Top Fast Casual News

Bayer Properties announced that The Summit at Fritz Farm—a contemporary mixed-use development in Lexington, Kentucky, centered on the pedestrian experience—will house the first artisan food hall concept in the region. Named the Deauville Food Hall, it will showcase an exciting collection of small restaurant concepts from an array of accomplished local restaurateurs and serve as […]

VertsKebap, a leader in fast-casual Mediterranean food, is changing its name to VERTS Mediterranean Grill. The name change reflects the company’s commitment to culinary excellence and chef-driven meals. “Our guests always refer to us as VERTS, so the shortening of the name was a natural evolution of the brand,” says cofounder and CEO Michael Heyne. […]

gusto!, the fast-casual concept that started in Atlanta’s Brookwood Hills neighborhood, will open its second Atlanta location at 782 Ponce De Leon Ave NE in early summer 2016. In fall 2014, native Georgian and former NFL quarterback Nate Hybl opened gusto! at 1935 Peachtree Road NE. Serving fresh and affordable cuisine, the second spot will […]

On March 7, foodie restaurant brand Newk’s Eatery is debuting in the Raleigh-Durham area with its first restaurant in Cary, bolstering the company’s North Carolina footprint and rapid East Coast expansion. The Cary location will be the first of six to seven additional restaurants planned for the Triangle area and the sixth Newk’s Eatery currently […]

The National Restaurant Association projects that restaurants in 2016 will post sales of $782.7 billion and employ 14.4 million people in more than 1 million locations. The 2016 Restaurant Industry Forecast reveals that the U.S. restaurant industry will remain the nation’s second-largest private sector employer, providing career opportunities for one in 10 working Americans. Meanwhile, limited-service restaurants […]

Grabbagreen, the fast-casual concept known for it's fresh and healthy alternative to fast food, announced a five-store agreement in North Carolina with Jeff and Nancy Adams of JNZR Enterprises LLC. The Adams plan to have two Grabbagreen locations open in Charlotte, North Carolina, by the end of the year. The Arizona-based brand which has a […]

Award-winning chef Lorraine Platman, founder of Sweet Lorraine’s Café & Bar and Sweet Lorraine’s Fabulous Mac n’ Cheez!, is expanding her macaroni and cheese empire with the opening of her third brand, Sweet Lorraine’s Fabulous Mac n’ Brewz. The new restaurant, located at 4870 Cass Avenue in Detroit, Michigan, is set to open at the […]

Washington, D.C. chef and restaurateur Mike Isabella announced Isabella Eatery, an unprecedented restaurant project at Tysons Galleria set to open in summer 2017. Mike Isabella Concepts (MIC) will take over the space in McLean, Virginia, becoming the sole proprietor of the 41,000-square-foot dining complex that occupies a portion of the upscale Northern Virginia mall’s third […]

Nashville Hot is bringing authentic Nashville-style hot chicken to Greater Cincinnati beginning this weekend. The new fast-casual dining concept will celebrate its grand opening at the Buttermilk Shoppes (564 Buttermilk Pike) in Crescent Springs on Saturday, February 13 at 10 a.m. Diners will receive free cobbler with their meal on grand opening day. Nashville native […]

After weathering several months of delays, classically trained Chicago Chef Mike Sheerin (Lutèce, Atlas, Jean-Georges, WD-50, Blackbird, Trenchermen, Cicchetti, Embeya) and business partner Aaron DiMaria (a self-proclaimed “locavore” with 20 years of restaurant operations management experience) officially opened doors to PACKED: dumplings reimagined (1321 E. 57th St.) for the Hyde Park lunch crowd mid-January. Chef […]

Chipotle completed its system-wide shutdown today, closing all locations from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. The company spoke with employees across the country during that time to update them on the food-safety crisis that has pummeled the fast casual leader in the last several months, leading to same-store sales declines of 30 percent and 36 […]

Chipotle will close all locations today, February 8, from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. to host a company-wide video meeting on food safety. The fast-casual leader plans to explain the E. coli and norovirus outbreaks to employees, as well as go over its new food-safety protocol. This new protocol includes preparing certain foods off site, […]

This spring HipCityVeg is sprouting more than ever before. Philadelphia’s popular fast-casual, all-vegan restaurant is expanding with new location announcements: one in Center City Philadelphia, and one in Washington, D.C. The D.C. store marks the first location outside of Philadelphia for the fast casual. Located in the bustling historic Chinatown neighborhood, HipCityVeg will be just […]

Dreamt up at a backyard barbecue and launched on a shoestring budget in an off-the-beaten location in Westchester, Florida, in 2010, Pincho Factory is the homegrown fast-casual success story launched by cousins and business partners Nedal Ahmad, Otto Othman, and Nizar Ahmad. Now, with two corporate stores to their name and a new one on […]

Le Botaniste, a botanical-based, apothecary-inspired restaurant, opens today in New York City. Created by Le Pain Quotidien’s founder and COO Alain Coumont, Le Botaniste is nestled in one of LPQ’s first locations on Lexington Avenue on the Upper East Side. It is the counterpart to the Belgium-based restaurant of the same name and intends to […]

Fusian’s fourth Columbus location, housed in a restored service station at 4214 N. High St., opened in Clintonville, Ohio, January 9. The first 100 guests received a complimentary Fusian tote with their purchase, and other items were awarded throughout the day. “Clintonville, is one of the most eclectic neighborhoods in Columbus,” says cofounder Zach Weprin. […]