Taco Bell Launches 'FirstMeal' in 10 Western States; Teams with Some of America's Favorite Breakfast Brands

Irvine, CA  (RestaurantNews.com)  Taco Bell® today introduced FirstMeal™, a new breakfast menu that combines great Taco Bell value with classic breakfast tastes. Starting today, eleven unique menu items will be offered in 10 Western states, including California, Arizona and Colorado. Featuring some of America’s favorite breakfast brands such as Johnsonville®, Cinnabon®, Tropicana and Seattle’s Best Coffee, individual items will range from 99 cents (sausage or bacon and egg burrito) to $2.79 (Grande Skillet Burrito), with participating restaurants opening their doors and drive-thrus one hour earlier. For most locations, that means 8 or 9 a.m., with breakfast ending at 11 a.m. local time.

“We’re excited to bring value and taste to nearly 750 stores and to fans who are familiar with Mexican-inspired breakfast, while seeking the value and taste that only our FirstMeal menu can give them,” said Brian Niccol, Chief Marketing and Innovation Officer, Taco Bell Corp. “We’ve partnered with leading breakfast brands that consumers know, love and trust, including Johnsonville Sausage, which has teamed with us to create our signature product, a Sausage and Egg Wrap: a soft flour tortilla filled with savory sausage, fluffy eggs surrounded by melted cheese – all wrapped up and grilled. For those looking for more than a muffin, we feel they’ve met their morning match.”

Niccol expanded on the number of stores and times, noting that more Taco Bell locations in the eastern part of the U.S will start carrying FirstMeal in 2013 – and, starting at the end of 2012, the company will start sampling FirstMeal items alongside Fourthmeal offerings during late-night hours. “This is a very important launch for our brand. While we’re beginning in the west, where people grew up with breakfast burritos, we plan to reach a national audience in the future, becoming a part of their morning routine, and truly opening people’s minds and taste buds as they begin to open their eyes and take on the day.”

The full FirstMeal™ menu, in order of price: Sausage or Bacon and Egg Burrito, Hash Browns, Seattle’s Best Coffee® ($1.49 cents); Cinnabon Delights™ ($1.49), Tropicana Orange Juice ($1.49), Johnsonville® Sausage and Egg Wrap ($1.79), Seattle’s Best Coffee® Premium Vanilla or Mocha Iced Coffee ($1.99), Steak and Egg Burrito ($1.99), Grande Skillet Burrito ($2.79). Three combos will be offered, all for $3.99, which includes a drink and hash brown. Prices and items may vary at participating locations.

Taco Bell has tested FirstMeal in more than 150 stores in four markets: Bakersfield, Calif., Oklahoma City, Tucson, Ariz. and Dayton, Ohio. All participating restaurants will be equipped with full point-of-purchase (POP) advertising, including flutter flags, drive-thru picket signs, window clings and crew buttons. Radio remotes and free giveaways will be included in Taco Bell’s initial marketing mix for FirstMeal.

About Taco Bell Corp.

Taco Bell Corp. (“Taco Bell”), a subsidiary of Yum! Brands, Inc., (NYSE: YUM), is the nation’s leading Mexican-style quick service restaurant chain. Taco Bell serves tacos, burritos, signature quesadillas, XXL Grilled Stuft Burritos, nachos, and other specialty items such as Crunchwrap Supreme®, in addition to the Why Pay More!® Value Menu. Taco Bell serves more than 36.8 million consumers each week in nearly 5,600 restaurants in the U.S.

For Yum! Brands Inc.’s Taco Bell, thinking outside the bun means going gourmet.

The chain that once used a talking chihuahua to sell chalupas is working with Miami chef Lorena Garcia to win back eaters who have become accustomed to Chipotle Mexican Grill Inc.’s style of Mexican fare. Menu items will include Chipotle staples such as black beans, cilantro rice and corn salsa, Greg Creed, Taco Bell’s president, said last month.

Taco Bell could use a boost. The chain has shrunk by more than 1,000 stores since 2000 and has been left behind as Yum expanded its KFC and Pizza Hut chains overseas. Chipotle, in the meantime, has been a stock market star, its shares tripling since the end of 2009.

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Yum! Brands Chairman and CEO David Novak Shares Break-Through Leadership Strategies in New Book, TAKING PEOPLE WITH YOU

Louisville, KY  (RestaurantNews.com)  How do you lead an organization of any size – from a tiny startup to a global giant – to make big things happen? Yum! Brands (NYSE: YUM), the world’s largest restaurant company, announced today the publication of TAKING PEOPLE WITH YOU: The Only Way to Make BIG Things Happen (Portfolio Penguin, January 2012) by David Novak, Yum! chairman and chief executive officer. Novak shares the secrets of the unique “Taking People With You” leadership program he has developed and taught during his fifteen years at Yum! to thousands of managers and franchisees around the world.

Whether starting a business, developing or launching a new product, moving a company in a new direction or raising money for a good cause, TAKING PEOPLE WITH YOU has the answers to empower people at all levels personally and professionally. The book offers a step-by-step guide to setting big goals, getting others on board, achieving break-through results and celebrating after people “shock the skeptics.” Specific tools are included at the end of each chapter that challenge readers to reflect on how they are doing on key aspects of leadership.

Novak teaches leaders will never make big things happen until they learn how to get people aligned, enthusiastic and focused relentlessly on the mission. Yum!’s track record of success, with at least 13 percent earnings-per-share growth for each of the last nine years, proves his point. Under his leadership, Yum! has established itself as a global powerhouse going from approximately 20 percent profits coming from outside the U.S. in 1997 to more than 65 percent in 2010, while driving one of the highest returns on invested capital in the restaurant industry. Today, Yum! is the leading retail developer in China as well as the largest and fastest growing restaurant company in emerging markets with a two-to-one advantage over its nearest competitor. Additionally, Novak has built Yum!’s entire global people-first culture around reward and recognition to drive results.

TAKING PEOPLE WITH YOU is filled with street-smart wisdom from David Novak as well as leadership advice from other renowned business icons and management experts such as Warren Buffett, Jack Welch, John O’Keeffe (creator and author of Business Beyond the Box), Larry Senn (chairman and founder of Senn Delaney) and many others. It teaches people to change the way they think about leadership and practice it such as:

• Get inside the heads of your people. You can’t convince them of anything until you see the world from their perspective.
• Think big. If your sales growth last year was 3.5 percent, don’t aim for 4 percent this year, aim for 15 percent. Even if you fail, you’ll probably do better than you would have with a smaller goal.
• Practice “extraordinary authenticity.” Show occasional vulnerability and admit when you don’t have the answers.
• Look for good ideas in unexpected places. Earlier in Novak’s career when he was head of the Frito-Lay account at an advertising agency, he and his team came up with the idea for Cool Ranch Doritos during a field trip to a grocery store’s salad dressing aisle.
• Choose a can-do mind-set. There’s a huge difference between a boss who says “We can try this” and one who says “We can do this!”
• Cheer for first downs, not just touchdowns. Publicly recognizing and rewarding small wins keeps everyone motivated for the long haul.
• Get rid of cynics. In many teams one person will reject your values and spread negative energy. Moving that person out will show everyone else you’re serious.

