TOP NEWS

💸 Millennials and Gen Z are underperforming in restaurant spending in 2025, with nearly a 1% decline year-to-date. Financial stress is noted, with millennials holding less than 10% of national wealth and 42% of Gen Z under 30 barely getting by. By late 2024, younger U.S. zip codes saw a reversal in restaurant traffic trends, trailing by 0.9 percentage points in 2025. 64% of Gen Z are cutting expenses, with 41% reducing dining out.

📆 In 2024, GDS sees a 1-2% annual growth, driven by rising corporate and agency-managed travel. Corporate travelers prefer GDS for its reliability, longer stays, and premium rates, offering hotels higher revenue and steady occupancy. GDS users include corporate, government, and NGO delegates, valuing efficiency and consistency. It evolves with AI, self-booking, and sustainability tools. Hotels can enhance GDS potential by showcasing sustainability, offering tailored perks, and forging strategic partnerships. STAAH simplifies GDS integration for hoteliers.

🍴 Michael Mina, The Mina Group, and Stephen Curry are opening steakhouses in October at The Westin St. Francis hotel in Union Square, San Francisco. Mina's Bourbon Steak and Curry's The Eighth Rule will debut. Curry’s first hospitality venture follows his 2021 launch of Gentleman’s Cut bourbon. The Eighth Rule offers limited seating and craft cocktails. The Mina Group, managing operations, has over 25 concepts. The central Bourbon Lounge will feature seasonal California ingredients.

🏨 September 1st marks National Hotel Employee Day, established in 2022 by the American Hotel & Lodging Association to honor U.S. hotel workers. Mews, co-founded by Richard Valtr and Matt Welle, uses AI to enhance hospitality by automating tasks, allowing staff to focus on guests. Features like AI Smart Tips and Atomize RMS optimize operations. Sandra Alcazar (The Maj Hotel, Philadelphia), Johnny Noonan (The Chloe, New Orleans), and others highlight the benefits of AI in delivering personalized experiences.

🍴 Daniel Humm, chef at Eleven Madison Park in New York City, reintroduces meat to his menu on Oct. 14, 2025, after a vegan-only phase since 2021. Influenced by financial reasons and event booking challenges, the $365 tasting menu now includes fish, meat, and duck. Despite a 23% drop in NYC vegan restaurants and a mere 1% vegan population in the U.S., meatless meals remain popular among health-conscious youth. Vegan restaurant sales fell 7.5% by April 2023.

🍲 Bret Thorn, a food & beverage editor since 1999, covers trends for Nation’s Restaurant News and Restaurant Hospitality. Formerly with The New York Sun (2005-2008), he received the 2006 Jesse H. Neal Award. Thorn is a Tufts University magna cum laude graduate and a Le Cordon Bleu alumnus. He contributed to Oxford food encyclopedias and was inducted into Disciples d’Escoffier in 2014. Thorn resides in Brooklyn, N.Y. and his expertise spans global cuisines and restaurant operations.

🍲 Bret Thorn, an expert in food and beverage trends, has been with Nation’s Restaurant News since 1999. He won a 2006 Jesse H. Neal Award and served as IFEC president in 2005. Thorn graduated from Tufts University in 1990 and studied at Le Cordon Bleu in 1986. He covered the 1989 Tiananmen Square events for ABC News. Thorn contributed to the Oxford Encyclopedia of Food and Drink in America in 2012 and was inducted into the Disciples d’Escoffier in 2014.

August 13, 2025, Bolivar Peninsula, Texas –  Bolivar Vacations, a Casago franchise partner serving the Texas Gulf Coast, has expanded its profile to manage over 90 beachside vacation homes on the Bolivar Peninsula,…

🍴 Bret Thorn, senior food & beverage editor, joined Nation’s Restaurant News in 1999. From 1995-1997, he was a sub editor at Asia Times. He wrote for the New York Sun (2005-2008) and served as IFEC president in 2005. Thorn holds a BA in history from Tufts University (1990) and studied at Le Cordon Bleu in 1986. Notably, he contributed to the Oxford Encyclopedia in 2012 and 2015 and won the 2006 Jesse H. Neal Award.