Small Cheval
Small Cheval is an 8-location Chicago fast-casual restaurant chain serving burgers, fried chicken, and comfort food. Part of the Hogsalt Hospitality group, revenue comes from dine-in, delivery, a mobile loyalty app, catering, private events, and gift cards.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2023
- HeadquartersChicago, United States
- Headcount11–50
- GTM typeB2C
- OfferingServices
What Small Cheval does
Small Cheval operates an 8-location fast-casual restaurant brand in the Chicago metropolitan area, serving burgers, fried chicken, fries, shakes, and ice cream from company-owned storefronts in Wrigleyville, Fulton Market, Loop/Riverside, Old Town, Rosemont, Hyde Park, Wicker Park, and Gold Coast (within Aster Hall). Founded in 2023 as part of the Hogsalt hospitality group (parent: Cheval Brand Holding LLC affiliate), the legal operating entity is Management of Small Cheval, LLC, domiciled in Illinois. The brand positions itself around nostalgic, neighborhood-oriented casual dining with a "simply magic" quality philosophy and runs a weekday Happy Hour (3–5pm) at all locations except Gold Coast.
The technology layer is centered on a branded native mobile app (iOS and Android) that supports pickup and delivery ordering with real-time tracking, a digital punch card loyalty system (1 punch per $10+ purchase, 8 punches = free reward within 75 days), QR code-based in-store reward redemption, and birthday rewards. Supporting infrastructure includes a Squarespace-hosted website, Google Analytics for web analytics, Meta Pixel for targeted advertising via Facebook Custom Audiences, TripleSeat for catering and event bookings, SecureTree for digital and physical gift card fulfillment, and a third-party payment processor. No public or partner-facing API is offered and no AI/ML capabilities are disclosed.
The business model is direct-to-consumer across five revenue streams: dine-in and takeout food sales, delivery orders (own app plus third-party platforms), catering (minimum $350, sliders require 2-dozen minimum), gift card sales (any denomination, digital or physical), and private events (Wrigleyville hosts groups of 12–200 with full bar packages). Customer segments include local Chicago consumers as the primary base, plus corporate catering and social event hosting as secondary segments. Growth capital was raised via Cheval Brand Investors LLC's $12M SEC Form D offering in February 2024, of which $10.95M was sold, supporting continued unit expansion and operational buildout within the broader Hogsalt restaurant portfolio (Green Street Smoked Meats, Sawada Coffee, Bavette's Steakhouse & Bar Las Vegas, Aster Hall, La Renommee).
Small Cheval firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Small Cheval
- Legal name
- Management of Small Cheval, LLC
- Website
- https://smallcheval.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2023
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 11–50 employees
- Short description
- Small Cheval is an 8-location Chicago fast-casual restaurant chain serving burgers, fried chicken, and comfort food. Part of the Hogsalt Hospitality group, revenue comes from dine-in, delivery, a mobile loyalty app, catering, private events, and gift cards.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Small Cheval industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Fast-Casual Restaurant
- NAICS
- Limited-Service Restaurants (722513)
- SIC
- Retail-Eating Places (5812)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Burger QSR (THAFAAAA)
- akta.pro secondary industry
- Chicken Concepts (Fried/Grilled/Hot Chicken) (THAFABAI)
Keywords
Where Small Cheval is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Chicago
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Offices8 records
Markets served
Small Cheval business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2C
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Personnel, Supply Chain, Operations, Infrastructure, Marketing or Sales
Revenue model
- Dine-in and Takeout Food Sales: Revenue from food and beverage sales at physical restaurant locations including signature burgers, fried chicken, fries, ice cream, and drinks. Customers can dine in or order for takeout.
- Delivery Orders: Revenue from delivery orders placed through the company's own app or website, with delivery fees charged to customers.
- Catering Services: Corporate and event catering orders featuring signature double cheeseburger sliders and other menu items. Minimum order of $350 before tax and delivery fees. Sliders require 2 dozen minimum.
- Gift Card Sales: Revenue from sale of digital and physical gift cards in any denomination.
- Private Events: Revenue from hosting private events at restaurant locations, including semi-private and private spaces at select venues like Wrigleyville. Includes food, beverage, and venue rental components.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Unit Pricing | Pay-as-you-go | Catering minimum order |
| Transaction based/ take rate | Pay-as-you-go | Loyalty punch card threshold |
| Unit Pricing | Pay-as-you-go | Gift cards |
Go-to-market motion1 record
Distribution channels5 records
Marketing channels4 records
Small Cheval product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Small Cheval operates a fast-casual restaurant chain in Chicago serving signature burgers, fried chicken, fries, and ice cream across 8 physical locations. The offering is supplemented by a mobile app with digital punch card loyalty rewards, online ordering for pickup and delivery, corporate and event catering services, private event hosting at select venues, and digital and physical gift card sales.
