How long will the fast-food market be weak?

Fast-food traffic has been down for years, with little sign of improvement, according to Placer.ai's RJ Hottovy.

Read the original at Restaurant Business
How long will the fast-food market be weak?

What is the state of the fast-food market?

This week’s episode of the Restaurant Business podcast A Deeper Dive features RJ Hottovy, the head of analytical research with the traffic tracking firm Placer.ai.

Hottovy is a regular guest on the podcast and we wanted to talk about the fast-food market and how long it’s expected to remain weak. Traffic in the industry has been down for years now, and it shows little sign of improvement.

We also talk about Burger King, and why the company has outperformed even though it did not jump head-first into the value game. We talk about Wendy’s and the state of that brand. And we talk about the surprising performance of some full-service chains like Chili’s and the Cheesecake Factory.

This is a packed podcast so please check it out.

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This story was originally published by Jonathan Maze in Restaurant Business on November 11, 2026. Burnaze summarizes and links to the original reporting.

Read the full story at Restaurant Business

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