QSR July 2023

fresh ideas |GROWTH AND DEVELOPMENT|

Battle of the Bowl Chains

Blended fruit bowl concepts are expanding across the country, thanks to growing demand for healthy options.

COVID PUSHED GUESTS TO THINK ABOUT THEIR WELL-BEING, AND THERE ARE PLENTY OF QUICK-SERVICE CHAINS TO SUPPORT THAT JOURNEY.

BY SAM DANLEY

A ndrew Pudalov didn’t have any experience in the restaurant industry when he left his Wall Street career to pursue a pas sion for healthy living. He only had his financial acumen and a vision of serving up wholesome and convenient meals in a bowl. The idea was to combine the taste and texture of smoothies with the crunch of granola, topped with honey, fresh fruit, and other nutritious fixings. It’s a familiar concept today and one that’s surging in popularity as more consumers seek out better-for-you alternatives to standard fast-casual fare. That wasn’t the case when he opened the first Rush Bowls location nearly two decades ago. “We were the pioneers,” Pudalov says. “A lot of our time early on was spent on education. People weren’t familiar with the for mat at first, but now, more people are aware of bowls, and more people are getting into the space.” Pudalov created a separate wholesale business after opening his first store in Colorado, partnering with Whole Foods to distrib

ute frozen bowls across the country. That venture came to an end in 2014 when his co-packer closed. By then, he was thinking about franchising, and the wholesale business had given him the crash course in national distribution he needed to make that happen. Rush Bowls has expanded to more than 40 units across nearly two dozen states since it started franchising in 2015. It plans to open 20-25 new stores in both new and existing markets this year. Competition in the segment has only accelerated alongside acai’s rise to fame as a celebrated superfood, but Pudalov says his brand maintains a competitive edge by focusing on what it does best. “We don’t do a lot of esoteric items,” he says. “We’re not dis tracted by things like salads or sandwiches. We’re focused on premium bowls and smoothies, and we have a lot of diversity within that narrow subset.” Playa Bowls also is ramping up its nationwide expansion. The fast-casual concept emerged in 2014 as the brainchild of wave

ADOBE STOCK / ALENA OZEROVA

www.qsrmagazine.com | QSR | JULY 2023

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