In a recent TRSA webinar sponsored by Kannegiesser ETECH, food-and-beverage analyst Robert Byrne offered a guardedly optimistic scenario for the restaurant industry. Paraphrasing the author Mark Twain, Byrne told some 50 online attendees on June 9 that “The rumors of the death of food service have been greatly exaggerated. (For) all of the reasons that we love this industry, they’re all going to be back.” But don’t expect consumers to return overnight, said Byrne, senior manager, consumer insights, for Technomic, a leading F&B data-tracking agency. Battered by COVID-19-related closures, the restaurant industry is unlikely to see a return to 2019-level ...