Give me value or give me vibes: segments of restaurant industry still special

Coffee away from home enjoying demographic tailwind

Restaurants have faced some of the same sales challenges experienced elsewhere in the economy as chains more reliant on lower income consumers have felt more pressure than those with a higher income skew. Sara Senatore discusses the opportunity that inflation and a more selective consumer have created for fast casual and even casual dining. But dining preference shifts mean that fast casual tailwinds extend beyond price gaps. Sara talks about why she expects the category to continue to take share of restaurant spending. The Away-from-home coffee is a category continues to grow even though US per capita coffee consumption has been flat to down for decades. Sara discusses why demographics could keep this running. We also address immigration, labor shortages and restaurants use of AI.

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