Checkers & Rally’s is leaning into value as Americans remain squeezed by higher everyday expenses, with the fast-food chain’s CEO saying consumers’ demand for affordability has intensified over the past couple of years.

The chain is offering a $4 Unbeatable Meal Deal, priced at $5 in select markets, as restaurants compete for increasingly price-conscious customers. Checkers & Rally’s CEO Chris Tebben said the company has seen firsthand how strongly consumers respond when prices come down.

Checkers & Rally’s first launched a $4 version of the meal deal around May 2025, and Tebben said the company saw an improvement in transaction trends after its introduction.

“I think it was around the May timeframe in ’25 and certainly saw the consumer respond, and the trend in our transaction was much improved,” Tebben told FOX Business.

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A Checkers restaurant in Baytown, Texas, during the chain’s grand opening event ahead of Super Bowl LVIII on Feb. 10, 2024. (Nicholas Hunt/Getty Images)

The response comes as consumers continue to grapple with higher costs for everyday necessities, putting pressure on restaurants to convince customers that eating out is worth the expense.

“I think we’ve seen over the last couple of years the need for value continues to intensify and, let’s face it, consumers are continuing to feel the pressures of a lot of everyday necessities and I think that’s why affordability plays such an important role when they choose to spend some of that money for an away from home occasion,” Tebben said.

Restaurant prices have continued to rise, adding to the cost pressures facing consumers. Prices for food away from home have climbed over the past year, including at limited-service restaurants such as fast-food chains.

The pressure on consumers presents a difficult equation for restaurant operators, which have faced their own rising expenses while trying to keep menu prices attractive.

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A customer looks over the menu at a Checkers walk-up ordering window on Biscayne Boulevard in Miami, Florida. (Jeffrey Greenberg/Universal Images Group via Getty Images)

“Certainly what we’re trying to do with value. Value has always been at the heart of our brand. And so it’s certainly more difficult in today’s economic environment in terms of inflation and food costs to make that equation work,” Tebben said.

Tebben said Checkers & Rally’s has worked to improve its core food costs, giving the company more room to invest in value offerings while still making the economics work for the company and its franchisees.

“We’re certainly trying to drive more than our fair share of consumer occasions with the value offering. And then we’re always mindful of that balance to have to make sure that it works economically for both us and the terrific group of franchisees that we have,” he said.

The balancing act is playing out across the restaurant industry as major chains compete for consumers looking for more food for less money.

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McDonald’s has leaned into its McValue platform and meal deals, while Wendy’s has promoted its own lineup of Biggie Deals as restaurant chains try to appeal to customers watching their budgets.

For Checkers & Rally’s, however, the strategy does not necessarily mean putting a deeply discounted meal on the permanent menu.

Tebben said the company instead sees an opportunity to bring versions of the promotion back at different points depending on consumer demand and broader economic conditions.

“I’m not looking to necessarily have the meal deal be part of our core menu, but I certainly think we’re building equity and consumers have responded to it. I would expect that you’ll see some version of this that will pulse in at different times for us as the macro environment demands,” Tebben said.

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This year, Checkers & Rally’s brought the promotion back later than it did in 2025. Tebben said periodically offering the deal can help generate excitement while allowing the company to respond to changes in consumers’ routines and finances.

The latest promotion also coincides with the back-to-school and Labor Day period.

The $4 meal gives customers a choice of a Loaded Tender Wrap, Spicy Chicken Sandwich or Classic Burger, along with Value Fries, eight Chicken Bites and a 16-ounce drink. The promotion costs $5 in select markets.

Tebben said Checkers & Rally’s has focused on offering customers a complete meal rather than simply competing on the price of an individual menu item.

Checkers & Rally’s $4 Unbeatable Meal Deal includes a choice of a Classic Burger, Spicy Chicken Sandwich or Loaded Tender Wrap, plus Value Fries, eight Chicken Bites and a 16-ounce drink. (Checkers and Rally’s)

But the CEO said the definition of value extends beyond price. Checkers & Rally’s is also working to improve food quality, speed and customer service as part of a broader effort to turn around the brands.

“I think we’ve made a lot of improvements there. We still have a lot of work left to do to fully turn the brands around, but it can’t just be, you know, value and affordability. And then the guest comes in and doesn’t get a delightful experience. So it has to be the magic of the end. That’s what we’re really focused on,” Tebben said.

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For Tebben, affordability remains a central part of that strategy as consumers decide where — and whether — to spend money on eating out.

“When it comes to the price component of your value offering, the way I like to think about it is that I never want affordability to ever be a barrier for someone choosing us,” he said. “But I think that’s the critical piece is, if someone goes somewhere else because they don’t think that we’re affordable, then I’ve done something wrong in my job. We’ve done wrong as a brand.”

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This article was written by

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Analyst’s Disclosure: I/we have no stock, option or similar derivative position in any of the companies mentioned, and no plans to initiate any such positions within the next 72 hours. I wrote this article myself, and it expresses my own opinions. I am not receiving compensation for it (other than from Seeking Alpha). I have no business relationship with any company whose stock is mentioned in this article.