Whether you are a CEO, an entrepreneur, or new to the business world, TAKING PEOPLE WITH YOU will help you get into the right leadership mind-set, develop a strategy and build alignment, and follow-through on the execution of the plan.

All of Novak’s proceeds from TAKING PEOPLE WITH YOU will be donated to the United Nations World Food Programme in conjunction with Yum! Brands global hunger relief efforts. Visit www.takingpeoplewithyou.com.

About the Author

Recognized as one of the world’s “30 Best CEOs” by Barron’s, one of the “Top People in Business” by FORTUNE and one of the “100 Best-Performing CEOs in the World” by Harvard Business Review, Yum! chairman and chief executive officer David Novak is known for motivating people, cultivating leaders and building winning teams. He is also the recipient of the national 2008 Woodrow Wilson Award for Corporate Citizenship. Prior to leading Yum!, he was president of both KFC and Pizza Hut and held senior management positions at PepsiCo. He lives in Louisville, Kentucky, with his wife. He is also the author of THE EDUCATION OF AN ACCIDENTAL CEO: Lessons Learned from the Trailer Park to the Corner Office (Crown Business, October 2007) that chronicles his personal journey to chairman and chief executive officer and the lessons that proved valuable along the way.

About Yum! Brands

Yum! Brands, Inc., based in Louisville, Kentucky, is the world’s largest restaurant company in terms of system restaurants with more than 36,000 restaurants in more than 117 countries and 1.4 million company and franchise associates. Yum! is ranked #214 on the Fortune 500 List, with revenues of more than $11 billion in 2010. The Company’s restaurant brands – KFC, Pizza Hut and Taco Bell – are the global leaders of the chicken, pizza and Mexican-style food categories. Outside the United States, the Yum! Brands system opened approximately four new restaurants each day of the year, making it a leader in international retail development. The Company has consistently been recognized for its reward and recognition culture, diversity leadership, community giving, and consistent shareholder returns.

Contact

Yum! Brands, Inc.
Virginia Ferguson, 502-874-8200
or
Weber Shandwick
Michael Schiferl, 312-988-2017

McDonald’s and two other fast-food chains have stopped using an ammonia-treated burger ingredient that meat industry critics deride as “pink slime.”

The product remains widely used as low-fat beef filling in burger meat, including in school meals. But some consumer advocates worry that attacks on the product by food activist Jamie Oliver and others will discourage food manufacturers from developing new methods of keeping deadly pathogens out of their products.

The beef is processed by Beef Products Inc. of Dakota Dunes at plants at Waterloo, Iowa, and in three other states. One of the company’s chief innovations is to cleanse the beef of E. coli bacteria and other dangerous microbes by treating it with ammonium hydroxide, one of many chemicals used at various stages in the meat industry to kill pathogens.

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Fast-food eateries are in the throes of drive-through Darwinism as more upscale upstarts, such as Chipotle Mexican Grill and Panera Bread Co., grab market share from the likes of Taco Bell, Subway and Wendy’s.

Chains that are fancier than fast-food options but cheaper than sit-down alternatives are part of a hybrid sector known as fast-casual that is maturing into one of the food industry’s strongest.

That category is tapping into growing demand for more healthful, specialty foods that are still speedily served and moderately priced. Fast-casual is steadily poaching fast-food customers looking for better quality and sit-down diners seeking cheaper prices, said NPD analyst Bonnie Riggs.

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Easy-to-Carry Box Includes QR Code for Exclusive ESPN Content

Taco Bell Taco 12 Pack Helps College Football Fans Claim MVP of Bowl Championship Series Parties

Irvine, CA  (RestaurantNews.com)  Looking for the perfect game day food to bring to your friend’s place for this year’s Bowl Championship Series (BCS) parties? Make the right call: steer clear of grocery stores, go up the middle, straight to Taco Bell® – an official BCS sponsor – and pick up the crowd-friendly Taco 12 Pack, available at participating locations starting Dec. 22 for a suggested price of $10. Prices may vary and exclude tax. This special limited time BCS box includes a dozen of Taco Bell’s classic, crunchy tacos boxed up and in-hand, and also features a unique QR code that gives fans exclusive ESPN video content and game analysis.

Available through a unique QR code, ESPN college football analyst Mark May breaks down each BCS bowl game (Rose Bowl Game presented by Vizio, Tostitos Fiesta Bowl, Allstate Sugar Bowl, Discover Orange Bowl, Allstate BCS National Championship Game), as well as giving fans past BCS bowl game highlights plus current season highlights. Anybody picking up the meal will be able to go toe-to-toe with the guys in the booth – and no doubt be the best couch analyst at any gathering.

Taco Bell’s Taco 12 Pack will be featured in advertising on ESPN in the weeks before the game, and during the matchup itself – including a mini-mercial with May. The meal will be promoted in an integrated campaign that includes TV, radio advertising, in-store promotions, Web site and social media activity as well as public relations. The TV advertising, handled through Draftfcb, Orange County and beginning today, will include a 30-second spot called “Make an Entrance,” with a voiceover saying that you can tell a lot about a guy by what they bring to a party. The first guy: a bag of chips (“lazy,” “woke up late”). The second guy: a bag of ice (“I’m cheap, too”). Third: seven-layer dip (“his mom probably just dropped him off.”). The hero enters with a Taco Bell Taco 12 Pack, telling the party he’s “confident, original – and has at least 11 friends.”

About Taco Bell Corp.

Taco Bell Corp. (“Taco Bell”), a subsidiary of Yum! Brands, Inc., (NYSE: YUM), is the nation’s leading Mexican-style quick service restaurant chain. Taco Bell serves tacos, burritos, signature quesadillas, XXL Grilled Stuft Burritos, nachos, and other specialty items such as Crunchwrap Supreme®, in addition to the Why Pay More!® Value Menu. Taco Bell serves more than 36.8 million consumers each week in nearly 5,600 restaurants in the U.S.

Glenda King, a 58-year-old college administrative assistant, used to frequent a Taco Bell near the University of Louisville “at least twice a week” — but that was before a Qdoba Mexican Grill restaurant opened nearby.

“That’s why I quit eating here so much,” King said as she ate a Fiesta Taco Salad inside the Taco Bell on Cardinal Boulevard, near U of L’s Belknap Campus. “This is cheaper, but there’s no comparison to Qdoba Grilled Chicken Taco Salad. I really like Qdoba better.”

King’s experience encapsulates the challenge facing Yum! Brands’ Taco Bell chain, which must compete with fast-growing Mexican casual dining restaurants like Qdoba and Chipotle even as it tries to regain the sales lost from publicity surrounding a lawsuit early this year that claimed the filling in its tacos and burritos didn’t contain enough beef to be called that.

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Some of the 40 million Americans currently receiving food stamps from the nation’s Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program may soon be able to use them at participating fast food restaurants.

Yum! Brands – the parent company of Pizza Hut, Taco Bell, KFC, Long John Silver’s and A&W – is lobbying to have food stamps be accepted at their restaurants.

“It makes perfect sense to expand a program that’s working well in California, Arizona and Michigan, enabling the homeless, elderly and disabled to purchase prepared meals with SNAP benefits in a restaurant environment,” Yum! spokesman Jonathan Blum told USA Today.

