5 must-know restaurant news stories: April 15, 2014

What keeps diners coming back to a restaurant? (Inside Scoop SF/San Francisco Chronicle)
Big and little attentions to details and extras subconsciously send a message to diners — even those who may not be regulars — that a restaurant cares. “It isn’t just about getting customers’ money; it’s about giving an exceptional experience. It’s about love, passion and dedication,” San Francisco Chronicle restaurant editor Michael Bauer said.

—Ron Ruggless

McDonald’s pivots breakfast marketing to McGriddles (Burger Business)
McDonald’s first response to the March 27 debut of Taco Bell’s breakfast lineup and adversarial marketing campaign was a two-week giveaway of its McCafé coffee, but its next effort for the morning daypart will focus on McGriddles. If business in the morning is to be analyzed as a battle for market share, commercials for McGriddles show a new willingness by McDonald’s to fight back asymmetrically against Taco Bell’s novel breakfast menu and against breakfast sandwiches popping up from Jack in the Box and Starbucks.

—Mark Brandau

Casual-dining restaurants spice up menus (Orlando Sentinel)
Olive Garden, Smokey Bones and Tony Roma's are among chains trying to offer higher quality food to woo diners with increasingly sophisticated palates.

—Marcella Veneziale

(Las Vegas NV Blog)
The restaurant and nightclub operator Hakkasan Group announced Tuesday a joint venture with MGM Resorts International to form a new hotel management company, MGM Hakkasan Hospitality. The new venture bodes well for Hakkasan’s restaurant brands, including the recently acquired San Diego-based Herringbone and Searsucker concepts developed by celebrity chef Brian Malarkey.

—Lisa Jennings

Chef Jose Garces to put on a show at new restaurant (Reuters)
Performing and cooking before a live audience has become second nature for the Iron Chef, who will put his skills on display at Volver in Philadelphia, set to open Wednesday.

—Marcella Veneziale