M&A activity in the U.S. restaurant sector showed early momentum in 2025 but slowed markedly as the year progressed. After a strong deal pace in Q1, transaction flow stalled amid tariff-related volatility from March to May, when uncertainty prompted roughly 30% of companies to pause or revisit deals. While aggregate deal value is up year over year, deal volume has not rebounded.
Globally, in the first half of 2025, M&A volumes were about 10% lower than the same period of 2024, even as total deal value rose 15%, and in the restaurant sector, total transaction count declined roughly 30% year over year through late 2025.Deals are still getting done, but the market is increasingly bifurcated: Acquirers have grown more selective, focusing on high-quality targets and deferring or abandoning more marginal transactions.
