Marketplace is paywall-free because of listeners like you. 🧡 Donate now

Why are fast casual restaurants like Shake Shack doing so well?

Jan 14, 2025
Burger chain Shake Shack just announced plans to expand to 1,500 stores. The fast casual sector is growing much quicker than other parts of the restaurant industry.

Why restaurants are on the private equity menu

Nov 19, 2024
Blackstone buys a majority stake in sandwich chain Jersey Mike’s. Fast-casual is a growing segment of the enormous but risky restaurant trade.
Blackstone has acquired majority ownership of Jersey Mike’s, a sandwich chain with about 3,000 locations.
Justin Sullivan/Getty Images

How fast casual restaurants pick new locations

Apr 16, 2024
"There's a lot of science and a little bit of art" involved in finding the perfect place, a Chipotle executive says.

Fast food menu hacks are taking over TikTok

Apr 5, 2023
They create both chaos and money-making opportunities for businesses.
The rise of social media and digital ordering has spawned a slew of menu hacks and complex orders.
Nicolas Asfouri/AFP via Getty Images

Millennials and avocados are key to Chipotle's comeback

Oct 22, 2019
The fast-casual chain has turned around business since the health scares of years past.
Online orders account for almost a fifth of sales at Chipotle. Above, the restaurant's workers fill orders.
Joe Raedle/Getty Images

For public good, not for profit.

Tender Greens CEO weighs in on retail and food service

Sep 17, 2018
Denyelle Bruno shares the spaces she finds most inspiring, including the "Radiohead of grocery retail."
Tender Greens is the fast-casual restaurant chain you may not have heard of.
Maria Hollenhorst/Marketplace

What happened to Chipotle's unique selling proposition?

Mar 17, 2016
Chipotle's trying to deliver on its "fresh" brand while improving food safety.
Chipotle faces brand issues after their fresh and healthy image was tarnished by virus outbreaks. 
Joe Raedle/Getty Images

Between fast food and fine dining: fast casual

Jan 19, 2016
At a shopping center in Glendale, Colorado, Laquardra and Jason Staples are sitting down to lunch. The restaurant is brand new, a sleekly-designed barbecue spot called Carve Barbecue. The interior is styled with exposed wood beams, chrome metal chairs and stainless steel. “We’re just out running errands so we just stopped in for a nice […]