even Pawlak noted that, if Starbucks is not included in that total, the sector’s sales grew 12.2%. stronger performance. No restaurant chain grew like 7 Brew. The coffee brand has made triple-digit sales growth a habit in recent years as its drive- thru shops open to long lines of thirsty customers. System sales at the chain grew 138% last year after unit count increased by nearly 90%. The brand finished 2025 with 604 restaurants and nearly $1.2 billion in system sales. Last year, the chain surpassed Scooter’s and Tim Hortons to become the country’s fourth-largest coffee brand, after Starbucks, Dunkin’ and Dutch Bros—which itself grew sales by 22% and generated more than $2.2 billion last year. The wild success of those two chains plus Swig, the drive-thru dirty soda chain whose sales grew 65% last year, are pushing much of the industry to reconsider the variety of beverages they serve at their restaurants. McDonald’s and Taco Bell are expanding their beverage lineups, but all kinds of chains are adding new types of drinks to their menus to lure younger, Gen Z consumers that are flocking to chains serving colorful, customizable, mostly cold drinks. Other beverages and snacks also continue to grow. Such chains, which include a broad array of brands that serve either specialized drinks or treat items like cookies or doughnuts, grew sales by 5.9% last year. Limited-service Asian and noodle chains likewise generated strong sales in 2025, with 7.8% sales growth that outpaced every other segment in the industry. The full-service sector was a mixed bag. Total sales among such chains rebounded from a brutal 2024, when its sales grew just 1.3%. Sales at full-service chains grew 2.3% in 2025, thanks largely to strong performance by its biggest players. Texas Roadhouse, the largest casual-dining chain with $5.9 billion in sales, grew total revenue by 7.2%. Chili’s, which has been on a tear for three years, grew sales by 20.6%, leapfrogging Olive Garden (5.6% system sales growth) to become the second-largest casual-dining brand. “We know that people will pay more if the experience and the quality and the service is there,” Pawlak said. “Value is not just about price. Those chains that we’re seeing growth or above-average growth figured out that formula.” Still, he noted, full-service sales aren’t where the sector needs them to be, and
“WE KNOW PEOPLE WILL PAY MORE IF THE EXPERIENCE AND THE QUALITY IS THERE.” Joe Pawlak, Managing Principal with Technomic
a lot of chains struggled badly last year, including brands like TGI Fridays (down 45%), Pinstripes (down 27.5%), On the Border (down 32.5%) and Bar Louie (down 28%), each of which landed in bankruptcy and closed mass locations. Several other sectors had so-so to difficult years in 2025, notably limited-service burger chains, which account for about one-fourth of total Top 500 sales. That sector grew sales by just 1.5%. McDonald’s, the largest chain in the U.S., with $55.1 billion in sales, grew that figure by 3%, including the addition of 149 locations, the most growth it’s had in that metric since 2002. But there were some real struggles.
Wendy’s, the second-largest burger chain in the U.S., saw sales fall 5.2% among management and marketing challenges. Dunkin’, the coffee and doughnut chain that grew sales 5.1% last year, leapfrogged Wendy’s to become the 5th largest chain in the U.S. In the burger sector, for every Culver’s (14% sales growth) and In-N-Out (9.6%) there is a Jack in the Box (down 4.3%) or a Hardee’s (down 5%). The pizza sector’s struggles worsened last year, again due to weakness among some of its biggest players. Limited-service pizza sector sales declined 0.3% last year, the third straight year of deteriorating overall
performance. While Domino’s (4.8% sales growth) did fine, its biggest rivals did not. Pizza Hut’s system sales fell 8.2% in the U.S. last year. Papa Johns declined 1%. Both are poised to lose more ground this year due to store closures. Little Caesars, the third-largest chain, grew by 1.4%. Pizza chains, like much of the restaurant industry, have had to contend with a host of challenges, including a customer base that is cutting back on dining frequency. But they have also faced growing competition from third-party delivery companies like DoorDash and Uber Eats that have eaten into their long-term dominance in delivered prepared food to customers’ homes.
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RESTAURANT BUSINESS JULY 2026
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