---
title: "Sauce on the Side Franchise: A Unique Fast-Casual Opportunity"
url: https://burnaze.com/article/f3a7d1c7-2fc7-4b9b-a511-c4dcb8df98c1
source: "1851 Franchise"
original_url: https://1851franchise.com/franchise-deep-dive-sauce-on-the-side-franchise-costs-fees-profit-and-data-2727188
category: "Fast casual"
industry: "Restaurants"
segment: "Fast casual"
published: 2024-09-07T17:12:01.000Z
modified: 2026-11-01T01:05:48.667Z
image: https://newimage.1851franchise.com/cdn-cgi/image/quality=85,format=webp,width=1280,height=720/story/featureImage/5280e1fadd8e5f88071c59848388ce9d6833.jpg
---

# Sauce on the Side Franchise: A Unique Fast-Casual Opportunity

**TL;DR:** Sauce on the Side is a fast-casual franchise offering fresh, high-quality food and exceptional service through its calzone-centric menu. The brand has launched a franchise opportunity and anticipates continued growth throughout the Midwest.

*originally published in 1851 Franchise on 2024-09-07. [Read the original](https://1851franchise.com/franchise-deep-dive-sauce-on-the-side-franchise-costs-fees-profit-and-data-2727188).*

## Story

Sauce on the Side was founded with a mission to deliver fresh, high-quality food and exceptional service. With a menu centered around calzones made from scratch daily, Sauce on the Side has set itself apart in the fast-casual dining segment.

Sauce on the Side first opened in 2012 in the heart of downtown St. Louis, started by founders Ryan Mangialardo, Brendon Maciariello and Dan Porzel. And how did they come up with the whole calzone concept?

“It’s because of Seinfeld,” Porzel told RFT. “My business partner Ryan [Mangialardo] was watching the calzone episode where George gets the calzones for Steinbrenner, and he called our other partner Brendon [Maciariello] and said, ‘Hey man, we should do calzones.’”

After opening 10 restaurant locations in their first decade of operation, the brand has launched a franchise opportunity and anticipates continued growth throughout the Midwest.

Sauce on the Side operates on a fast-casual business model with a twist. While guests order at the counter, they enjoy a full-service experience with food delivered to their table, refills provided and leftovers boxed up by the staff.

The franchise is designed to thrive in various conditions, offering multiple dining options including in-house dining, takeout, curbside pickup and delivery (both in-house and third-party). This flexibility has positioned Sauce on the Side to succeed even in challenging market conditions, with a significant portion of revenue coming from off-premise channels.

Sauce on the Side reported an average unit volume of $1,180,099 in 2022, with top-performing units reaching an average unit volume of $1,613,302. The average EBITDA for affiliate-owned locations was 13.8% in 2022, highlighting the brand’s strong financial performance.

The specific costs associated with opening a Sauce on the Side range from $414,000 to $704,500.

The franchise fee required for Sauce on the Side is $35,000. Owners also need to spend 5% of gross revenue on a Royalty Fee and 1% of gross revenue on an Advertising Fee.

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*All content in this article is information of a general nature and does not address the detailed circumstances of any particular individual or entity. Nothing in the article constitutes professional and/or financial advice, nor does any information in the email constitute a comprehensive or complete statement of the matters discussed or the law relating thereto. You alone assume the sole responsibility of evaluating the merits and risks associated with the use of any information or other content in this article before making any decisions based on such information or other content.*

## Entities

- 1851 Franchise (publication)
- Restaurants (sector)
- unit expansion (topic)
- menu pricing (topic)
- fast casual (topic)
- franchise opportunity (topic)
- st louis (location)

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Originally reported by 1851 Franchise (https://1851franchise.com/franchise-deep-dive-sauce-on-the-side-franchise-costs-fees-profit-and-data-2727188). Summarized by Burnaze (https://burnaze.com/article/f3a7d1c7-2fc7-4b9b-a511-c4dcb8df98c1).