The Simple Greek - Lombard, IL
The Simple Greek is a privately held, Marcus Lemonis-founded fast-casual Mediterranean restaurant franchise offering build-your-own bowls, salads, and pitas across roughly two dozen U.S. franchise locations, serving health-conscious consumers, families, and corporate catering customers through dine-in, online ordering, and third-party delivery.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2015
- HeadquartersSt. Petersburg, United States
- Headcount501–1,000
- GTM typeB2C
- OfferingServices
What The Simple Greek - Lombard, IL does
The Simple Greek is a privately held fast-casual Mediterranean restaurant franchise founded in 2015 by entrepreneur Marcus Lemonis (host of CNBC's 'The Profit' and CEO of Camping World), with corporate operations headquartered in Blue Bell, Pennsylvania and a flagship presence at 789 Butterfield Rd, Lombard, IL. The company sells a build-your-own assembly-line concept built around customizable bowls, salads, and pitas, in which customers select a base (rice, lentils, or salad), a protein (traditional gyro, chicken gyro, grilled steak, grilled chicken, lentils, falafel, or Mediterranean shrimp), and a set of fresh toppings, hummus, and Greek-style sauces prepared in front of the customer. Menu pricing starts at $2.25 for sides and sweets, $6.95 for pita entrées, and $8.95 for bowl entrées, positioning the brand in the value-tier of Mediterranean fast-casual.
The Simple Greek - Lombard, IL firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- The Simple Greek - Lombard, IL
- Legal name
- The Simple Greek
- Website
- https://thesimplegreek.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2015
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 501–1,000 employees
- Short description
- The Simple Greek is a privately held, Marcus Lemonis-founded fast-casual Mediterranean restaurant franchise offering build-your-own bowls, salads, and pitas across roughly two dozen U.S. franchise locations, serving health-conscious consumers, families, and corporate catering customers through dine-in, online ordering, and third-party delivery.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
The Simple Greek - Lombard, IL industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Fast-Casual Mediterranean Restaurant
- NAICS
- Limited-Service Restaurants (722513), Caterers (722320)
- SIC
- Retail-Eating & Drinking Places (5810)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Mediterranean & Middle Eastern Fast Casual (THAFABAD)
- akta.pro secondary industry
- Salad & Bowl Concepts (Grain/Protein/Healthy Bowls) (THAFABAF)
Keywords
Where The Simple Greek - Lombard, IL is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- St. Petersburg
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Offices1 record
Markets served
The Simple Greek - Lombard, IL business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2C
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Personnel, Supply Chain, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure, Others
Revenue model
- Franchise Royalties: Ongoing royalty fees collected from franchisees at 5% of sales, plus 2% marketing charge. Primary revenue stream from franchise operations.
- Catering Services: Catering accounts for approximately 15% of total sales. Services for corporate events, meetings, banquets, and parties.
- Franchise Fees: One-time franchise fee of $30,000 per location charged to new franchisees.
- Third-Party Delivery: Engagement with third-party delivery providers including Grubhub, DoorDash, UberEATS, and EZ Cater for order fulfillment.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Unit Pricing | Pay-as-you-go | Individual dine-in and takeout meals |
Go-to-market motion1 record
Distribution channels4 records
Marketing channels7 records
The Simple Greek - Lombard, IL product offering
Product offeringCore offering
The Simple Greek is a fast-casual Mediterranean restaurant franchise that sells build-your-own bowls, salads, and pita wraps prepared on a visible assembly line with customizable bases, proteins, toppings, and sauces. The chain also operates a catering business (~15% of sales) and provides digital ordering through its OLO-powered website, the Simple Greek Rewards mobile app, and third-party delivery partnerships. Revenue at the parent-company level is driven primarily by franchise royalties, the initial franchise fee, and a marketing charge.
Product overview
The Simple Greek is a fast-casual Mediterranean restaurant chain offering build-your-own bowls, salads, and pita wraps. The core product is an assembly-line style dining experience where customers customize their meals with proteins, fresh toppings, hummus, and sauces. The company also provides catering services for events and operates digital ordering through its website and mobile app. The loyalty program (now merged with Garbanzo Rewards) enables customers to earn and redeem points across locations.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Brands
- Plating Change: Community outreach program that provides food to those in need during the pandemic. The program aims to help food-insecure individuals and support local communities through meal donations.