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Yum! Brands, the world’s largest restaurant company and parent of KFC, Pizza Hut and Taco Bell, announced today the launch of its annual World Hunger Relief effort featuring multi-Grammy Award winner and international superstar Christina Aguilera in a new public service announcement. According to the United Nations, there are nearly 1 billion people around the world who are hungry today.

World Hunger Relief is the world’s largest private sector hunger relief effort, spanning 110 countries, 38,000 KFC, Pizza Hut and Taco Bell restaurants and more than 1 million employees and franchise associates. The campaign raises awareness, volunteerism and funds for WFP and other hunger relief agencies.

The new PSA captures Aguilera standing on a dark stage that is artistically illuminated by sparkling lights held by children. As Aguilera sings a soulful a capella rendition of Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star, graphics illustrate how millions of children go to bed hungry. She urges people to join her in turning hunger into hope.

The PSA will start airing in mid-October. Aguilera will also appear in World Hunger Relief restaurant posters with the quote “Together, we have the power to save lives and go from hunger to hope” and online efforts, including the campaign’s website, FromHungertoHope.com.

Aguilera has served as global spokesperson for World Hunger Relief since 2009. She also serves as an “Ambassador Against Hunger” for WFP where she has traveled on relief trips with the organization to Haiti and Guatemala.

“As a mother, I can’t accept that children around the globe are going hungry and that’s why I’m so passionate about this issue,” said Aguilera. “My new PSA for World Hunger Relief is a twist on a classic lullaby but also a reminder that every night, millions of children go to sleep hungry. It gives those children a voice and shows how together, we can give every child a chance to dream,” added Aguilera.

“With nearly 1 billion people going hungry around the world, as well as the desperate situation in the Horn of Africa, we all need to help find a solution to this critical issue,” said David Novak, Chairman and CEO, Yum! Brands, Inc. “We are thankful for Christina’s efforts to help us build awareness, inspire volunteerism and raise money to fight hunger. As a company with a huge heart, we believe it is our privilege and responsibility to do everything we can to make a difference and save lives.”

Hunger and malnutrition are the number one risk to health worldwide – greater than AIDS, malaria and tuberculosis combined. Among the key causes of hunger are natural disasters, conflict, poverty, poor agricultural infrastructure and over-exploitation of the environment.

Recently, financial and economic crises, coupled with drought, high food prices and conflict affecting more than 13 million in the Horn of Africa, have pushed more people into hunger. Yum! is directing the first $1 million from its World Hunger Relief effort this year to help WFP provide food to families affected by hunger and suffering the effects of drought in the Horn of Africa. Novak and other senior executives and franchise leaders from KFC, Pizza Hut, Taco Bell and Yum! Restaurants International also traveled to Honduras last month to help WFP’s relief efforts in the country.

“The world hunger relief campaign provides life-saving food and nutrition to millions of children, transforming desperation to hope,” said Josette Sheeran, Executive Director of WFP. “This support enables school meal programs in the world’s most food-insecure areas, helping ensure children are not only being nourished, but can attend school, helping break the cycle of hunger and poverty.”

Consumers can visit FromHungertoHope.com or donate in the restaurants (no purchase necessary – see calendar below for dates that each brand’s participating restaurants begin their in–store campaign). Every U.S. dollar raised will go directly towards WFP’s operations to fight hunger around the world. One U.S. dollar provides four meals for hungry children at school.

Yum! plans to generate the equivalent of nearly $50 million in awareness of the hunger issue through a PSA, advertising, public relations, web–based communications and in–restaurant posters. The Company’s employees and franchisees will be volunteering their time around the globe at hunger relief agencies, food banks, soup kitchens and launching fundraisers.

Since World Hunger Relief launched in 2007, more than one million of the Company’s employees, franchisees and their families have volunteered more than 21 million hours to aid hunger relief efforts in communities worldwide. The effort has raised nearly $85 million for WFP and other hunger relief organizations and is helping to provide more than 350 million meals and save the lives of millions of people in remote corners of the world.

Yum! is also addressing hunger across the U.S. through its Harvest program. Since its launch over two decades ago, Harvest has become the largest prepared-food donation program in the world. Through Harvest, Yum! has donated over 125 million pounds of food, with a value of over $500 million, to those at risk of hunger in the U.S. The Company also has been the primary sponsor of the Dare to Care Food Bank in Louisville for nine years, and has donated nearly $9 million to this local agency.

Campaign Calendar: World Hunger Relief kicks off its fall campaign in the U.S. with Pizza Hut on September 25, Taco Bell on October 6 and KFC on October 17.

Yum! Brands has signed definitive agreements to sell Long John Silver’s, Inc. and A&W Restaurants, Inc. to two separate buyers led by key franchisee leaders. Both sales are subject to customary closing conditions.

“We are pleased to announce that we have identified strategic buyers who are passionate about these two great restaurant brands and committed to their growth potential,” said David C. Novak, Yum! Brands, Inc. Chairman and Chief Executive Officer. “As we continue to sharpen our long-term growth focus on international expansion and improving our US brand positions in KFC, Pizza Hut and Taco Bell, Long John Silver’s and A&W no longer fit our long-term growth strategy.”

The Company does not expect the sales to have a material impact to its ongoing earnings or cash flow. Both transactions are expected to close in the fourth quarter. Goldman, Sachs & Co. acted as exclusive financial advisor to Yum! Brands on the transactions.

Long John Silver’s will be acquired by LJS Partners LLC, led by a consortium of prominent franchisee leaders and other investors.

A&W will be acquired by A Great American Brand LLC, led by a franchisee leader with substantial interests in international A&W restaurants and the National A&W Franchisees Association representing U.S. A&W restaurant operators.

Yum! Brands, Inc., based in Louisville, Ky., is the world’s largest restaurant company in terms of system restaurants with approximately 38,000 restaurants in more than 110 countries and territories. The company is ranked #214 on the Fortune 500 List, with revenues of more than $11 billion in 2010. Four of the company’s restaurant brands – KFC, Pizza Hut, Long John Silver’s and Taco Bell – are the global leaders of the chicken, quick-service seafood, pizza and Mexican-style food categories. A&W Restaurants is the longest running quick-service franchise chain in America. Outside the United States, the Yum! Brands system opened approximately four new restaurants each day of the year, making it a leader in international retail development. The company has consistently been recognized for its reward and recognition culture, diversity leadership, community giving, and consistent shareholder returns.

The number of businesses approved to accept food stamps grew by a third from 2005 to 2010, U.S. Department of Agriculture records show, as vendors from convenience and dollar discount stores to gas stations and pharmacies increasingly joined the growing entitlement program.

Now, restaurants, which typically have not participated in the program, are lobbying for a piece of the action.

Louisville-based Yum! Brands, whose restaurants include Taco Bell, KFC, Long John Silver’s and Pizza Hut, is trying to get restaurants more involved, federal lobbying records show.

That’s a prospect that anti-hunger advocates welcome, but one that worries some current food stamp vendors and public health advocates.

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The main goal of the nation’s food stamp program has been to supplement the buying power of low-income residents when they shop for unprepared foods at grocery stores.

