Company type | Fast casual restaurant |
---|---|
Industry | Fast casual |
Founded | 2007Bloomington, Illinois | in
Founder | Tom Jednorowicz Doug Reichl |
Defunct | 2024 |
Successor | Epic Burger |
Headquarters | , United States |
Number of locations | 0 (2024) |
Parent | Epic Burger |
Website | www |
Meatheads Burgers & Fries (commonly referred to as Meatheads) was an American fast-casual retailer of high-end hamburgers and other related menu items based in Illinois.
The company was founded by Tom Jednorowicz, formerly an executive at Potbelly Sandwich Works and Einstein Bros. Bagels, [1] [2] and Doug Reichl, founder of Tartan Realty Group. [3] Meatheads started in Bloomington, Illinois in 2007 [4] [5] and became a popular spot among students of Illinois State University and the popular young crowd. The company went on to open fourteen more locations in the Chicago area, first entering that market in 2009. [6] [7] [8] As of October 2016, 17 locations were in operation, one of which was in Champaign, Illinois near the University of Illinois at Urbana–Champaign campus.
Among a growing number of specialty burger chains in the United States, [9] Meatheads attempted to differentiate from its competition such as Five Guys and Smashburger by cutting a customer's fries in front of them, similar to west-coast based In-N-Out Burger. Meatheads described itself as a "fast-casual" chain as opposed to a traditional fast-food chain.
With reported annual sales in 2011 of approximately $5 million, the chain was solely composed of company-owned stores, and never implemented a franchise model. [10] In 2019, the partners sold the company to Crave Brands, LLC. [11]
On April 9, 2021, Meatheads Burgers & Fries filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection. The chain's parent company, Crave Brands LLC, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection the same day. [12] In September 2023, Epic Burger acquired the remaining six Meatheads locations and began the process of converting them to Epic Burger, [13] starting with the Northbrook location. [14] As of July 2024, only two locations remained, and were later replaced as well. [15] [16]
Boston Market Corporation, known as Boston Chicken until 1995, is an American fast casual restaurant chain headquartered in Newtown Township, Pennsylvania. Since 2020, it has been owned by Engage Brands, LLC, a company of Rohan Group. Frozen meals and side dishes are sold nationally under the Boston Market brand name.
Krystal is an American regional fast food restaurant chain headquartered in Dunwoody, Georgia, with restaurants in the Southeastern United States and Puerto Rico. It is known for its small, square hamburgers, called sliders in places other than the Southeast, with steamed-in onions. Krystal moved its headquarters from Chattanooga, Tennessee, where it had been based since 1932, to the Atlanta suburb of Dunwoody in early 2013.
Captain Ds, LLC. is an American fast casual restaurant chain that specializes in seafood and is headquartered in Nashville, Tennessee. The chain was founded as Mr. D's Seafood and Hamburgers by Raymond L. Danner Sr. on August 15, 1969, in Donelson, Tennessee. The chain is currently owned by private-equity firm Centre Partners. Captain D's currently has more than 500 locations in the United States.
Back Yard Burgers, Inc., is an American regional franchise chain of quick serve restaurants. As of March 2022, there are 38 restaurants in the Southern and Midwestern United States. Back Yard Burgers is a subsidiary of private equity firm Axum Capital Partners, and is headquartered in Nashville, Tennessee.
Hot 'n Now is an American fast-food restaurant based in Holt, Michigan. Founded in 1984, the chain once grew to more than 150 locations throughout the United States at its peak. Subsequently, under the ownership of PepsiCo, the chain filed for bankruptcy in 2004, and was then sold to STEN Corporation. As of April 2024, the company operates 1 location in Michigan. The majority of the chain's locations focused entirely on drive-thru service, featuring a small-footprint building with a tall, slanted roof style. Some previous locations were more traditional fast-food locations, complete with seating, and others were combined with gas stations.
Sbarro, LLC is an American fast food restaurant that specializes in New York–style pizza sold by the slice and other Italian-American cuisine. In 2011, the company was ranked 15th in foreign sales among U.S.-based quick-serve and fast-casual companies by QSR Magazine. In 2008, Sbarro was rated the No. 1 Quick Service Restaurant in the Italian segment by Entrepreneur magazine. However, diners and critics have criticized the quality of the food, with some suggesting a link between food quality and the company's two bankruptcies. Sbarro has over 600 locations in 28 countries. Sbarro stores are located in shopping malls, airports, service areas, and college campuses, as well as in The Pentagon, American naval bases, and casinos.