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MANCHESTER, England — Manchester City hosts newly promoted Coventry City Saturday at the Etihad Stadium in a Matchweek 3 Premier League fixture, with Enzo Maresca’s side aiming to make it three straight wins to start the 2026-27 campaign against a Coventry team still searching for its first points of the season.

Kickoff is set for 3 p.m. local time in the United Kingdom, which translates to 10 a.m. ET, 7 a.m. PT and 8 p.m. India Standard Time.

Due to the Premier League’s longstanding 3 p.m. Saturday blackout rule, the match will not be broadcast live within the United Kingdom. Fans in the U.S. can watch the match live on USA Network, with streaming also available through Fubo TV, Peacock, Sling and Telemundo Deportes, as well as through Prime Video USA. In Canada, the match will be available through DAZN, Fubo TV and Fubo Sports Network.

For fans in other markets, broadcast options vary by country. Coverage is available in Argentina through ESPN Argentina and Disney+ Premium Argentina, while several Caribbean territories, including St. Vincent and the Grenadines and the U.S. Virgin Islands, can access the match through Disney+ Premium Caribbean.

Manchester City enters Saturday’s match sitting atop the Premier League table after winning both of its opening matches under new manager Enzo Maresca, who has maintained a perfect record since taking over at the Etihad. City opened the season with a hard-fought 2-1 comeback win over Bournemouth on Aug. 23, coming from behind late in the match, before following that result with a commanding 4-1 victory over Crystal Palace on Aug. 28.

City’s roster underwent significant change during the summer transfer window. The club brought in Enzo Fernandez, Allan Elias, Ayyoub Bouaddi and Iliman Ndiaye, while several established names departed, including Jack Grealish, Omar Marmoush, Nico Gonzalez and Savio. Fernandez, in particular, has been closely watched given his prior connection to Maresca, and is expected to continue playing a significant role in City’s midfield as the manager looks to build his system around the Argentine international.

Coventry City, promoted to the Premier League this season under manager Frank Lampard, has endured a considerably more difficult start to its return to the top flight of English football. The Sky Blues opened the season with an expected 3-0 defeat to Arsenal before suffering a more troubling 1-0 home loss to fellow newly promoted side Hull City on Aug. 29, leaving Coventry without a point through two matches and sitting 17th in the current standings.

Coventry will be looking for standout individual performances from key players including Sidiki Cherif, Taiwo Awoniyi and goalkeeper Carl Rushworth as the club searches for its first points of the campaign, though the team will be without on-loan Manchester City player Stephen Mfuni for Saturday’s match, given standard loan-agreement restrictions preventing him from featuring against his parent club.

According to Manchester City’s official team announcement, the starting lineup for Saturday’s match features Gianluigi Donnarumma in goal, with a back line of Khusanov, Marc Guehi, captain Ruben Dias and Josko Gvardiol. The midfield includes Tijjani Anderson and Nico O’Reilly, with Rayan Cherki, Antoine Semenyo and Iliman Ndiaye supporting striker Erling Haaland in attack. City’s bench includes options such as Kevin De Bruyne’s former understudy Kalvin Phillips, along with Mateo Kovacic, Julian Alvarez replacement options, and versatile squad depth reflecting the club’s summer roster overhaul.

Betting markets and analysts have overwhelmingly favored Manchester City heading into Saturday’s fixture, given both the significant quality gap between the two squads and Coventry’s difficult start to life back in the Premier League. One projection from NBC Sports forecast a lopsided 4-0 scoreline in City’s favor, characterizing Saturday as an unlikely day for any kind of upset given City’s early-season form and Coventry’s struggles adjusting to the pace and quality of top-flight competition.

Manchester City’s attacking depth has been a significant factor in its strong start to the season, with Erling Haaland continuing to anchor the club’s frontline alongside a reshaped supporting cast following the summer’s substantial roster turnover. Maresca, who joined City after previous managerial success elsewhere, has been credited with quickly establishing a cohesive system despite the scale of personnel changes across the squad heading into the new campaign.

For Coventry, Saturday’s trip to the Etihad represents a significant early test as Lampard’s side looks to find its footing at the Premier League level following promotion. The club’s home loss to fellow newly promoted side Hull City in its most recent match has raised early concerns about the team’s ability to compete consistently against Premier League opposition, making a positive result away to the league’s early pace-setters an especially difficult proposition heading into Saturday’s fixture.

Saturday’s match is part of a broader slate of Matchweek 3 Premier League fixtures taking place across the day, with several other notable matchups occurring at various kickoff times throughout the afternoon and evening as the early-season table continues to take shape across the league.