But a major restaurant company is lobbying the federal government on the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, federal lobbying records show. Louisville, Ky.-based Yum! Brands has allies among advocates for the hungry who hope to give restaurants a greater role in SNAP.

Yum! Brand restaurants include KFC, Taco Bell and Pizza Hut.

A little-used provision dating to the 1970s allows states to OK restaurants for SNAP benefits. The provision allows the elderly, disabled or homeless – populations that might not be able to cook unprepared foods – the option of exchanging their SNAP benefits at participating restaurants, but only a few states have opted into the program. South Dakota is not one of them.

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Yum! Brands, the world’s largest restaurant company and parent of KFC, Pizza Hut and Taco Bell, announced today that it is directing the first $1 million from its World Hunger Relief global effort to provide food to families affected by hunger and suffering the effects of drought in the Horn of Africa. The funds will help the United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) feed those in urgent need of food assistance.

Drought coupled with high food prices and conflict in the Horn of Africa is affecting more than 13 million people. WFP is rapidly moving life-saving food and nutritional products by sea, air and road to hungry populations in Ethiopia, Kenya, Uganda, Djibouti, and Somalia to address their needs. In Somalia alone, WFP is feeding 1.5 million people in the northern and central parts of the country and in Mogadishu which continues to fill up with those fleeing the famine zone.

“The situation throughout the Horn of Africa is desperate and we all need to help,” said David Novak, Chairman and CEO, Yum! Brands, Inc. “As a company with a huge heart, we believe it is critical to immediately commit the first $1 million from our World Hunger Relief effort to aid the people throughout the Horn of Africa.”

Novak and other senior executives and franchise leaders from KFC, Pizza Hut, Taco Bell and Yum! Restaurants International traveled to Honduras earlier this week to help WFP’s relief efforts in the country. As the second poorest country in Central America, Honduras is one of the many recipients of funds raised through World Hunger Relief.

There are nearly 1 billion hungry people around the world today. Hunger and malnutrition are the number one risk to health worldwide – greater than AIDS, malaria and tuberculosis combined.

Yum! Brands’ annual fall World Hunger Relief effort is the world’s largest private sector hunger relief initiative, spanning 110 countries, 38,000 KFC, Pizza Hut and Taco Bell restaurants and over one million employees, to raise awareness, volunteerism and funds for WFP and other hunger relief agencies. Multi-Grammy Award winner Christina Aguilera, the effort’s global spokesperson, will appear in a new public service announcement this fall as well as advertising, online efforts and posters in KFC, Pizza Hut and Taco Bell restaurants. Consumers can visit www.fromhungertohope.com or donate in the restaurants this fall. Every U.S. dollar raised will go directly towards WFP’s operations to fight hunger around the world.

Since World Hunger Relief launched in 2007, more than one million of the Company’s employees, franchisees and their families have volunteered more than 21 million hours to aid hunger relief efforts in communities worldwide. The effort has raised nearly $85 million for WFP and other hunger relief organizations and is helping to provide over 350 million meals and save the lives of millions of people in remote corners of the world.

Yum! Brands, Inc., based in Louisville, Ky., is the world’s largest restaurant company in terms of system restaurants with approximately 38,000 restaurants in more than 110 countries and territories. The company is ranked #214 on the Fortune 500 List, with revenues of more than $11 billion in 2010. Four of the company’s restaurant brands – KFC, Pizza Hut, Long John Silver’s and Taco Bell – are the global leaders of the chicken, quick-service seafood, pizza and Mexican-style food categories. A&W Restaurants is the longest running quick-service franchise chain in America. Outside the United States, the Yum! Brands system opened approximately four new restaurants each day of the year, making it a leader in international retail development. The Company has consistently been recognized for its reward and recognition culture, diversity leadership, community giving, and consistent shareholder returns.

WFP is the largest humanitarian agency fighting hunger worldwide. Each year, on average, WFP feeds more than 90 million people in more than 70 countries. For more information, visit www.wfp.org.

Even the best educated, smartest and most talented restaurant managers and owners are prone to developing blind spots. These blind spots make it difficult to achieve true restaurant success because you can’t even notice that they’re a problem. Asking for the input of an outside source, whether its a friend or a professional consultant, helps work around these problems.

Private equity firm Advent International has purchased the ownership interest held by Falfurrias Capital Partners in the Bojangles’ Restaurant Company. Falfurrias Capital Partners first bought the chain four years ago. Advent International plans to work with the current management team of the company and has no plans for drastic changes to the structure or menu of the chain.

Burger King restaurants have added the BK Minis sandwich packs to their national menu. Each BK Minis set contains four, eight or 12 tiny burgers or chicken sandwiches. Snackers can share a set of mini-sandwiches or chow down all by themselves. The four pack begins at just $2.99, with the 12 pack costing only $7.99.

Red Mango, a quickly growing chain specializing in frozen yogurt and smoothies, has appointed a new CEO. Barry M. Barron will take over as the head of the chain and will bring his extensive experience in the restaurant industry to the chain. He spent six years as the head of expansion at Papa Johns and learned how to be a top-notch CEO at the ACE Cash Express chain.

Popeyes Louisiana Kitchen is making tasty, freshly fried chicken fun again with the new Rip’n Chick’n. The meal features chicken tenders pre-cut so you can tear them apart and dip into the ranch dipping sauce. For just $3.99 diners will receive a buttermilk biscuit, ranch dip, the chain’s signature Cajun fries and a Rip’n Chick’n breast piece.

Chik-fil-A is expanding its breakfast menu across the country with health-conscious consumers in mind. The newest menu addition is the slow-cooked Multi-Grain oatmeal. Four types of grains, including rolled oats and flax, are used to increase fiber and nutrients. Topping choices include mixed nuts, dried fruit and brown sugar with cinnamon.

Domino’s Pizza is taking a unique and daring step to win customer loyalty. The pizza chain is adding a live display in Times Square that shows customer feedback from the online ordering program as it is added. Negative and neutral reviews will be displayed along with positive feedback. Customers also get to use the Domino’s Tracker to see which employees prepared their pizza at each step.

Taco Bell restaurants around the country launched the new Big Box Remixed meal today. The meal also gives consumers access to exclusive music content through a partnership with the upcoming MTV Video Music Awards. A Quick Response, or QR, code on the box gives your smart phone access to a mobile site with music downloads and other exciting content.

Hardee’s and the My Coke Rewards program have teamed again to help diners win one of two $5,000 gift cards. Large fountain drinks, including those with large sized combo meals, feature promotional codes that are redeemable for free menu items and My Coke Reward points. The promotion will run until September 18^th.

Growing demand for healthy dining variety has led the Zoup! Fresh Soup Company to grow rapidly. Franchisees Don and Pat Hoag are developing their second location with the brand that will open in October in Cleveland, Ohio. The chain currently has 35 restaurants mainly located in the Midwestern states like Michigan.

Today, Taco Bell launches the Big Box Remixed, which combines the flavor of four classic Taco Bell menu items with the freshness of exclusive music content via a mobile site, packaged in a specially designed MTV Video Music Awards (VMAs) box.

