Interesting restaurant facts that have occurred in 2016

Since we are nearing the end of the year, here are some interesting restaurant facts that have occurred in 2016:

*Annual sales in the restaurant industry are $783 billion.
*Annual food and beverage purchases are projected to be at $279 billion for the year.
*Employees in the restaurant industry are 14.4 million.
*There are more than 1 million restaurant locations in the U.S.
*The national average for projected restaurant sales growth in 2016 is 5%. The states with the most projected restaurant sales growth in 2016 are Florida (7.4%), Nevada (7.3%), and Oregon (6.9%).
*The states with the highest actual restaurant sales growth in 2016 are California ($79 billion), Texas ($52 billion), New York ($42 billion), Florida ($40 billion), and Illinois ($24 billion).
*Restaurant sales remain above 2015 levels, with ~$55 billion monthly being spent in May 2016 compared to ~$51 billion spent in May 2015.