was made by company chairman Bob Curtis. “Kevin has proven himself an invaluable…

Determining that its two divisions will be stronger as separate, autonomous companies, The Manitowoc Co. has announced it is splitting its Cranes and Foodservice businesses into two independent, publicly traded companies. The Manitowoc, Wis., company plans to carry out the separation through a tax-free spin-off of its foodservice business to be completed early next year.…

Carlos “Charlie” Rodriguez, a veteran of the foodservice service industry, has been hired by Heritage Foodservice Group as v.p.-U.S. service operations. Rodriguez will oversee the Fort Wayne, Ind., firm’s service operations in New Orleans, Oklahoma City and South Florida to enhance Heritage’s aftermarket footprint and strengthen relations with critical OEM partners in support of those…

Automated Equipment LLC, a Red Wing, Minn.-based maker of foodservice equipment such as automated French-fry makers and ice-cream-topping dispensers acquired neighboring Acrotech in January. “We are very excited by the addition of Acrotech to our product family. The focus on tools for safety, quality and productivity improvements fit right into our core competencies,” stated Richard…

James Walker, chief development officer at Johnny Rockets, has been promoted to president-operations and development at the Aliso Viejo, Calif., company. Walker, who joined the 330-unit chain in December 2013, will oversee development strategy, including construction, design and real estate, as well as domestic and international operations. Prior to joining Johnny Rockets, Walker was chief development…

Alto-Shaam will receive the 2015 Gas Foodservice Equipment Network Blue Flame Product of the Year Award for its CT PROformance 7-20 Combitherm oven during this week’s The NAFEM Show in Anaheim, Calif. The Menomonee Falls, Wis., manufacturer was honored for its ability to address leading commercial kitchen equipment challenges with advancements in speed, energy efficiency…

Ruby Restaurant Group is hoping to make a splash in the fast-casual market and add 20 franchises of its smaller “dinette-style” stores this year. The smaller units have half the footprint and half the startup costs of a standard Ruby’s Diner outlet. Ruby’s has been testing the 1960s-vibe dinette concept for about eight months in…

Habit Restaurants hopes to make its fast-casual outlets a habit in the Middle East. The chain’s first-ever international franchise agreement is with Food Quest Restaurant Management, which will develop up to 50 new Habit Burger Grill units in the UAE, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Bahrain, Kuwait and Oman over the next decade. Habit Burger debuted in…

Both the House and Senate are considering bills that would permanently lower the taxes paid by restaurant operators. The legislation would create a 15-year tax-depreciation schedule for new restaurant construction as well as restaurant, leasehold and retail improvements. If the bills pass Congress and are signed by President Obama, it would end the uncertainty that…

The Federal Trade Commission has blinked. Last Wednesday night, the regulator was close to voting to block Sysco Corp.’s $3.5 billion purchase of rival US Foods, but postponed the decision after an intense day of meetings with Sysco. Sysco, the country’s largest broadliner, met last week with the FTC’s five commissioners in a last-ditch attempt…