Taco Bell features its first QR code on packaging – also known as a ‘Quick Response’ code available using a free QR reader app on smartphones – on its Big Box Remixed and large cups that dishes out exclusive music content over a six-week period leading up to this year’s VMAs on Sun., Aug. 28. This exclusive content will highlight Taco Bell Feed the Beat artists Wallpaper and Chiddy Bang, as well as stream VMA sneak peeks and teasers, performance footage, artist interviews and a look at the artists to be featured at the Friday Night Pre-VMA Concert Event sponsored by Taco Bell on Fri., Aug. 26.

Taco Bell’s exclusive music access extends online with the “VMAs Hook-Up,” a sweepstakes on the Taco Bell page on Facebook that will reward one lucky winner with a trip to VMAs weekend including the Friday Night Pre-VMA Concert Event sponsored by Taco Bell. Anyone who “likes” the Taco Bell Facebook page, currently at more than 7 million people, (http://www.facebook.com/tacobell) will have the opportunity to enter for a chance to win the “VMAs Hook-Up” package including two pre-show tickets, two tickets to the VMAs, two airline tickets, hotel room and $400 in Taco Bell gift cards. Roadtrip to the VMA’s Sweepstakes: NO PURCHASE NECESSARY. Legal residents of the 50 United States (D.C.) 13 years or older. The Sweepstakes begins on August 15, 2011 at 12:00 p.m. Pacific Time (“PST”) and ends on August 17, 2011 at 11:59 p.m. PST. To enter and for Official Rules, including odds of winning and prize description, visit http://www.facebook.com/tacobell. Void where prohibited.

“In anticipation of the upcoming VMAs, we are turning up the volume by giving Taco Bell and music fans access to never before seen or heard music content which includes some of the phenomenal up-and-coming talent from our Feed the Beat program,” said David Ovens, Chief Marketing Officer, Taco Bell Corp. “We love music and the Big Box Remixed not only offers a lot of great tasting food for just five bucks, but also feeds music fans’ hunger for exciting music content accessed easily on the go.”

Available at participating Taco Bell locations for a suggested retail price of $5 through the month of August, the Big Box Remixed comes in two varieties:

• Cheesy Double Beef Burrito Box: Cheesy Double Beef Burrito, Burrito Supreme, Crunchy Taco and medium drink.
• Cheesy Gordita Crunch Box: Cheesy Gordita Crunch, Burrito Supreme, Crunchy Taco and medium drink.

“We’re thrilled to join forces with Taco Bell as together we count down to the ‘2011 MTV Video Music Awards’ and celebrate Taco Bell’s commitment to music through their Feed the Beat program,” said Jeannie Scalzo, Senior Vice President, Integrated Marketing, MTV. “Thanks to Taco Bell’s innovative VMA sponsorship, millions of their customers across the country will get music content leading up to ‘the biggest night in music.’”

The highly anticipated VMAs will be held in Los Angeles on Sun., Aug. 28, airing live on MTV. Last year’s VMAs scored the largest audience numbers for any MTV telecast since 2002. The music-themed box is part of Taco Bell’s activation to support its MTV marketing partnership and Taco Bell’s Feed the Beat program, which supports up-and-coming artists by providing them $500 in Taco Bell gift cards while touring.

Draftfcb, Irvine produced the Big Box Remixed and medium cup packaging, as well as the television advertising. Airing nationally starting Sun., Aug. 14, the commercial spot will depict the Big Box Remixed in an animated world of music and art. Draftfcb, Irvine was also responsible for the in-store messaging. MTV built the QR code, mobile site and will be providing the exclusive content.

Arby’s restaurants are celebrating the chain’s 47^th year of operation by offering an original Roast Beef Sandwich for just .64 with the purchase of a medium drink. Guests who want to take advantage of the one day only offer must print out a coupon found on the company’s Facebook page. The event will take place this Saturday, July 23^rd.

Expion, a new social media marketing company, has been helping some of the largest Applebee’s franchisees engage local customers. The company created hundreds of new Facebook pages for individual restaurant locations, each with their own special promotions. This also helped the franchisee companies monitor and research customer requests and satisfaction.

New research shows that overall seafood consumption in restaurants is down, according to the NPD Group, but this is mostly driven by economic reasons and not health concerns. Fried seafood consumption especially dropped but non-fried dishes are being ordered more often now. Seafood entree sales have been dropping slowly since 2007.

Groupon may have been one of the first social couponing websites to offer deals to diners who all went in together on the discount, but the popular service has spawned plenty of competitors. These websites help diners find deals in their area by requesting a zip code or city. The services work with local restaurant owners to create discounts that bring in new diners.

Americans across the country all love fast food and convenience it provides. However, there are 10 top cities that consume more fries and hamburgers than the rest. Plano, Texas isn’t that large, but the city spends 2.3 times the national average each year on fast food. Madison, Wisconsin came in second and San Francisco, California came in nearly last at 91.

Chipotle Mexican Grill announced its second quarter earnings for 2011 and is showing some improvements over the last quarter. Total revenue increased by over 22% and comparable restaurant sales rose by 10%. The chain also saw a 9% increase in the net income, reaching a total of $50.7 million dollars.

The Taco Bell Foundation, the charitable arm of the Taco Bell chain owned by Yum! Brands, has started their new Graduate to Go Internship Program. Six teenagers were hired from the Boys and Girls Club to learn about the wide variety of career opportunities available to them over the next three months. The teens will visit the company’s headquarters and will receive $10,000 scholarships.

Freebirds World Burrito, a new restaurant chain that combines flavors from across the globe with fresh salads and burritos, is expanding again. Two new locations will open shortly in the Dallas-Fort Worth metro area. The first opens on July 21 and the second will celebrate its grand opening on July 27^th. Each restaurant added approximately 75 jobs to the community.

Rodizio Grill of Utah has developed a new Days of 47 promotional event that gives customers two choices for a discounted $47 four course meal. Guests can also enjoy two fresh glasses of Rodizio’s limeade for just $4.70. The restaurant is encouraging other dining establishments in the state to create their own Days of 47 events.

Dickey’s Barbecue Pit is America’s fastest growing national barbecue chain. To celebrate its rapid expansion the chain’s newest location in Pennsylvania will give away a free year’s supply of barbecue to the first guest through the door on July 21^st. Everyone else can enjoy $1 barbecue sandwiches until 1 pm.

Legend has it that Genghis Khan’s cooks tossed mutton, mushrooms and vegetables together to serve his soldiers quickly before battle. Eight centuries later, the same “hot pot” cuisine is now a contender as Yum! Brands’ next big restaurant chain, alongside fast-food outlets KFC, Pizza Hut and Taco Bell.

The pending $860 million acquisition of Little Sheep, with 700 locations in China and a handful elsewhere, including San Diego, could satisfy Yum’s search to fill the Chinese cuisine niche. Louisville-based Yum already touts itself as the world’s largest restaurant company, with 38,000 outlets.

Since announcing its purchase in April, company executives have spoken openly about the possibility of building the Little Sheep hot-pot concept into a global brand like KFC. Meanwhile, Chinese regulators are reviewing the purchase.