Product overview
Small Cheval is a unified fast-casual restaurant brand with complementary digital products. The core offering is the restaurant chain serving signature burgers, fried chicken, fries, and ice cream across multiple Chicago-area locations. This is supported by the Small Cheval Mobile App, which provides online ordering, the Punch Card Rewards Program for loyalty, and birthday rewards. Additional services include Catering (offering exclusive slider options for events) and Private Events hosting at select venues like Wrigleyville. Gift Cards in digital and physical formats are also available for purchase.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Products and services
- Small Cheval Restaurant
- Small Cheval Mobile App
- Punch Card Rewards Program
- Small Cheval Catering
- Small Cheval Private Events
- Small Cheval Gift Cards
Companies that use Small Cheval
Customer profileSegments3 records
Ideal customer profiles3 records
Small Cheval technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Integration6 records
Feature3 records
Small Cheval partnerships and signals
Strategic signalScale indicators1 record
Recent moves6 records
Expansion highlights6 records
Small Cheval competitors and assessment
Company assessmentBroad incumbents
- Shake Shack: National premium burger QSR with a similar fast-casual dine-in model, branded app with loyalty, and broad delivery partnerships. Comparable customer segment (urban, quality-seeking casual diners) but operates at vastly greater scale and geography.
- Sweetgreen: National fast-casual restaurant operator with strong urban/tech-adjacent brand, branded app, loyalty program, and catering. Comparable fast-casual positioning and digital-first ordering experience, though healthier menu orientation.
- Five Guys: Established national burger-focused fast-casual chain with hundreds of company-owned and franchised locations. Competes for the same burger-centric value-conscious customer and similar menu architecture (burgers, fries, shakes).
- Wingstop: Large national chicken-focused QSR with dine-in, takeout, and delivery. Overlaps with Small Cheval's fried-chicken category and dine-in/takeout customer behavior.
- CAVA: Scalable fast-casual concept with branded app, loyalty, catering, and urban store footprint. Comparable on digitally enabled fast-casual operations rather than menu category.
Regional players
- Portillo's: Chicago-originated fast-casual chain (hot dogs, Italian beef, burgers, fries, shakes) now expanding nationally. Strong overlap with Chicago customer base and casual American comfort-food menu architecture.
Direct peers
- Au Cheval: Original concept from the same Hogsalt/Cheval Brand Holding hospitality group; operates Chicago diner-style locations with a similar double cheeseburger-led menu. Sister-brand overlap makes it the closest direct peer on product, customer base, and operating philosophy.
- Epic Burger: Chicago-based fast-casual burger chain positioning on quality ingredients in neighborhood locations. Shares target customer, geographic market, and quick-service burger model with Small Cheval.
- Raising Cane's: National chicken-tenders-focused QSR with a similar minimal-menu, high-throughput fast-casual format. Comparable on the fried-chicken line of Small Cheval's menu and shared dine-in/takeout/delivery mix.
Emerging players
- MrBeast Burger (Virtual Kitchens): Ghost-kitchen burger brand showing how delivery/online-only models compete for the same at-home burger occasions. Relevant as a delivery-channel competitor rather than a dine-in alternative.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat4 records
Key risks5 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
Small Cheval social profiles
Digital presenceSmall Cheval financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Small Cheval leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Small Cheval funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds1 record
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Small Cheval 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 Small Cheval
What does Small Cheval do?
Small Cheval operates a fast-casual restaurant chain in Chicago serving signature burgers, fried chicken, fries, and ice cream across 8 physical locations. The offering is supplemented by a mobile app with digital punch card loyalty rewards, online ordering for pickup and delivery, corporate and event catering services, private event hosting at select venues, and digital and physical gift card sales.
Is Small Cheval a public or private company?
Small Cheval is a private company. It is classified as corporate owned and is currently operating.
When was Small Cheval founded?
Small Cheval was founded in 2023. It employs 11 to 50 people.
Where is Small Cheval based?
Small Cheval is headquartered in Chicago, United States, in the North America region.
How does Small Cheval make money?
Five revenue lines are on record. Dine-in and Takeout Food Sales are the primary driver. The others are delivery Orders, catering Services, gift Card Sales and private Events.
Who are Small Cheval's main competitors?
Broad incumbents on record are Shake Shack, Sweetgreen, Five Guys, Wingstop and CAVA. Portillo's is listed as a regional player. Direct peers are Au Cheval, Epic Burger and Raising Cane's. MrBeast Burger (Virtual Kitchens) is listed as an emerging player.
Does Small Cheval have an API?
No public API is recorded for Small Cheval.
What industry is Small Cheval in?
Small Cheval's product category is Fast-Casual Restaurant. Its primary akta.pro industry code is THAFAAAA, Burger QSR, with a secondary code of THAFABAI, Chicken Concepts (Fried/Grilled/Hot Chicken). Its NAICS code is 722513 and its SIC code is 5812.