FSR December 2022

OntheRise BY BEN COLEY

RealFood,GoodVibes With a team of industry vets at the helm, Picnik is poised to bring its healthful fare to the masses.

PICNIK CEO Dan Mesches describes the NextGen Casual concept in five words: real food and good vibes. In lieu of refined sugar, gluten, seed oil, soy, corn, and peanuts, the menu favors pressed avocado oil, extra virgin olive oil, andMCT oil; pasteurized meat and eggs; Himalayan sea salt; organic tofu; butter fromgrass-fed cows; and raw honey. One may come in with friends and start with the Mediterranean Dip Trio, comprising pesto hummus, tzatziki, labneh, hot honey, chile, sunflower seed, crudités, and chips. The entrée lineup includes salads, bowls, sandwiches, tacos, and market plates, like the Wagyu Cap onata—grass-fed skirt, feta, summer squash, spiced tomato caper, onion, golden raisin, and Italian salsa verde. The beverage menu is just as diverse, with signature cocktails like the Pitaya Margarita (blanco tequila, dragonfruit, lime, and raw honey), low ABV and zero proof drinks, cider, hard kombucha, beer, sustainable wine, tea, and butter coffee. Customers are able to add a handful of wellness ingredients, including collagen, lion’s mane (a species of mushroom), and adaptogen protein. “We wanted to make food that is inclusive for everyone no matter what, whether you have a special diet or you’re just going out to eat and want to have a healthy comforting food,” Mesches says. “Through that, we are very mindful in

EST: 2013 FOUNDER: Naomi Seifter HQ: Austin, Texas UNITS: 2 CUISINE: Better for-you eats

PICNIK’S ALLERGEN-FREE MENU INCLUDES SEASONAL ITEMS LIKE THE CHICKEN SCHNITZEL.

sourcing. You find a lot of your favor ites—things that everyone likes to eat but may have a problem with diet-wise. Or you’re so used to having some healthy foods that are not always thought of as tasty, and we bridge that gap. We’re both.” Picnik was founded by Naomi Sei fter nine years ago in Austin, Texas, as a food trailer renovated from a shipping container. Seifter opened the concept to offer more choices for customers like herself who deal with allergies and issues related to food and gut stress. She found a diet that worked for her, which began with butter coffee and grew from there. In 2016, the first brick-and-mortar restaurant opened, followed by a sec ond one this summer. Another loca tion—and the first outside of Austin—is expected in Houston’s Montrose neigh

borhood in the first quarter of 2023, which, including the trailer, will bring its unit count to four. Seifter served as CEO until 2019, when the company brought on Andy Malloy—former leader of better-for you snack brand Hail Merry—to over see the CPG segment. Incorporated as Artisanal Blue Northern Foods, the Pic nik product line, which includes a vari ety of healthful creamers, is available at Whole Foods, Sprouts, and other grocery retailers nationwide. Mesches, who previously served as CEO of Hopdoddy Burger Bar, operates the restaurant side of Picnik’s restaurant business. A few years ago, the concept received a $7.5 million investment from private equity firm KarpReilly, which also has its hands in Sprinkles Cupcakes

PICNIK

DECEMBER 2022 59

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