- Bowls of Hope
Products and services
- The Simple Greek Restaurant (Build-Your-Own Mediterranean Bowls, Salads, and Pitas) Fast-casual Mediterranean restaurant concept offering build-your-own bowls, salads, and pita wraps. Customers choose a base (rice, lentils, or salad), a protein (gyro, chicken gyro, grilled steak, grilled chicken, lentils, falafel, or Mediterranean shrimp), and add fresh vegetables, hummus, and Greek sauces. Food is prepared on a visible assembly line in front of customers and sold at franchise locations for dine-in and takeout.
- The Simple Greek Catering Services Mediterranean catering offering mixers, meetings, banquets, and parties. Catering represents ~15% of total sales and is fulfilled through a dedicated online catering ordering platform and EZ Cater delivery integration.
- The Simple Greek Online Ordering Digital ordering platform allowing customers to place pickup orders online through order.thesimplegreek.com (OLO-powered). Customers can browse the menu, customize items, and schedule pickup at their nearest franchise location.
- Simple Greek Rewards (Merged with Garbanzo Rewards) Loyalty program in which members earn points per dollar spent (1-1.30 points depending on tier — Entry, Gold, Platinum) redeemable for menu items. Includes birthday rewards for Gold/Platinum members and surprise promotional offers. Points carry over automatically under the merged Garbanzo Rewards structure.
- The Simple Greek Franchise Offering Franchise program for prospective franchisees targeting entrepreneurs with restaurant or business background. Requirements include $300,000 net worth, a $30,000 franchise fee (50% discount for veterans), 5% ongoing royalty fee, 2% marketing charge, and an initial investment of $316,000-$586,000 depending on location. Average restaurant size ranges from 1,800-2,400 square feet.
Quantifiable outcome
- Ranked #4 on Restaurant Business Online's Future 50 list of emerging brands in 2019
- +1 more outcomes
Companies that use The Simple Greek - Lombard, IL
Customer profileNamed customers3 records
Segments3 records
Ideal customer profiles3 records
The Simple Greek - Lombard, IL technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Integration15 records
Feature2 records
The Simple Greek - Lombard, IL partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
Seven partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.
- Marcus Lemonis (Plating Change)coreMarcus Lemonis, founder of The Simple Greek and CNBC 'The Profit' host, launched the 'Plating Change' program with a $1 million donation and partnership with Grubhub. The program helps independent restaurants and communities in need during the pandemic. Half of the donation went to World Central Kitchen and the other half to additional charitable organizations fighting food insecurity.
- World Central KitchencoreWorld Central Kitchen received $500,000 of Marcus Lemonis' $1 million Plating Change donation. The organization runs the Restaurants for the People program helping independent restaurants and their employees as well as communities in need.
- GrubhubcoreGrubhub partnered with Marcus Lemonis on the Plating Change program. Through December 31, Grubhub customers could opt into the Donate the Change initiative, which rounds up order totals to donate to food insecurity causes.
- Grubhub, DoorDash, UberEATS, EZ CaterminorThird-party delivery provider partnerships allowing customers to order The Simple Greek through these platforms. These partnerships respond to growing consumer demands for delivery options.
- ASPCA (American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals)minorThe Simple Greek is working with ASPCA to develop and implement their animal welfare policy. Commitment to source GAP certified chicken and work with ASPCA Shop With Your Heart program for turkey and pork sourcing.
- Compassion in World Farming (CIWF)minorThe Simple Greek partnered with Compassion in World Farming to improve chicken welfare in their supply chain.
- Garbanzo Mediterranean FreshminorThe Simple Greek Rewards program is being merged with Garbanzo Rewards. Legacy points carry over automatically to the new item-based rewards structure.
Scale indicators7 records
Recent moves5 records
Expansion highlights5 records
The Simple Greek - Lombard, IL competitors and assessment
Company assessmentBroad incumbents
- Moe's Southwest Grill: Moe's is a fast-casual build-your-own chain (burritos/bowls) under a larger parent brand. Comparable on operational format, franchise structure, and target demographic even though the cuisine is Mexican rather than Mediterranean.
- Chipotle Mexican Grill: Chipotle is the dominant fast-casual chain with an assembly-line build-your-own format. While cuisine differs, the operational model, digital ecosystem, and franchise/corporate scale dynamics are highly analogous to TSG's strategic context.
- MOD Pizza: MOD Pizza pioneered the build-your-own fast-casual model in a non-Mediterranean category. Comparable on customization, average-unit-volume benchmarks, and franchise/franchisee-economics considerations relevant to TSG.
