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‘Overwhelming’ number turn out for 800 McJobs

Thousands of Chicagoans flooded McDonald’s stores Tuesday, hoping to land one of 800 local McJobs.

The hiring day culminated a weeks-long advertising and public-relations campaign for the burger giant’s plans to hire 50,000 store-level employees nationwide. Get the full story »

Emil’s closes; owner blames Wacker construction

The bar area of Emil's Bar and Grille, which is now closed. (Photo via Emil's website)

Emil’s Bar and Grille, a longtime fixture on Wacker Drive for business lunches and pre-opera dinners, closed last week, a victim of the massive reconstruction of the aging street, according to its owner.

John Boutzarelos blamed the construction for reducing Emil’s business 30 percent to 40 percent since the project started in January. He said the white-tablecloth restaurant started to lose money. Get the full story »

MillerCoors reports decline in domestic sales

From BizJournals.com | Chicago-based MillerCoors reported Tuesday that sales to retailers fell 2.6 percent in the fiscal year that ended March 31.

Feds: Fake news sites link to acai berry diet

By Ellen Gabler | The Federal Trade Commission has filed suit against 10 companies the agency says are using fake news websites to market acai berry weight-loss products.

The FTC said the defendants operate websites that seem like legitimate news-gathering sites, but actually promote deceptive advertisements that urge consumers to buy acai berry products. Get the full story »

McDonald’s makes push to hire 50,000 today

Along with the Big Breakfast and Big Macs, McDonald’s Corp. has 50,000 new jobs on its national menu today.

Fifteen-hundred of those jobs are being offered in the Chicago area. Jobs to be offered in the U.S. range from restaurant crew to salaried management. Get the full story »

McDonald’s grimaces at Happy Meal lawsuit

A lawsuit that seeks to stop McDonald’s from selling Happy Meals should be dismissed because parents can always prohibit their children from consuming the food, the hamburger giant said in a court filing on Monday.

The lawsuit claims McDonald’s unfairly uses toys to lure children into its restaurants. The plaintiff, Monet Parham — a Sacramento, Calif. mother of two — claims the company’s advertising violates California consumer protection laws. Get the full story »

Lawsuit challenging Taco Bell beef dropped

Attorneys this week dropped a lawsuit that alleged that Taco Bell’s beef was mostly not beef, both sides of the once-contentious legal battle said.

Alabama-based law firm Beasley Allen brought the class-action lawsuit in January and claimed that lab tests had shown that the eatery’s beef was actually only 35 percent beef. The plaintiffs said they wanted the fast food restaurant to stop referring to its products as beef. Get the full story »

Burger King franchisees drop $1 cheeseburger suit

Burger King Corp.’s U.S. franchisees agreed to dismiss a lawsuit over $1 cheeseburgers, and will gain more power to set prices for the fast food restaurant chain’s cheaper items. Get the full story »

Subway cuts sodium in sandwiches 15-28%

(Bill Hogan/Chicago Tribune)

Subway sandwiches just got a little less salty.

The restaurant chain said Monday that it has reduced sodium levels in its sandwiches by 15 percent across the board, while its Fresh Fit sandwich line gets a 28 percent reduction. Get the full story »

Study: 25% of meat has drug-resistant bacteria

A shopper at a Cub Foods grocery store in Burnsville, Minn. (AP/Jayme Halbritter)

A sampling of grocery store meat in five U.S. cities has shown a type of drug-resistant bacteria is contained in about one quarter of beef, chicken, pork and turkey for sale, a study said Friday.

Staphylococcus aureus, a bacteria that can cause skin infections, pneumonia, sepsis or endocarditis in people with weak hearts, was found in 47 percent of samples, said the study in the journal Clinical Infectious Diseases. Get the full story »

China, India prices show global inflation on rise

China and India both reported higher-than-expected inflation readings on Friday, giving fresh ammunition to central bankers and investors alike who are worried about mounting price pressures in the global economy. Get the full story »

Kraft to bring Gevalia coffee to grocery stores

Just weeks after losing its contract to distribute Starbucks coffee in grocery stores, Northfield-based Kraft Foods announced that it is prepping a successor, Gevalia. Get the full story »

Dunkin’ hires JPMorgan, Barclays to lead IPO

A busy morning at the Dunkin' Donuts franchise in the village of Posen. (Zbigniew Bzdak/Tribune)

Dunkin’ Brands Inc. has hired J.P. Morgan Chase & Co. and Barclays PLC to lead an initial public offering of its Dunkin’ Donuts unit this summer, CNBC’s Kate Kelly reported Thursday, without citing sources.

The IPO would seek to raise between $500 million and $700 million, she said. Get the full story »

Jewel parent’s shares surge on strong profits

A shopper outside of a Jewel-Osco at 370 N. Desplaines in Chicago. (Chicago Tribune photo by Antonio Perez)

Stock for SuperValu Inc., the Minneapolis-based grocery giant that owns Jewel-Osco, soared 20 percent Thursday when the company’s full-year income fell less than expected — despite poor performance in the Chicago and Northeast markets.

The company was able to stem its drop in gross margins, helped by better timing of special offers and more financial backing for deals from vendors. Get the full story »

McDonald’s franchisee rises 25% in debut

Shares of Arcos Dorados Holdings, a large South American franchisee of fast-food chain McDonald’s, rose 27 percent in their stock market debut as investors clamored for exposure to the famous brand in a region with booming consumer spending. Get the full story »