---
title: "Fast Casual: Fast casuals, not fine-dining brands, leading restaurant segment in design innovation"
url: https://burnaze.com/article/4824ea33-f670-4874-9358-43d08e879008
source: "1851 Franchise"
original_url: https://1851franchise.com/fast-casual-fast-casuals-not-fine-dining-brands-leading-restaurant-segment-in-design-innovation-5782
category: "Fast casual"
industry: "Restaurants"
segment: "Fast casual"
published: 2016-09-09T16:11:00.000Z
modified: 2026-11-01T04:13:14.433Z
image: https://newimage.1851franchise.com/cdn-cgi/image/quality=85,format=webp,width=1280,height=720/story/featureImage/36c51d9f473e2e32107065dbe3c9f0025101160909104741.jpg
---

# Fast Casual: Fast casuals, not fine-dining brands, leading restaurant segment in design innovation

**TL;DR:** Fast casual restaurants are leading the way in design innovation, with trends like reclaimed wood and chalkboards becoming increasingly popular. The segment is setting the standard for design, ahead of fine-dining, polished casual, and QSR.

*originally published in 1851 Franchise on 2016-09-09. [Read the original](https://1851franchise.com/fast-casual-fast-casuals-not-fine-dining-brands-leading-restaurant-segment-in-design-innovation-5782).*

## Story

Chefs and diners nationwide are shifting their focus from fine dining to fast casual menus. According to a recent Fast Casual article, fast casual has grown in prevalence and the segment is setting the standard for design--ahead of fine-dining, polished casual, and QSR.

Consumers are flocking to fast casuals for dining occasions and with this growing popularity, fast casuals must give more attention to the dining experience. As a result, design innovation is now the center of their attention.

Restaurant features such as reclaimed wood, chalkboards, and subway tile are a few trends that showing up in fast casual restaurants more frequently. After the early adopters and early majority take note, these trends start to trickle down to other segments like QSR.

Without competition in the past, QSR had no need to think about new design. As fast casuals continue to focus on design with money and brain power, QSRs must also shift their attention that way.

Now the fast casual segment has the option of pulling customers from either fine-dining restaurants or drawing customers from the QSR segment by focusing on drive-thrus and to-go meals with new designs. Eventually, the defined lines between segments will start to blend as design innovation continues.

## Entities

- 1851 Franchise (publication)
- Restaurants (sector)
- fast casual (topic)
- FastCasual (publication)
- qsr (topic)
- restaurant trends (topic)
- design innovation (topic)

---
Originally reported by 1851 Franchise (https://1851franchise.com/fast-casual-fast-casuals-not-fine-dining-brands-leading-restaurant-segment-in-design-innovation-5782). Summarized by Burnaze (https://burnaze.com/article/4824ea33-f670-4874-9358-43d08e879008).