With Manchester City looking to extend its perfect start under Maresca and Coventry searching for its first points of the season, Saturday’s matchup at the Etihad Stadium offers an early measuring stick for both clubs as the 2026-27 Premier League campaign continues to develop. Fans looking to follow the action have a range of broadcast and streaming options available across the United States, Canada and other international markets, even as the match remains unavailable for direct broadcast within the United Kingdom under the league’s traditional Saturday afternoon blackout restrictions.

WASHINGTON — A section of ceiling collapsed inside the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts’ Grand Foyer Friday evening following a severe storm that swept through the nation’s capital, prompting the venue’s leadership to renew its push for a controversial two-year renovation closure.

The collapse occurred around 5 p.m. Friday, with Kennedy Center staff first noticing pieces of the ceiling falling into the Grand Foyer as the storm passed through the region. Photographs from the scene showed a visible hole in the ceiling and debris scattered across the floor of the venue’s main hall. No injuries were reported in connection with the incident.

The overnight storm that preceded the collapse brought widespread damage to Washington, D.C., toppling trees and cutting power to tens of thousands of residents across the city as heavy rainfall continued into a second day.

Following the collapse, Kennedy Center staff received an email announcing that the Main Building would be closed for the remainder of Friday night. The Grand Foyer itself is expected to remain closed through the weekend while repairs are made, though the rest of the building is expected to reopen for normal operating hours on Saturday.

Kennedy Center Vice President of Public Relations Roma Daravi framed the incident as further justification for the venue’s long-planned renovation, attributing the structural failure to years of insufficient maintenance under prior leadership.

“Another example of the urgent need to close for renovation and revitalization, as our Chairman President Trump has championed,” Daravi said in a statement. “Fortunately, no one was injured when the main hall’s ceiling collapsed. This structural failure stems from decades of neglect and deferred maintenance by the previous leadership, and there’s no justification for further delays in restoring America’s cultural center.”

Friday’s collapse arrives in the middle of a monthslong legal and political fight over the Kennedy Center’s future, one that has intensified since President Donald Trump became chairman of the center’s Board of Trustees in February 2025 and moved to overhaul its leadership with allies. The center’s Trump-aligned board voted roughly three weeks before Friday’s collapse to proceed with a two-year closure of the building for extensive renovations, following an earlier vote on the same plan that had been blocked by a federal judge in May, who left open the possibility of a new vote following a more thorough review process.

Justice Department attorneys, in a related court filing tied to the renovation dispute, described the Kennedy Center in stark terms, calling it “a financially insolvent facility, housed in a decrepit, dilapidated, crumbling building” that they said continued to “race toward physical and financial ruin” absent significant intervention.

Not everyone connected to the Kennedy Center’s governance has supported the board’s push for a full two-year closure. Rep. Joyce Beatty, D-Ohio, an ex officio member of the Kennedy Center’s board, has challenged the closure plan, arguing that the board’s initial decision was rushed and did not adequately consider alternative approaches, including keeping the venue at least partially open during renovation work. Notably, Beatty had stood in the Grand Foyer during a visit on Sept. 2, just two days before the section of ceiling collapsed in the same space.

The renovation dispute has also touched on a separate controversy involving the potential renaming of the venue. Representatives for the Kennedy Center previously told a federal court that the institution would not formally rename the performing arts center the “Trump-Kennedy Center,” but indicated the president’s name would instead be incorporated into the building in several other ways. Beatty subsequently filed an emergency motion arguing that even those alternative measures still crossed an inappropriate line regarding the center’s naming and identity.

According to reporting on the underlying renovation proposal, the plan was originally recommended by Kennedy Center executive director Matt Floca and is intended to address a range of critical infrastructure failures at the aging facility, including persistent water damage, corroded structural steel, and outdated industrial cooling systems that have contributed to the building’s ongoing maintenance challenges.

Friday’s incident is not the only recent development to draw public attention to changes at the Kennedy Center under its current leadership. In the days preceding the ceiling collapse, the venue drew scrutiny after workers removed iconic willow trees from its outdoor terrace, along with a prominent and highly visible outdoor sculpture that had long been associated with the center’s grounds, changes that added to a broader pattern of visible alterations at the facility in recent months.

The Kennedy Center, which opened in 1971 and serves as the nation’s official memorial to President John F. Kennedy alongside its role as a major performing arts venue, has faced persistent questions about its physical condition and long-term funding structure in the years leading up to the current renovation dispute. The facility’s board and administration have continued to describe the building’s underlying infrastructure problems as increasingly urgent, a characterization Friday’s ceiling collapse appeared to reinforce for those advocating a full closure of the venue.

With the Grand Foyer remaining closed through the weekend and repairs underway, the broader question of whether the Kennedy Center will ultimately proceed with a complete two-year closure for renovations remains tied up in ongoing legal and political disputes, including continued opposition from figures such as Beatty who have pushed for alternative approaches that would allow the venue to remain at least partially operational during any construction work. For now, the Main Building is expected to resume normal operating hours Saturday, even as the debate over the facility’s longer-term future continues playing out amid renewed attention following Friday’s structural failure.