FARE
FARE (Food by FARE) is a Chicago-based fast-casual restaurant brand operating 13+ company-owned locations serving seasonal, scratch-cooked bowls, plates, breakfast, smoothies, and coffee to health-conscious consumers, with catering and a mobile-ordering loyalty program.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2010
- HeadquartersChicago, United States
- Headcount11–50
- GTM typeB2C
- OfferingServices
What FARE does
FARE (legal entity FARE Holding LLC, an Illinois LLC, DBA "Food by FARE") is a Chicago-based fast-casual restaurant brand founded in 2010 by Kasia Bednarz around the thesis that "fast food can be real food." The company operates 13+ company-owned locations across the Chicago metro area — including street-front stores in Old Town, Lake + LaSalle, 150 Riverside, the Loop, Oak Park, Logan Square, the Old Post Office, and the Lakeview area, plus food-hall and institutional sites at Sterling Food Hall and Northwestern Memorial Hospital — with three additional units announced (Lakeview Summer 2026; Plaza Midwood and Queensbridge Collective in Charlotte, NC, Fall 2026), marking its first expansion outside Illinois. The core menu is built around seasonal bowls, plates, build-your-own meals, breakfast items, smoothies, sweets, and specialty coffee, executed 99% in-house from scratch with no seed oils, limited refined sugars, and locally sourced ingredients.
The technology stack supporting operations comprises an iOS/Android mobile app, an online ordering platform at orders.foodbyfare.com, the Toast POS/payment system for in-store and online transactions, AWS cloud infrastructure (as evidenced by the company's public note about an AWS outage disrupting ordering), and the "Garden Club" points-based loyalty program that spans both retail and catering orders. Revenue is generated almost entirely through direct-to-consumer food and beverage sales — dine-in, takeout, pickup, and delivery — supplemented by a catering service for corporate and event customers with delivery within an 8-mile radius and a co-branded partnership with RMBR Kombucha. Pricing is not publicly disclosed and the company has not released revenue figures; the Form D filed with the SEC in August 2024 indicated a ~$3.5 million exempt securities offering (target raise ~$1.8M) without disclosing revenue or net asset value.
FARE is a privately held, founder-led company with no disclosed institutional investors, no parent company, and no subsidiaries. The management team is anchored solely by founder Kasia Bednarz, with headcount reported at 11-50 employees concentrated across operational and culinary roles. The go-to-market motion is direct-to-consumer physical retail with a digital layer for ordering, loyalty accrual, and catering bookings, and the customer base is primarily individual health-conscious consumers with a single named enterprise anchor (Northwestern Memorial Hospital on-site foodservice) and SMB event catering accounts.
FARE firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- FARE
- Legal name
- FARE HOLDING LLC
- Website
- https://foodbyfare.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2010
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 11–50 employees
- Short description
- FARE (Food by FARE) is a Chicago-based fast-casual restaurant brand operating 13+ company-owned locations serving seasonal, scratch-cooked bowls, plates, breakfast, smoothies, and coffee to health-conscious consumers, with catering and a mobile-ordering loyalty program.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
FARE industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Fast Casual Dining
- NAICS
- Limited-Service Restaurants (722513), Caterers (72232), Special Food Services (7223)
- SIC
- Retail-Eating & Drinking Places (5810), Retail-Eating Places (5812)
- akta.pro primary industry
- All-Day Dining Restaurants (THAFACAJ)
- akta.pro secondary industries
- Event Catering (Weddings, Social, Private Parties) (THAFAIAB), Full-Service Catering (Off-Premise) (HSACAGAA)
Keywords
Where FARE is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Chicago
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Offices13 records
Markets served
FARE business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2C
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Personnel, Operations, Supply Chain, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure
Revenue model
- Dine-in and Takeout Food Sales: Revenue from food and beverage sales at physical restaurant locations, including dine-in and takeout orders.