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 Barbecue fans in Chicago found the summer of 2010 to be the most exciting times in the city for many years. Between the end of June and Labor Day seven new restaurants serving barbecue opened in the Windy City. The boom was driven by the popularity of Smoque, a restaurant opened by an accounts manager with no professional barbecuing experience.

Pinchers Crab Shack, a small seven location restaurant chain, first used the “You can’t fake fresh” slogan in the summer of 2004. The chain recently sued fast food giant Wendy’s for trademark infringement. Wendy’s used the slogan more recently and may have to pay the smaller chain damages.

Yum Brands CEO, David Novak, has issued a challenge to the ad agencies working with the company. Novak wants to boost sales to the company’s brands like Taco Bell and KFC. The three agencies working to develop advertising campaigns for the brands will come together for a brainstorming session with executives.

Yum Brands’ most popular brand, Taco Bell, was recently hurt by accusations of low meat quality that were subsequently dropped due to misinformation. However, consumers still heard the rumors and sales have been weak for the past half a year. The third quarter is expected to continue to be low in profits, but the company is working to improve this for the end of the fiscal year.

Friendly’s is ready to celebrate July as National Ice Cream Month with families around the country. The chain offers quality, fresh ice cream in all of its stores that is made from local milk and other ingredients. Friendly’s also offers 49 different flavors in its pre-packed pints, so your whole family will find something they enjoy.

Restaurants in India have improved greatly recently, but most locations still struggle with a few stubborn problems. Too much air conditioning, mixed menus in small restaurants, uninformed waiters and loud music turn tourists away. Some restaurants also charge too much for locally made wine and feature overzealous toilet attendants as well.

Five Guys Burgers and Fries is adding a new location to Canton on July 18^th. The Virginia based chain is continuing to grow due to their focus on higher quality burgers instead of speed or bargain pricing. The new restaurant added 45 jobs to the area and will give Canton residents a new option for family casual dining.

Bill Bridges may own five other franchise locations from different brands, but he chose Dickey’s Barbecue Pit for his new restaurant. He opened his location in the Delaware suburb of Columbus, Ohio. This brings the chain’s total restaurant count to 156 in 38 different states.

The Red Room Tapas Lounge, located in Raleigh, North Carolina, is expanding its Salsa Night. The event began on Thursday nights at 9 pm, but guests can now salsa on Friday and Saturday nights as well. Free dance lessons are offered in the early evening and drink and tapas specials are available until 10 pm.

Yum Brands Inc. expects damage from a dropped lawsuit over the quality of Taco Bell’s ground beef to linger in the third quarter, but to ease during the remainder of the year, and laid out plans to turn the business around.

Taco Bell is Yum’s most profitable U.S. brand. A sharp decline in closely watched same-restaurant sales, along with higher-than-normal commodity inflation, resulted in a 28 percent decline in U.S. operating profit for the second quarter.

A California woman in January sued Taco Bell over the contents of its seasoned beef. Taco Bell responded by saying it planned to take legal action against the “false statements” being made about its food. In April, the woman voluntarily dismissed her lawsuit.

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David Novak, the chairman-CEO of Yum Brands, is on a mission to lift sales at the restaurant company — the parent of KFC, Taco Bell and Pizza Hut — and is challenging his ad agencies to do their part.

According to multiple people familiar with the matter, Mr. Novak has circulated a memo to the company’s lead creative agencies, calling for a “brainstorming session” that will involve its three main ad partners: WPP’s Ogilvy & Mather and Interpublic Group of Cos. siblings DraftFCB and the Martin Agency.

People familiar with the memo said Mr. Novak expressed discontent with the company’s U.S. business results compared with its international growth, and asked for agencies to assess the causes and come up with solutions. Solutions may include anything from untapped consumer trends to operations suggestions to innovations in the fast-food category. Mr. Novak is also understood to have inquired about what could be done on Yum’s part to help improve the creative work.

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The Wendy’s/Arby’s Group has successfully sold the Arby’s chain to Roark Capital. The original company will be renamed The Wendy’s Company immediately. Roark Capital now owns over 20 franchise brands including Arby’s. The Wendy’s Company will retain a 18.5 common stock holding in the brand.

Golden Corral has added new seafood menu items to its expansive buffet line-up with the introduction of Pan Seared Scallops, Shrimp and Tilapia. New sauces to top your freshly cooked seafood include spicy Alfredo sauce, lemon piccata sauce and scampi sauce. For light and tasty sides you can pair linguine or rice pilaf.

Carl’s Jr. and Hardee’s once tried to appeal to young male consumers with sexy burger ads and cheaper foods, but now the chain is seeing improvement as it becomes more upscale. Focusing on higher quality menu items like turkey burgers has brought the parent company CKE Restaurants back into rising instead of falling sales and growth.

Asheville may be known for its food scene, but the town has had a standing ban on food trucks and mobile food services for the past 25 years. The Asheville Downtown Commission is hearing the arguments of both residents interested in food trucks and city center retailers that don’t want them. About 75% of residents polled were in favor of overturning the ban.

Chili’s $20 Dinner for Two menu proved to be very popular as the economic recession worsened. Now the chain is adding more options for diners who need an inexpensive night out. The Hatch Chile Cheeseburger, Chicken Club Quesadillas and Santa Fe Sizzling Skillet are all on the $20 menu. Two of the additions use the mild green Hatch chile for flavoring.

Sonic restaurants are celebrating July as both National Hot Dog Month and Ice Cream Month with new menu additions. The Baja Dog will be available for a limited time and features pepper jack cheese, jalapenos and onions over an all-beef frank. The Sundae Shakes mix top quality Classic Hot Fudge, Strawberry Dream and Turtle ice cream with milk.

Taco Bell is making improvements to attract customers to spend more time in each location. Free Wi-Fi will be added to all national locations by 2015. The chain also plans to install new television displays in restaurants that show a mix of sports, entertainment and news content.

Wine Enthusiast Magazine has named the Barcelona Restaurant & Wine Bar as one of the top 100 Best Wine Restaurants for 2011. The director of the restaurant’s wine menu also manages one of the biggest Spanish wine programs in America. The restaurant chain combines a lively tapas bar atmosphere with the warmth and intimacy of a wine bar.

Hot N Juicy Crawfish will open their newest location in Orlando, Florida on July 9^th. The chain features Louisiana style seafood dishes, and of course hot and fresh boiled crayfish. The chain built up a following at their Las Vegas and Washington D.C. locations. All Hot N Juicy Crawfish locations use only fresh local seafood or top quality ingredients that are flown in daily.

Taco Bell will be outfitting all its US restaurants with free Wi-Fi and TV screens that will air music, lifestyle, entertainment and sports content in a bid to improve customers’ in-store eating experience.
By 2015, all 5,600 of its locations across the US will offer free Wi-Fi for its customers. Currently, only 40 restaurants offer the service.

But last week’s announcement is a belated move in the fast-food world, where chains like Starbucks and McDonald’s already offer free Wi-Fi to their customers.

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McDonald’s popular slogan may be “lovin’ it” but consumers beg to differ, the fast food icon was joined by Burger King, KFC and Taco Bell among the lower ranked chains in Consumer Reports first ever major fast food ratings.