- Sweetgreen: Sweetgreen is a large, publicly traded fast-casual salad/bowl chain. Not Mediterranean, but comparable on build-your-own format, digital ordering, and health-conscious positioning; represents the broader category TSG competes in for the same customer wallet.
Direct peers
- Pita Mediterranean Street Food: Pita Mediterranean Street Food is a fast-casual Mediterranean chain offering build-your-own pitas, salads, and bowls. Closely matches TSG's positioning and operating model, though it tends to skew slightly more QSR in format.
- Zoës Kitchen: Zoës Kitchen was a Mediterranean fast-casual chain (acquired by CAVA in 2018) operating build-your-own Mediterranean bowls and pitas. Closely comparable to The Simple Greek in menu, customer profile, and category positioning; serves as a benchmark for the consolidation dynamic affecting TSG.
- Garbanzo Mediterranean Fresh: Garbanzo Mediterranean Fresh is a direct Mediterranean fast-casual competitor with a build-your-own bowl/pita concept. Highly comparable to TSG — and uniquely so given the active merger of TSG Rewards with Garbanzo Rewards.
- Extreme Pita: Extreme Pita is a Canadian-rooted Mediterranean QSR/fast-casual chain serving pitas, wraps, and bowls with similar customization. Comparable cuisine and customer demographic to TSG.
- CAVA Group: CAVA is the leading Mediterranean fast-casual chain in the US (300+ locations, public). It is the most direct comparable for The Simple Greek, sharing build-your-own Mediterranean bowl/pita format, target demographic (health-conscious consumers), and franchise/corporate operating model.
- Naf Naf Grill: Naf Naf Grill is a fast-casual Middle Eastern/Mediterranean chain offering pita, bowl, and wrap builds with a similar assembly-line ordering format. Directly comparable to TSG on cuisine, format, and customer base.
Market position
Strengths4 records
Weaknesses4 records
Competitive moat4 records
Key risks5 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
The Simple Greek - Lombard, IL social profiles
Digital presenceThe Simple Greek - Lombard, IL compliance and trust
Trust signalCompliance3 records
The Simple Greek - Lombard, IL financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
The Simple Greek - Lombard, IL leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles4 records
The Simple Greek - Lombard, IL funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
The Simple Greek - Lombard, IL 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 The Simple Greek - Lombard, IL
What does The Simple Greek - Lombard, IL do?
The Simple Greek is a fast-casual Mediterranean restaurant franchise that sells build-your-own bowls, salads, and pita wraps prepared on a visible assembly line with customizable bases, proteins, toppings, and sauces. The chain also operates a catering business (~15% of sales) and provides digital ordering through its OLO-powered website, the Simple Greek Rewards mobile app, and third-party delivery partnerships. Revenue at the parent-company level is driven primarily by franchise royalties, the initial franchise fee, and a marketing charge.
Is The Simple Greek - Lombard, IL a public or private company?
The Simple Greek - Lombard, IL is a private company. It is classified as founder individual operated bootstrapped and is currently operating.
When was The Simple Greek - Lombard, IL founded?
The Simple Greek - Lombard, IL was founded in 2015. It employs 501 to 1,000 people.
Where is The Simple Greek - Lombard, IL based?
The Simple Greek - Lombard, IL is headquartered in St. Petersburg, United States, in the North America region.
How does The Simple Greek - Lombard, IL make money?
Four revenue lines are on record. Franchise Royalties are the primary driver. The others are catering Services, franchise Fees and third-Party Delivery.
Who are The Simple Greek - Lombard, IL's main competitors?
Broad incumbents on record are Moe's Southwest Grill, Chipotle Mexican Grill, MOD Pizza and Sweetgreen. Direct peers are Pita Mediterranean Street Food, Zoës Kitchen, Garbanzo Mediterranean Fresh, Extreme Pita, CAVA Group and Naf Naf Grill.
Does The Simple Greek - Lombard, IL have an API?
No public API is recorded for The Simple Greek - Lombard, IL.
What industry is The Simple Greek - Lombard, IL in?
The Simple Greek - Lombard, IL's product category is Fast-Casual Mediterranean Restaurant. Its primary akta.pro industry code is THAFABAD, Mediterranean & Middle Eastern Fast Casual, with a secondary code of THAFABAF, Salad & Bowl Concepts (Grain/Protein/Healthy Bowls). Its NAICS code is 722513 and its SIC code is 5810.