This year's list was published this week and included the following:
Fresh to Order. Okay, I have to say that this restaurant broker LOVES, LOVES Fresh to Order. The one in Midtown Atlanta has great service, tremendous food and great healthy, low calorie options. My only TINY complaint with Fresh to Order is that the nutritional information is available on the screens if you input your own order but they don't have a list on hand (at least not when I was there recently). That's not a big deal since you can alway grab it online.
My personal favorite here is ANY salad (though the spinach with fruit is the BEST! Seasonal Fruit, Spinach, Strawberries, Blue Cheese Crumbles, Golden Raisins, Almonds, Oh, yeah, I'm hungry now). I top it with Tuna for a great healthy meal. Here's a hint - no need for dressing! That's right. Leave off the dressing and save the calories. The fruit, freshness of the vegetables and "drizzle" on the tuna is more than enough without adding salad dressing.
It is hard to believe that a chain this professional has only eight units and was just founded in 2006. Hooray for this Atlanta hometown favorite (started in Alpharetta Georgia) and hats off to Nations Restaurant News for putting FTO (Fresh to Order) at their list poised for greatness. The restaurant brokers agree.
Max’s Wine Dive also made the cut. We haven't been to this operation which is based out of Texas and boasts only four stores so far. According to Nations Restaurant News the concept "combines gourmet comfort food with retail wine sales." Now that the restaurant brokers are selling restaurants in Texas, this one is on our "Must See" list.
Modmarket also made the HOT concepts list. This concept is based in the back yard of our Colorado franchisee who's surely been to eat at this fast-casual restaurant. Modmarket is planning to hit 7 units this year and they average an out of the park $2 million in sales per year on just an $11 check average. That's a lot of bodies moving through to do $2 million so the restuarant brokers fully expect this concept to work its way east fast in the coming months.
Is there room in Hot Concepts for another Italian chain? Well the restaurant brokers aren't so sure this cuisine isn't saturated but the editors at Nations Restaurant News put Piada Italia on the list. Their claim to fame is building their concept around a bread that's like a tortilla found in Italy. It's cooked on a stone like a pizza with olive oil and filled with tasty ingredients. This concept is only three years old and has grown to ten stores in Ohio. The line is similar to what you see at a Chipotle or Moe's with the ingredients are added on and customized to the customer. Sounds good to us!
Last on the list of HOT concepts is Unami Burger, a 14 store chain based in Los Angeles. The chain has pricey burgers with over the top toppings like truffle glaze and port-carmelized onions. Call the restaurant brokers crazy but we don't see this saturating main street America. This feels a lot like a "left coast" concept.
That's our take on the HOT Concepts. We want to know what they missed? Is there something in your market that should have made the list? Do the restaurant brokers a favor and SHARE this post on Facebook, Linked In or Twitter and let's get a conversation going. Maybe we can get a new entry to the Hot Concepts or get Nations Restaurant News to offer up our Honorable Mentions!