The survey, based on responses from 36,733 subscribers who made more than 98,000 visits to 53 fast-food chains revealed that readers found them to offer uninspiring food, only so-so service. Other major chains with relatively low scores: sandwich shops Arby’s and Quiznos and pizza joints Domino’s and Pizza Hut.

“Chains like McDonald’s and Taco Bell boast supersized values, but consumers don’t necessarily think they offer much bang for the buck,” said Tod Marks, Senior Projects Editor, Consumer Reports. “Fifty four percent of our subscribers cited low prices as a reason for picking a particular fast-food restaurant.”

By contrast, CR’s survey revealed good deals and even better meals at dozens of ever-present fast-food restaurants. Consumer Reports readers gave 21 of the 53 chains high marks for food.  Among the winners:

• For burger fans, In-N-Out Burger rated highest of all 53 chains rated in Consumer Reports Survey with high scores for food, service, value and speed.
• Chipotle Mexican Grill was among the best of 8 leading Mexican food chains, and earned high scores for food, politeness of staff and speed of service.
• One chicken chain topped the rest hands down: Chick-fil-A. With outstanding scores for politeness of staff, and high marks for food, value, and speed of service, respondents rated it higher than seven other leading poultry stops.
• If you’re craving a top-notch wedge, hero, hoagie, or sub served quickly with a smile on the side try Jason’s Deli or Firehouse Subs. Readers gave them the highest marks for food and favorable scores for politeness of staff and speed of services among 11 sandwich and sub chains.  
• The single standout for pizza: Papa Murphy’s Take ‘N’ Bake Pizza, which has an unconventional concept where the patrons order a pizza to bake at home. It earned the highest marks for food, and exceptional scores for value, staff politeness and speed of service among the pizza chains.

Other Key Findings:

Diners want better food. Many restaurants scored higher for service—specifically, speed and politeness—than for food. At chains with the highest scores for food, 42 to 54 percent of patrons called the fare excellent, but at Burger King, KFC, McDonald’s, and Taco Bell, no more than 11 percent of patrons did. In fact, 15 to 19 percent of respondents who ate at one of those chains thought the food was fair, poor, or very poor. At Sbarro, an Italian chain, 27 percent of patrons judged the food fair, poor, or very poor.

Diners want a better experience. Whether they ordered cafeteria-style, at a counter, or at a drive-thru, or had food delivered, readers were much less pleased overall with fast-food restaurants than with casual full-service eateries like Cracker Barrel, Outback Steakhouse, and Red Lobster. Sixty percent of respondents said they were completely or very satisfied with their fast-food dining experiences vs. 68 percent of casual-restaurant patrons.

For the complete ratings of 53 popular fast-food quick-service chains, to find out which chains offer the best food according to Consumer Reports readers, or to learn more about survey results, visit www.ConsumerReports.org starting June 30th, or pick up a copy of August issue of Consumer Reports  wherever magazines are sold.

Despite increasing overhead and declines in consumer dining, the fast casual category of restaurants continues to grow, even as other parts of the restaurant industry struggle. Technomic’s new report on fast casual chains in America shows that Mexican restaurants have become the most wide spread, while bakery cafes are second. Fast casual chains grew an average of 6 percent in 2010.

Consumers are using their Twitter accounts to rave about favorite foods or discuss a bad experience, so many fast food giants are getting in the game of responding to these tweets. Yum! Brands, the parent company of national restaurant chains like Papa John’s and Taco Bell, has hired a team of social media managers to handle Twitter. These social media experts also work to spread word of mouth promotions on Facebook and keep track of consumer opinions through social media.

McDonald’s is pushing ahead with their plans to become the world’s most technologically advanced fast food chain in the world. European locations will begin testing a completely computerized ordering system. Customers will place orders through easy to use touchscreen computers instead of speaking with an employee at a cash register. This will save the restaurants money and employee time, and will make orders more accurate for customers.

Darden Restaurants, parent company that owns and operates chains like Olive Garden and Red Lobster, is shuffling some of their top executives to re-engineer their leadership structure. Olive Garden’s President, Dave Pickens, will become the President of Red Lobster. Red Lobster’s current President, Kim Lopdrup, is moving to the SVP of Business Development position for the entire Darden company.

Zagat’s editorial team has compiled a new list for New York showcasing some of the top new talent in the restaurant industry. The list is known as the New York “30 Under 30” and contains the top 30 restaurantuers and chefs under the age of 30. Honorees include Cedric Vongerichten, the executive chef at Perry St., the butcher and co-owner of The Meat Hook and chef-owner of Eddie Huang at BaosHaus.

Atlanta Bread is intregrating Italy’s best selling coffee brand, Lavazza, in all of their national stores. To celebrate the chain will be giving away free coffee all day on May 23rd. Anyone who is a fan of the store on Facebook can pick up their free cup of coffee. The chain chose Lavazza coffee due to their social responsibility and top quality roasted blends.

Dickey’s Barbecue Pit continues their fast paced 2011 expansion campaign with their first location opening in New Jersey. The new location, which is still in the planning stages, will be opened in Hoboken by Alan Cohen. Franchisee Cohen grew up in Texas, the home of the Dickey’s chain, so he knows barbecue. The chain is currently operating in 33 states, but by the time their expansion push is over, this number will be in the mid-40s.

Buffalo Wild Wings has opened their first international location with a new restaurant in Canada. Located in Oshawa, Ontario, this Buffalo Wild Wings will serve the same Tex Mex and hot wing focused menu as others but will also offer a unique Honey Garlic wing sauce that American restaurants don’t serve. The new restaurant brought over 100 jobs to the Oshawa community and plans to support local sports teams and other groups.

A new Red Robin Gourmet Burgers is coming to Maryland in the next few weeks. The Frederick, Maryland Red Robin will hold their grand opening on May 30th. The restaurant will give away free child ID kits from the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children to celebrate. Red Robin’s menu focuses on premium, gourmet burgers as well as a variety of salads, wraps and sandwiches to pair with fries and other popular side items.

Healthy Fast Food, a company specializing in chains that offer consumers healthier snack and meal choices while on the go, has changed its name to U-Swirl. The name change reflects their business focus on cafe style frozen dessert restaurants. The company hopes that the new name will help consumers and investors alike quickly understand the self-serve frozen yogurt focus of their efforts.

Tweeting about eating may seem like Internet noise to some, but the folks at Louisville-based Yum! Brands’ KFC, Pizza Hut and Taco Bell, as well as Papa John’s International, increasingly are talking back.

Reading and reacting to the daily blizzard of tweets, Facebook posts and other social media traffic has increasingly become an integral part of the restaurant industry.

All have staff who read and respond to what people say about the brands online. Most post specials and coupons, too, like the regular Facebook promotions local pizza chain BoomBozz offers to Facebook fans. Just as important, companies say, is to act or talk back to what consumers are saying about their brands.

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Taco Bell is demanding an apology from the law firm that brought a recently dismissed lawsuit alleging the fast-food chain misled consumers about the content of its beef — and says it’s even considering legal action against the firm.

The “Would it kill you to say you’re sorry?” campaign, which included full-page ads in the Wall Street Journal, New York Times, USA Today and numerous local market newspapers, followed an announcement from Alabama law firm Beasley Allen last week saying they dropped the class-action suit after “changes in marketing and product disclosure were made” by Taco Bell.

