A Deeper Dive

Where does Chuck E. Cheese grow from here?
This week’s episode of the Restaurant Business podcast A Deeper Dive features Scott Drake, the CEO of CEC Entertainment, parent company to Chuck E. Cheese and Peter Piper Pizza.
This is the first of a couple of episodes recorded at the recent Restaurant Leadership Conference and it is a phenomenal conversation.
Scott was recently promoted to CEO after a couple of years as CEC’s CFO. And he has a lot to talk about.
We talk about the company’s new headquarters. We talk about many of the changes it has made over the years, particularly on the technology front. 
We discuss how the company plans to grow in the coming years and some of the interesting concepts it is growing with. But we also talk about some of the long-term concerns the company has, notably the slowing population.
We’re talking Chuck E. Cheese on A Deeper Dive so please check it out. 
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Why are franchisees struggling right now?
This week’s episode of the Restaurant Business podcast A Deeper Dive features Austin Titus, the president of Accurate Franchising. 
Accurate Franchising is a consulting firm that works with franchisors and franchisees and so we talk about all kinds of things on this episode.
We talk about struggles franchisees are having and why. Several franchisees have filed for bankruptcy and many are having challenges after a few difficult periods, with high costs and weak sales and traffic. We explain what’s happened and how operators can deal with it.
Titus talks about red flags franchisees can look for when considering a franchise brand to invest in. He also talks about how emerging chains can get the right franchisees early in their history and why that’s important.
We’re talking franchising on A Deeper Dive so please check it out. 

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https://www.restaurantbusinessonline.com/article/week-restaurants
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It was another tough year in 2025. 
This week’s episode of the Restaurant Business podcast A Deeper Dive features Joe Pawlak, the managing principal with Technomic.
Pawlak provides our annual look at the data firm’s annual Top 500 Chain Restaurant Report, which provides the best look at the state of the country’s restaurant chains.
That state was relatively weak. Pawlak discusses why last year proved to be so difficult. We also talk about some notable trends in the numbers. 
The beverage sector was big and there were some surprising numbers in that. The sandwich sector saw more shifts in market share. There was some notable movement in the Top 10 and a lot of growth was concentrated in just a few chains.
We’re talking Top 500 on A Deeper Dive so please check it out. 

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https://www.restaurantbusinessonline.com/article/week-restaurants
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How is Kilwins adapting to life under new owners?
This week’s episode of A Deeper Dive features Brian Britton, CEO of the treat chain Kilwins.
Kilwins operates experiential chocolate and ice cream shops, mostly in tourist spots. It has picked up its growth in recent years and finished 2025 with 187 locations, according to data from Technomic.
We wanted to talk to Brian to get a sense about how life has changed since the company was sold to Levine Leichtman Capital Partners. 
The private-equity firm bought Kilwins in 2023. Brian talks about everything the chain has done since then, including a lot of work to update the brand. 
But we also talk about the business of selling chocolate and ice cream, the company’s expansion strategies and why the experiential nature of the brand is so vital these days.
It’s a sweet podcast episode this week, so please check it out. 

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https://www.restaurantbusinessonline.com/article/week-restaurants
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Most customers don’t think their last restaurant visit was worth it.
That, at least, is according to Lisa Miller, a consumer insights and innovation strategist and author of The Business of Joy. She joins this week’s episode of the Restaurant Business podcast A Deeper Dive to discuss it.
We talk about why consumers increasingly say they don’t think their restaurant visits are worth it. 
We also talk about the role technology may be playing with that, and what restaurants can do to fix it.
This is a great conversation on an important topic in the restaurant business so please check it out. 

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Want more from Jonathan Maze?
https://www.tiktok.com/@jonathandmaze?is_from_webapp=1&sender_device=pc
https://www.restaurantbusinessonline.com/article/week-restaurants