Coffee & QSR

Starbucks faces stiff competition and flat visit frequency. Its "Back to Starbucks" plan focuses on innovation and experience to boost loyalty. Despite challenges, the brand's core customer base remains stable, positioning it for a potential turnaround through strategic in-store enhancements.

Limited-service dining thrives. Coffee's growth is led by small chains and affluent visitors. Short visits boost coffee and fast-casual. Chicken's share grew, impacting burger chains. The category evolves through diverse strategies, showcasing resilience.

Chipotle, IHOP, and Jack in the Box used LTOs to drive visits. Chipotle's hockey BOGO surged traffic. IHOP's charity pancake day and Jack in the Box's T-Pain collab boosted visits. These show LTOs' power via local trends, charity, and pop culture.

Local favorites Pura Vida, Mendocino Farms, and P. Terry’s thrive. Pura Vida grew and shifted to earlier peaks. Mendocino benefits from affluent customers. P. Terry’s became a weekend destination. Their diverse strategies drive growth amidst market challenges.

Burger King launched a limited-time menu inspired by the upcoming "How to Train Your Dragon" movie. The offering immediately boosted foot traffic, with launch day visits up and the following Friday becoming the chain's busiest day of the year so far. This initial success suggests potential for increased traffic post-movie premiere.

Big Chicken's moment in the spotlight has been building for the past few years. The surge in chicken offerings has spurred considerable traffic in the fast-casual and quick-service dining sectors.With the year’s midpoint quickly approaching, we took a look at some of the most popular players in the game to see how visits are performing. 

The first quarter of 2025 posed challenges to quick-service restaurants, with major chains like McDonald's experiencing foot traffic declines. Still, some brands - like Taco Bell and Wingstop - managed to drive growth. We take a closer look at the data to see where the segment stands today.

First Watch is continuing to add more stores to its fleet, and visits continue to grow as well.