The Taco Bell ads refute that statement, saying the firm voluntarily withdrew the suit despite there being “no changes to our products or ingredients, no changes to our advertising, no money exchanged, no settlement agreement. ”

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YUM! Brands has announced that it has submitted a preliminary proposal to Little Sheep Group Limited under which YUM! Brands would offer to acquire all outstanding shares of Little Sheep, other than a minority interest to be held by the chairman and other founding shareholders of Little Sheep. Little Sheep owns and operates Hot Pot concept restaurants primarily in China and is headquartered in Baotou, Inner Mongolia, China. Its shares are listed on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange. YUM! Brands currently owns 27.2% of the outstanding shares of Little Sheep. No formal offer has been made at this stage and any such offer, should one be made, would be made only after YUM! Brands has obtained all necessary regulatory approvals for the transaction. There can be no assurance that the current discussions between YUM! Brands and Little Sheep regarding the proposal will ultimately lead to an offer being made or, if an offer is made, that it will result in a completed transaction.

Yum! Brands, Inc., based in Louisville, Kentucky, is the world’s largest restaurant company in terms of system restaurants with nearly 38,000 restaurants in more than 110 countries and territories. The company is ranked #216 on the Fortune 500 List and generated revenues of more than $11 billion in 2010. Four of the company’s restaurant brands – KFC, Pizza Hut, Taco Bell and Long John Silver’s – are the global leaders of the chicken, pizza, Mexican–style food and quick–service seafood categories, respectively. A&W Restaurants is the longest running quick-service franchise chain in America. Outside the United States in 2010, the Yum! Brands system opened approximately four new restaurants each day of the year, making it a leader in international retail development. The company has consistently been recognized for its reward and recognition culture, diversity leadership, community giving, and consistent shareholder returns. In 2007, Yum! launched World Hunger Relief, the world’s largest private sector hunger relief effort to raise awareness, volunteerism and funds to benefit the United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) and other hunger relief agencies. To date, this effort has raised nearly $85 million for WFP and other hunger relief agencies and is helping to provide approximately 350 million meals, saving the lives of millions of people in remote corners of the world where hunger is most prevalent.

Taco Bell has launched a large ad campaign, including full page ads in many national newspapers, to combat the rumor that their beef mixture contains less than 30% actual meat. The chain is also requesting an apology from the Alabama law firm that began the class action lawsuit. The law firm dropped the case recently without a settlement, and Taco Bell would like the public to know that the claims were unsubstantiated.

The Board of Directors of McCormick and Schmick’s Seafood Restaurants has dismissed the buyout offer recently began by LSRI Holdings. The offer would pay $9.25 in cash for any unowned stock in the chain, but this was only 30% of the stock’s value on the closing of the day the deal was announced. The Board of Directors feel that the deal undervalues the potential of the chain and believes that the economic recovery will bring the McCormick and Schmick’s company back on its own.

Chipotle Mexican Grill is facing a criminal investigation by the U.S. Government based on accusations of hiring illegal immigrants. The probe will investigate if the Mexican fast food chain has knowingly hired anyone who does not have a legal working status within the country in the last few years. A chain location recently fired 40 workers who they claim applied with forged documentation for their legal work status.

Saladworks was born in New Jersey, and the Northern state is a big focus for new growth at this time. To extend their reach into the Southern part of the state, Saladworks will open a new location in Washington Township to celebrate their 25^th anniversary. A new franchisee will be opening the location that fits in with the other 30 branches in New Jersey alone.

FohBoh Social Media and NetWorld Alliance are working together to start a new industry conference for franchisees and restaurant owners. The Foodservice Social Media Universe conference will help owners learn how to use social networking tools to grow and improve their businesses. The event will be held September 18^th through 20^th this year in San Francisco.

The Bob Evans company wants to make Easter easier for your family with their holiday Farmhouse Feast. Ordered over the phone or online, the feast contains delicious dishes like boneless ham, mashed potatoes and a lemon meringue pie. It serves up to eight guests and can be picked up at any Bob Evans restaurant location.

Denver may be the easiest location in the world for finding great tacos after Del Taco opens its 15^th location in the metro area on April 22^nd. Franchisee Mountain Taco owns this store and six others in Denver. The fresh ingredients and 24 hour drive thru make Del Taco a very popular chain in Colorado and other states around the country.

San Francisco’s Market Street now has a new coffee and wine bar. The Ma’Velous location opened April 1^st with a eco-chic interior and an expansive coffee and wine menu that caters to aficionados. Only fully trained, professional baristas were hired for the bar so guests can rest assured each cup of coffee will be brewed correctly.

While Moroccan cuisine is popular in California, only Morocco’s Restaurant serves lunch. Located in downtown San Jose, the restaurant has a menu created from 150 year old family recipes and an authentic Moroccan dining area. Each meal consists of a cold salad, meat entree and a grain dish on the side like families in Morocco still eat to this day.

Taco Bell announced today that it is launching a national ad campaign to make sure consumers know that it has not changed products, ingredients or advertising despite what the Beasley Allen law firm has claimed. After dropping the class action lawsuit, attorneys at Beasley Allen are now being asked by Taco Bell to set the record straight with America.

“We stand behind the quality of every single one of our ingredients, including our seasoned beef, and we want consumers to know that we didn’t change our marketing or product because we’ve always been completely transparent,” said Greg Creed, Chief Executive Office, Taco Bell.

The company is placing full page ads in national publications including Wall Street Journal, New York Times and USA Today as well as in local market newspapers including Anniston Star, Birmingham News, Chicago Tribune, Los Angeles Times, New York Post, Montgomery Advertiser, Mobile Press Register and Orange County Register. The company is also executing a campaign to reach its Hispanic customers.

To reach consumers online, the company launched a YouTube video featuring Taco Bell President Greg Creed speaking about the withdrawal of the lawsuit. The video will be placed on the company’s YouTube channel, Facebook page, website and supported with an online campaign on leading search engines and social media.

Would it kill you to say you’re sorry?

The law firm that brought false claims about our product quality and advertising integrity has voluntarily withdrawn their class action suit against Taco Bell.

• No changes to our products or ingredients.

• No changes to our advertising.

• No money exchanged.

• No settlement agreement.

Because we’ve ALWAYS used 100% USDA-inspected premium beef.

Sure, they could have just asked us if our recipe uses real beef. Even easier, they could have gone to our Web site where the ingredients in every one of our products are listed for everyone to see. But that’s not what they chose to do. Like we’ve been saying all along, we stand behind the quality of every single one of our ingredients, including our seasoned beef. We didn’t change our marketing or product disclosures because we’ve always been completely transparent. Their lawyers may claim otherwise, but make no mistake, that’s just them trying to save a little face.

We were surprised by these allegations, as were our 35 million customers who come into our restaurants every week. We hope the voluntary withdrawal of this lawsuit receives as much public attention as when it was filed. As for the lawyers who brought this suit: You got it wrong, and you’re probably feeling pretty bad right about now. But you know what always helps? Saying to everyone, “I’m sorry.”

C’mon, you can do it!