<b>May proves a cruel month for restaurant chains</b>
By Sarah Lockyer
Nation's Restaurant News
NATIONAL REPORT (May30) The first companies to report May same-store sales results did not have positive news to share Wednesday, as Outback Steakhouse parent OSI Restaurant Partners posted declines at four of its casual-dining concepts, the Applebee's chain recorded continued declines and CBRL Group Inc., operator of 559 Cracker Barrel Old Country Store locations, also reported a comparable sales drop.
Even quick-service parent company CKE Restaurants Inc., which has posted positive results for some time, reported a dip in May same-store sales for its Carl's Jr. brand. Same-store sales for its Hardee's chain were positive for the 19th consecutive month, but not enough to yield positive blended results for CKE.
Some restaurant analysts had hinted just last week that May sales should be improved from the year earlier as weather this past month was not a problem throughout the country and many brands were lapping poor results from last year. Still, higher gas prices – at record levels in some states and still rising – and continued decreases in housing values could have kept consumers from spending money on dining out, other analysts contended.
Full story in Nation's Restaurant News
