The Los Angeles brand launched in 2018 and has grown to over 300 locations. It won the Top 100 two years ago, making it the second brand in history to earn the honor more than once.
The fast casual dining scene celebrated its leading innovators and performers Sunday night at the Fast Casual Top 100 Gala in Chicago, with Dave’s Hot Chicken taking the coveted top spot in the 10th annual Fast Casual Top 100 Movers & Shakers.
The announcement capped an evening recognizing the industry’s resilience, creativity and growth. (To see the full list, download the free report here.)
This year’s report, a hallmark of industry insights compiled by FastCasual.com, introduced a significant enhancement to its ranking process — the Fast Casual Index. Developed in partnership with Anand Tumuluru and his team at Loop, the index provided a data-driven layer to the judges’ evaluations, tracking a range of performance indicators, including menu strategy, location growth, customer sentiment, sales metrics, social media presence and online listing performance.
“The fast casual dinner is a celebration of the most innovative and fastest-growing restaurant segment that’s going through rapid change,” Tumuluru said, emphasizing the index’s role in blending subjective human evaluation with objective data analysis. “The goal for this collaboration is to enable the perfect blend of the subjective and objective.”
For years, the Fast Casual Top 100 relied on a self-nomination process followed by judges’ assessments of factors beyond just sales figures, aiming to highlight the nimbleness and innovation often seen in smaller brands. The introduction of the Fast Casual Index marks a step toward greater objectivity in identifying the top performers within the dynamic fast-casual landscape, said Cherryh Cansler, publisher of FastCasual.com and hostess of the gala.
“Picking the Top 100 is always a challenge, but adding these data-based guardrails made it easier to see which brands are leading in what areas.”
Adding to the recognition, this year’s report expanded its brand honorees to 100, up from the previous 75. The event also celebrated 26 top executives, a slight increase from the planned 25 due to the exceptional pool of leadership within the industry.
The fast casual sector continues its robust growth, currently an $85 billion industry with projections to reach $150 billion within the next five years.
“The proof is in the pudding; there are many brands showing consistency in customer satisfaction by innovating customer experience and menus,” Tumuluru said, underscoring the data-driven nature of the industry and the timeliness of incorporating data into the rankings.
Nominations for the Fast Casual Top 100 and inclusion in the index opened earlier this year and closed Feb. 3. Winners were notified by mid-March and invited to the gala.
Founded in 2000, Networld Media Group, which publishes FastCasual.com, specializes in digital media, events and associations across various industries.
About Networld Media Group
Founded in 2000, Networld Media Group is a leading media communications company specializing in digital media, events and associations in the technology, restaurant, banking, and retail industries. It’s media brands include ATMmarketplace.com, DigitalSignageToday.com, FastCasual.com, KioskMarketplace.com, QSRweb.com, RetailCustomerExperience.com and RewardsThatMatter.com. Events under the Networld umbrella include the Fast Casual Executive Summit, Restaurant Franchising & Innovation Summit and Restaurant Catering Workshop.
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