How San Pedro Fish Market built a $30M legacy

by Cherryh Cansler — Editor, FastCasual.com

Speaking at the Restaurant Franchising and Innovation Summit Tuesday in San Diego, Michael Ungaro shared the gritty, tenacious history of his family's brand — a journey that began in 1956 as a 200-square-foot seafood shop and evolved into a destination serving 2 million customers a year.

Professor Green teams with Hero Brands to launch PG in UK

by Cherryh Cansler — Editor, FastCasual.com

PG Fast Food is shunning the traditional burger-and-fries blueprint in favor of a "naughty but nice" menu that emphasizes choice. Offerings include the "UFO" — a filled and sealed toasted pocket — salad and rice bowls, dirty sodas and Ice Grapes.

How to knock down blocks, power up your pivot points

by Kathleen Wood — Founder, K. Wood Partners

To break through the "Founder’s pivot point," leaders must transition from micromanagement to scalability by documenting standards, delegating outcomes, fostering team belief and developing the structural support necessary to receive and sustain growth.

Handel’s Ice Cream hires Naveen Dasa as CFO

Handel's Homemade Ice Cream, headquartered in Canfield, Ohio, has appointed Naveen Dasa as chief financial officer.

Fueling growth from 1 cup to 100+ locations

Brandon Knudsen, co-founder and CEO of Ziggi’s Coffee, shares critical advice on how he bootstrapped Ziggi's from a single coffee shop to more than 100 locations across 22 states.

Jeff's Bagel Run

Jeff’s Bagel Run is a scratch bakery with a simple and delicious menu of bagels, spreads and a full coffee program. The shops are open daily from 6:30 a.m. - 2:00 p.m., allowing operators to schedule on a single-shift model. The simple menu enables the brand to keep excellent and consistent products while maximizing revenue.

The New Front of House: Why Pizza’s Next Growth Era Runs on Self-Order Kiosks + Intelligent POS Systems

Easy-to-use kiosks fully integrated with a modern POS system have emerged as the most efficient and cost-effective solution to the challenge of front-of-store ordering during busy times. This solution provides an app-like experience inside the store, built specifically for busy walk-in customers.

2025 Fast Casual Top 100 Movers & Shakers

This year, the exceptional caliber of leadership across the industry led to a slight adjustment in our numbers—we were compelled to recognize 100 brands and 25 executives instead of our usual 75- 25 split. We also added an extra executive, a testament to the fierce competition and outstanding contributions within the fast-casual arena.