The Top-performing New Restaurant Type
by David Klemt
According to a midyear Yelp report, one category of new restaurant is experiencing a surge in growth across the US unlike any other.
No, it’s not ramen, as the image above suggests. Instead, it’s pop-up restaurants.
We can trace the growth of this category, at least on the operator side, to cost. Sure, pop-ups were popular before 2020. However, they grew even more popular during the pandemic.
One can argue the life cycle of the pop-up is fad to trend to cost-saving adaptation to proliferation.
There are even those who transform shipping containers into mobile, pop-up restaurants and bars. With the right permits and hookups (water, electricity, etc.), an operator can test a new market or an entirely new concept before committing fully to a brick-and-mortar location.
In other words, the pop-up simply makes sense for our industry. This category of restaurant (or bar) clearly doesn’t cost anywhere as much as its permanent brick-and-mortar counterparts, for one. Secondly, a pop-up doesn’t (shouldn’t, anyway) require more than a skeleton crew. And thirdly, they do seem to enjoy pops in interest whenever they come to a new market or new address.
There are, of course, other benefits. However, the low(er) cost is the most attractive element for most operators.
Keep in mind that Double Chicken Please started life as a pop-up cocktail concept. In fact, DCP is the current Best Bar in North America according to the World’s 50 Best Bars.
Covering more than 10,000 miles and serving over 1,200 cocktails, the DCP pop-up toured the US for three years before finding a brick-and-mortar home. And what a home. The concept is now a jewel in New York’s Lower East Side F&B crown.
Top Restaurant Types by Opening
According to Yelp, the following restaurant categories are experiencing the most growth.
The numbers below represent the changes in business openings from April 2021 to March 2022 in comparison to April 2022 to March 2023.
- Pop-ups: +105 percent
- Ramen: +45 percent
- Noodles: +40 percent
- Tacos: +28 percent
- Chicken shops: +28 percent
- Food stands: +23 percent
- Japanese: +20 percent
- Breakfast and brunch: +20 percent
- Sushi: +13 percent
- Steakhouses: +9 percent
As the numbers above show, the growth of pop-ups far exceeds that of any of the other categories. In fact, they’re growing by nearly three times that of the second-place category, ramen restaurants.
Make a Pop-up Work for You
For a pop-up to work the concept must be realized fully. The brand and its story must be communicated clearly.
And while the menus can perhaps change more easily, signatures should be dialed in to generate buzz.
At KRG Hospitality, our view of pop-ups is a popular one. We think they’re excellent branding tools and are a viable way for new operators to test the waters.
However, we believe that a successful pop-up should be paired with a fully customized feasibility study and in-depth concept development. Both are core services offered by KRG Hospitality, and both are specialties that set us apart.
They may be mobile, they may feel niche and “temporary” or experimental, but they’re still a business.
A pop-up can only transform into a brick-and-mortar concept with a shot at longevity if the operator treats it as a roving proving ground.
Image: Diego Lozano on Unsplash
