---
title: "The Melt Opens 20th Location in San Marcos, California"
url: https://burnaze.com/article/5468675b-ea70-4e9b-87a8-9de712a1a8ec
source: "QSR Magazine"
original_url: https://www.qsrmagazine.com/news/the-melt-opens-20th-location-in-san-marcos-california/
author: "Ben Coley"
category: "Fast casual"
industry: "Restaurants"
segment: "Fast casual"
topics: ["Development & multi-unit"]
published: 2026-05-13T14:43:19.000Z
modified: 2026-10-31T13:16:22.354Z
image: https://images.unsplash.com/photo-1555396273-367ea4eb4db5?w=1600&q=80&auto=format&fit=crop
---

# The Melt Opens 20th Location in San Marcos, California

**TL;DR:** The Melt has opened its 20th location in San Marcos, California, and is on track for its largest expansion year to date, with seven more locations planned for 2026. The fast-casual brand posted $58.2 million in revenue in 2025 and plans to start franchising later this year.

*By Ben Coley, originally published in QSR Magazine on 2026-05-13. [Read the original](https://www.qsrmagazine.com/news/the-melt-opens-20th-location-in-san-marcos-california/).*

## Story

Twenty locations. One obsession: The World’s Meltiest Burger. The Melt just opened its 20th location in San Marcos, CA, and it’s a milestone worth savoring. The fast-casual brand known for its signature MeltBurger is in the middle of its biggest expansion year yet, and the momentum isn’t slowing down. It’s a number built guest by guest, burger by burger, driven by the simple belief that every person who walks through the door should leave saying “I love it here.”

After launching three locations in 2025, entering Arizona for the first time and posting six consecutive years of sales growth, The Melt has hit its stride. Locations are already open in Brea, Torrance and San Marcos, with seven more on the way this year, including a May 2026 debut at San Francisco International Airport’s Harvey Milk Terminal 1. It will be the brand’s first-ever airport location, putting The Melt in front of millions of travelers.

The Melt posted more than $58.2 million in revenue in 2025, a record year. Same-store sales have climbed from $700,000 AUV to $3.4M AUV in just seven years, with 4.6% comp gains in 2025 alone — 80% of which was traffic-driven. It’s a foundation built for growth, and franchising is the next step later this year.

“It’s simple,” remarked Ralph Bower, CEO of The Melt. “To be a truly great restaurant company, you have to start with great food. At The Melt, the food is the star — everything else follows from that.”

The menu fueling all of it starts with the signature MeltBurger: more than a third pound of fresh 100% Angus and Wagyu beef under two slices of aged cheddar, melted together on the grill. Alongside it: toasty grilled cheese sandwiches, crispy buttermilk-brined chicken, creamy mac and cheese and hand-spun shakes made from 100% natural ice cream. The commitment to quality runs from the grill to the counter, and guests have taken notice: The Melt holds a 4.7-star average rating across Google and Yelp.

“Our passion is to have the absolute best burgers and melted sandwiches in the restaurant industry and we believe we have done that with guest feedback on Yelp and Google among the very best in North America,” added Bower. “”The energy around The Melt right now is unlike anything we’ve seen. Guests keep coming back, we keep opening doors, and this year we’re doing it faster than ever. Ten new locations, a debut at SFO, franchising on the way — there’s a lot to be excited about, and we’re just getting warmed up.”

## Entities

- unit expansion (topic)
- QSR (sector)
- franchising (topic)
- QSR Magazine (publication)
- California (location)
- Ben Coley (person)
- Arizona (location)
- revenue growth (topic)
- menu offerings (topic)
- The Melt (company)
- Ralph Bower (person)
- airport location (topic)

---
Originally reported by Ben Coley, QSR Magazine (https://www.qsrmagazine.com/news/the-melt-opens-20th-location-in-san-marcos-california/). Summarized by Burnaze (https://burnaze.com/article/5468675b-ea70-4e9b-87a8-9de712a1a8ec).