- Online and Mobile Ordering: Revenue from orders placed through the company's website and mobile application, processed via Toast payment platform.
- Catering Services: Corporate and event catering services offering breakfast, lunch, and dinner options with delivery within 8-mile radius. Delivery fee starts at $30 or 10% of total order amount.
- Delivery Services: Revenue from third-party delivery orders placed through the platform.
Go-to-market motion1 record
Distribution channels5 records
Marketing channels5 records
FARE product offering
Product offeringCore offering
FARE operates a fast-casual restaurant chain selling seasonal bowls, plates, build-your-own meals, breakfast items, sides, sweets, smoothies, and beverages for dine-in, takeout, and delivery from 13+ company-owned locations across Chicago and upcoming Charlotte, NC. The company also provides corporate and event catering services with build-your-own bowl bars, delivery, and setup, supported by a mobile app, online ordering platform, and the Garden Club loyalty program.
Product overview
FARE is a fast-casual restaurant chain operating as a single unified brand with multiple product lines. The core offering consists of made-from-scratch seasonal bowls, plates, and build-your-own meals featuring proteins, grains, vegetables, and signature sauces. Complementary product lines include a full breakfast menu (egg sandwiches, wraps, overnight oats, yogurt parfaits), smoothies, sweets (cookies, brownies, muffins), and beverages (espresso drinks, iced coffee, tea, kombucha, and other drinks). The company offers catering services for corporate events and gatherings with build-your-own bowl bars and delivery. Supporting the core food products are a mobile app (iOS/Android) for ordering and loyalty (Garden Club rewards program) that spans both regular and catering orders. The company operates multiple physical restaurant locations across Chicago and Charlotte, with online ordering available through their web platform.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Products and services
- Seasonal Bowls & Plates
Quantifiable outcome
- 99% of menu items made in-house
- +2 more outcomes
Companies that use FARE
Customer profileNamed customers2 records
Segments3 records
Ideal customer profiles3 records
FARE technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Integration1 record
Feature1 record
FARE partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
One partnership is on record.
- RMBR KombuchacoreRMBR kombucha announced a collaboration with FARE to create a limited edition kombucha featuring fresh, organic ingredients and honest sourcing, available at all FARE locations. The companies celebrated their partnership through a joint product launch and announced a grand opening event for FARE's newest Logan Square location. The collaboration highlights mutual values of quality sourcing and community engagement between the two local Chicago businesses.
Scale indicators3 records
Recent moves5 records
Expansion highlights5 records
FARE competitors and assessment
Company assessmentMarket position
Competitive moat4 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
FARE social profiles
Digital presenceFARE financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
FARE leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles1 record
FARE funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds1 record
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
FARE M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about FARE
What does FARE do?
FARE operates a fast-casual restaurant chain selling seasonal bowls, plates, build-your-own meals, breakfast items, sides, sweets, smoothies, and beverages for dine-in, takeout, and delivery from 13+ company-owned locations across Chicago and upcoming Charlotte, NC. The company also provides corporate and event catering services with build-your-own bowl bars, delivery, and setup, supported by a mobile app, online ordering platform, and the Garden Club loyalty program.
Is FARE a public or private company?
FARE is a private company. It is classified as founder individual operated bootstrapped and is currently operating.
When was FARE founded?
FARE was founded in 2010. It employs 11 to 50 people.
Where is FARE based?
FARE is headquartered in Chicago, United States, in the North America region.
How does FARE make money?
Four revenue lines are on record. Dine-in and Takeout Food Sales are the primary driver. The others are online and Mobile Ordering, catering Services and delivery Services.
Does FARE have an API?
No public API is recorded for FARE.
What industry is FARE in?
FARE's product category is Fast Casual Dining. Its primary akta.pro industry code is THAFACAJ, All-Day Dining Restaurants, with a secondary code of THAFAIAB, Event Catering (Weddings, Social, Private Parties). Its NAICS code is 722513 and its SIC code is 5810.