QSR Magazine: With Plated Dishes, These Brands Are Fine While Fast

The idea of a plated meal with a side dish of vegetables or starch traditionally takes place in a sit down restaurant environment. According to a recent QSR Magazine article, the fast-casual 2.0 segment is a growing category that has embraced plated meals featuring entrees and a side dish. Menus are usually pre-selected and customers can choose from a variety of proteins to be able to mix and match their meals.

“The customization here is more in choosing the sides, but the [entrée] is set,” says Claire Conaghan, a senior account manager at market research firm Datassential. “[Chefs] have sort of decided what’s best for the entrée, more like a casual restaurant.”

The pricing at fast casual 2.0 restaurants is typically higher than a fast casual, but diners still order at a counter and receive food in 10 minutes or less. The plated meal serves as an alternative to most traditional lunch foods as well such as sandwiches and salads.

“Everybody eats salads and sandwiches for lunch, so we had to add those, but when I go out to lunch, I might want a hot plate, like grilled chicken and steamed vegetables,” says founder and chief executive of Dish Society, Aaron Lyons. “So we’ve incorporated them.”