MRM Research Roundup: Buzzing About Coffee, Tipping Trends, and the Evolution of Food Delivery

This edition of Modern Restaurant Management (MRM) magazine's Research Roundup features affordable dining cities, coffee prices and trends, hiring and staffing trends, tech adoption, holiday retail outlook, and fast-growing QSR categories.Post-Pandemic RecoveryAfter suffering devastating job losses, the restaurant and hospitality industry has made a post-pandemic recovery. A recent article by Escoffier Global analyzed a ‘new normal’ that brings both opportunities and challenges different from the pre-pandemic environment, including employment trends, staffing shortages, and hiring and retention strategies.

Employment in the restaurant and hospitality industry has officially returned to pre-pandemic levels, with 16.99 million jobs in April 2025, and 822K projected new vacancies by 2033.

Labor shortages are still affecting the industry, with 65 percent of the U.S. hotels and 59 percent of the restaurants struggling to fill positions.

The biggest age group in the restaurant and…