Utility efficiency, plus plenty of flexibility, help 10 pieces of kitchen equipment take home honors in FCSI’s Innovations Showcase.

The National Restaurant Association’s 2010 Kitchen Innovations Awardees offer you 16 ways to save money, time or both.

Streamlining, decluttering, faster service and sustainability mark the new prototype propelling growth plans for Moe’s Southwest Grill.

Just as consumers are starting to return to foodservice, a steep run-up in energy prices, including for gasoline, threatens to undercut the momentum. Oil prices surpassed $100 a barrel late last week, before falling back on news that the Saudis would raise output. But concerns about the stability of oil-producing regimes in the Middle East,…

As if rising fuel and food costs weren’t enough for foodservice operators, the extreme winter weather has also taken a toll. Same-store sales and traffic fell sharply in the January Restaurant Performance Index maintained by the National Restaurant Association. The overall index fell 0.8 point to end at 100.2, still above the 100 tipping point…

Gasoline isn’t the only commodity critical to foodservice that has been inflating. Food prices rose again in January, as extreme weather affected fruits and vegetable prices. On the retail side, prices were also up at the menu level and in grocery stores. Overall wholesale food prices rose 0.8% in January, according to the National Restaurant…

Both major surveys of consumer confidence moved higher in February, reaching levels not seen for three years, as consumers began to feel a bit better about the economic and employment outlooks. Both the Consumer Sentiment Index fielded by the Thomson Reuters/University of Michigan Surveys of Consumers and The Conference Board’s Consumer Confidence Index hit their…

In its largest-ever international development agreement, Dunkin’ Donuts has inked a deal to open 500 restaurants in India over the next 15 years. The Canton, Mass., chain signed the agreement with Jubilant FoodWorks Ltd., calling for Jubilant to develop, sub-franchise and operate more than 500 DD restaurants throughout India. The first units in the world’s…

In addition to Dunkin’ Donuts and as recently reported, Yum! Brands, McDonald’s and other chains are making inroads in feeding India’s fast-growing fast-food appetite. McDonald’s opened 33 new restaurants in the country in 2010, and its Indian franchisee plans to set up 30 new restaurants in the southern and western parts of the country this…