Five Guys Enterprises, LLC is an American fast food chain focused on hamburgers, hot dogs, and french fries. It is headquartered in Alexandria, Virginia.
Fuddruckers is an American fast casual, franchised restaurant chain that specializes in hamburgers. The Fuddruckers concept is to offer large hamburgers in which the meat is ground on-site and buns are baked on the premises. As of 2019, Fuddruckers had 49 company-operated restaurants and 107 franchises across the United States and around the world. The company headquarters is in Houston, Texas. On September 8, 2020, Fuddruckers owner Luby's, Inc. announced that they planned to liquidate existing assets, including Fuddruckers' assets, distributing the proceeds to investors after the proposed sale of the chains. On June 21, 2021, Black Titan Franchise Systems announced a deal to acquire Fuddruckers for $18.5 million.
Bennigan's is an Irish pub-themed American casual dining restaurant chain founded in 1976 in Atlanta, Georgia, by restaurateur Norman E. Brinker as one of America's original casual dining concepts. The chain was managed by the restaurant division of Pillsbury for most of its operating history, until Pillsbury was bought-out by British liquor conglomerate Grand Metropolitan. Due to laws preventing liquor manufacturers from also operating liquor sellers, the chain was sold to Texas-based Metromedia restaurants, until the company filed for Chapter 7 bankruptcy in 2008, causing many restaurant locations to close. The chain then went through a series of restructuring and ownership changes until it was purchased by Legendary Restaurant Brands, LLC in 2015. The company is now operating, on a smaller scale, out of Dallas, Texas.
CBC Restaurant Corporation, doing business as Corner Bakery Cafe is an American chain of cafes that specialize in pastries, breads, breakfast dishes, gourmet sandwiches, homemade soups, salads, and pasta. Corner Bakery Cafe is considered to be a part of the fast casual market segment of the food service industry, offering a somewhat higher quality of food and atmosphere than a typical fast food restaurant, and offering limited table service.
Così, based in Boston, Massachusetts, is an American fast-casual restaurant chain that is known for its homemade flatbread. The name comes from the opera Così fan tutte, which was a favorite of the original owner. As of November 2020, the company operated 20 locations in New York, Washington D.C., Virginia, Pennsylvania, Massachusetts, Connecticut, Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio, down from 66 at the beginning of the year. The chain filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in February 2020.
Oberweis Dairy, headquartered in North Aurora, Illinois, is the parent company of several dairy-related and fast food restaurant operations in the midwest region of the United States. Its businesses include a home delivery service available in parts of Illinois, Indiana, Missouri, Michigan, North Carolina, Texas, and Wisconsin, which delivers traditional dairy products, including milk, ice cream, cheese, and yogurt, as well as bacon and seasonal products.
Steak and Ale is an American chain of restaurants that was influential in the growth of casual dining. Founded in 1966, it achieved major success in the 1970s and 1980s before declaring Chapter 7 bankruptcy proceeding and closing its remaining 58 locations on July 29, 2008. The first new Steak and Ale restaurant since then opened on July 8, 2024, in Burnsville, Minnesota, with more planned for the Midwest and Texas.
Mrs. Winner's Chicken and Biscuits is a regional fast food restaurant in the U.S. Southeast which specializes in fried chicken. Mrs. Winner's is mostly known for their fried chicken and given away biscuits.
BurgerFi International, Inc. is an American hamburger restaurant chain aimed at the "better burger" sector of the market. The first location was opened in February 2011 in Lauderdale-by-the-Sea, Florida.
Mooyah is an American fast casual restaurant chain headquartered in Plano, Texas. The chain reached over 100 locations in 20 U.S. states and nine countries in 2016 in North America and the Middle East. They specialize in hamburgers, french fries, and shakes. They are known for their beef hamburgers which use Angus beef and their French-fries.
Little Big Burger is a hamburger restaurant chain, based in Portland, Oregon, United States.
Lord of the Fries is an Australian and New Zealand casual dining fast food chain. It was originally based in Melbourne, before expanding into other regions. It serves only vegan dishes including loaded fries, veggie burgers, hot dogs and a number of various sides and breakfast items. Due to the menu consisting entirely of plant-based products, all meals from the chain are Kosher and Halal. The restaurants became 100% vegan in 2018. The founders are vegan as are most of the franchisees.
Epic Burger is an American fast-casual retailer of high-end hamburgers and other related menu items based in Illinois. The chain was founded by David Friedman in 2008.