Starbird officially completed its second round of funding, raising close to $5 million. The investor group is made up of several restaurant CEOs and private equity individuals including the largest outside investor, industry veteran Greg Dollarhyde of Zoe’s Kitchen and Baja Fresh acclaim.
Dollarhyde acted as a strategic investment partner and adviser throughout the entire Starbird development process, and in addition to his guidance, Dollarhyde assembled a group of investors through his private investment arm, Dollarhyde Investment Group III.
Read How Starbird Plans to Separate from the Crowd
“We are excited to announce this next phase of development and to have Greg involved,” says president and CEO, Aaron Noveshen. “At Starbird we are working to transform the dull fast food landscape by utilizing super premium ingredients and evolving the traditional drive-thru experience with our mobile ordering and car-side delivery app. The response from the community has been extremely positive and we are thrilled to expand to a larger audience.”
Starbird is the brainchild of San Francisco-based culinary concept and design agency The Culinary Edge (TCE), and its venture division, The Culinary Edge Ventures (TCEV). TCEV was formed as an incubator for revolutionary dining concepts founded by Aaron Noveshen, Stephen Goldmann, and Steven Goldstein. A restaurant veteran and TCE founder, Noveshen was also co-founder of private equity funded Pacific Catch restaurants—a Bay Area favorite for seafood [and great Poke].
The first Starbird restaurant opened in June 2016 and is located in Silicon Valley at 1241 W El Camino Real in Sunnyvale. The next location will open early next year in Foster City, midway between Sunnyvale and San Francisco. The investment funds will be used to open additional restaurants in the Bay Area, focusing on high traffic, non-traditional locations.
Starbird is the first incubated concept from TCEV. By reimagining the traditional fast food experience, the team hopes to bring its “positively delicious” fried chicken sandwiches, tacos, salads, and breakfast all across the country