One Off Hospitality Group

What One Off Hospitality Group does

One Off Hospitality Group is a Chicago-based, privately-held hospitality company that operates a portfolio of more than 15 distinct restaurant concepts under a single partnership-owned umbrella. Formally established in 2011 and rooted in the 1997 founding of Blackbird by partners Paul Kahan and Donnie Madia, the group spans fine dining (Avec, Blackbird, Nico Osteria, Pacific Standard Time), European beer-hall gastropubs (The Publican, Publican Anker, Publican Tavern at O'Hare Terminal 3), casual honky-tonk bars and taquerias (Big Star at Wicker Park, Wrigleyville, and the United Center, plus Big Star Mariscos), Southern-Mexican diners (Dove's Luncheonette), an upscale cocktail bar (The Violet Hour), an artisanal bakery with a wholesale arm supplying 50+ Chicago restaurants (Publican Quality Bread), and a butcher shop and market (Publican Quality Meats). The group serves Chicago diners, tourists, O'Hare travelers, private event clients, corporate catering customers, and wholesale food-service buyers.

Revenue is generated primarily through dine-in, takeout, and delivery transactions across owned restaurant locations, augmented by catering (operated through a dedicated oneoffcatering.com platform), private event bookings (managed via Tripleseat), and retail product sales from the bakery and butcher shop. A tiered loyalty program, One Off Rewards (Bronze, Silver, Gold) powered by Paytronix, monetizes repeat visits across the portfolio. The group employs between 501 and 1,000 people across its concepts and holds no proprietary technology platform; operations rely on third-party SaaS (Paytronix, Tripleseat, Bento) and a consumer mobile app. Ownership rests with five founding partners plus CEO Karen Browne and VP of Operations Kimberly Galban, with no disclosed venture capital, private equity, or parent-company ownership.

Name

One Off Hospitality Group

Legal name

One Off Hospitality Group

Website

https://oneoffhospitality.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2011

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

501–1,000 employees

Short description

One Off Hospitality Group is a Chicago-based, privately-held hospitality company operating 15+ distinct restaurant concepts spanning fine dining, casual bars, bakeries, a butcher shop, and an airport venue, serving local diners, tourists, private event clients, catering customers, and wholesale food-service buyers.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Restaurant Hospitality

NAICS

Full-Service Restaurants (722511), Drinking Places (Alcoholic Beverages) (7224), Caterers (722320), Restaurants and Other Eating Places (72251)

SIC

Retail-Eating & Drinking Places (5810), Retail-Eating Places (5812)

akta.pro primary industry

Special Occasion & Destination Restaurants (THAFACAK)

akta.pro secondary industries

All-Day Dining Restaurants (THAFACAJ), Chef’s Table & Tasting Menu Restaurants (THAFACAG), Neighborhood Bars & Taverns (CRANACAA), Event Culinary Staffing & Back-of-House Services (Chefs, Servers, Bartenders) (THAHAKAN)

Keywords

• Restaurant hospitality
• Catering services
• Fine dining
• Artisan bakery
• Private events

Headquarters

HQ city

Chicago

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Supply Chain, Infrastructure, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Restaurant Operations: Direct revenue from multiple restaurant concepts including Avec, Big Star, The Publican, Dove's Luncheonette, Publican Quality Meats, Publican Quality Bread, The Violet Hour, and Publican Tavern. Revenue generated from dine-in, takeout, and delivery orders across all concepts.
2. Catering Services: Catering services offered through dedicated catering platform at oneoffcatering.com, providing food and beverage for private events and corporate functions.
3. Private Events: Revenue from hosting private dinners, corporate events, experiential tastings, and full buyouts across all restaurant concepts. Inquiries managed through Tripleseat platform.
4. Loyalty Program: One Off Rewards loyalty program earning points on all purchases, with membership tiers (Bronze, Silver, Gold) driving repeat customer engagement and spend.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

One Off Hospitality Group operates a portfolio of chef-driven restaurants, bakeries, butcher shops, and a cocktail bar across Chicago, including Blackbird, Avec, The Publican, Big Star, Dove's Luncheonette, Publican Quality Meats, Publican Quality Bread, The Violet Hour, Publican Tavern (O'Hare), Publican Anker, Nico Osteria, Pacific Standard Time, and Cafe Cancale. The group also runs a dedicated catering service, hosts private and corporate events, and operates the One Off Rewards loyalty program.

Product overview

One Off Hospitality Group is a Chicago-based hospitality company operating a portfolio of distinct restaurant concepts. The group operates as a platform of standalone restaurant brands rather than a unified product with modules. Core concepts include Avec (Mediterranean shared plates), Bar Avec (rooftop bar), Big Star (honky-tonk taqueria), Dove's Luncheonette (Southern-Mexican diner), The Publican (European beer hall), Publican Quality Bread (artisan bread), Publican Quality Meats (butcher shop/market), Publican Tavern (airport restaurant), and The Violet Hour (cocktail bar). Additional services include catering, private event hosting, and the One Off Rewards loyalty program. The group was formed in 2011 and encompasses approximately 15+ distinct restaurant brands and concepts across Chicago.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Avec: Mediterranean and Midwestern influenced shared plates restaurant with wine focus
• Bar Avec
• Big Star
• Big Star Mariscos
• Dove's Luncheonette
• The Publican
• Publican Tavern
• Publican Quality Bread
• Publican Quality Meats
• The Violet Hour
• One Off Rewards
• One Off Catering

Products and services

• Blackbird
• Avec
• The Violet Hour
• The Publican
• Big Star
• Publican Quality Meats
• Dove's Luncheonette
• Nico Osteria
• Publican Quality Bread
• Publican Tavern (O'Hare)
• Publican Anker
• Pacific Standard Time
• Cafe Cancale
• One Off Catering
• Private Events
• One Off Rewards

Named customers3 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration3 records

Partnerships

Seven partnerships are on record, tiered minor.

• Pilot Light ChefsminorOthersChicago-based nonprofit founded in 2010 by Paul Kahan and Justin Large, along with chefs Jason Hammel, Matthias Merges and Ryan Poli. Develops and delivers classroom lessons incorporating food and nutrition education into everyday subjects.
• Greater Chicago Food DepositoryminorOthersChicago's food bank, a nonprofit food distribution and training center. One Off began holding food drives at The Publican in 2008, allowing team members to participate in giving directly.
• National Multiple Sclerosis SocietyminorOthersParticipate in the foundation's Dine to End MS program in memory of Kimberly Galban's mother. Society mobilizes people and resources to drive research for a cure.
• Alex's Lemonade Stand FoundationminorOthersInvolved since 2007, supporting yearly events in Philadelphia, New York and Los Angeles. To date, ALSF has raised more than $100 million toward pediatric cancer research, funding over 475 research projects.
• The Lynn Sage FoundationminorOthersFounded in honor of Lynn Sage who died at age 39 from breast cancer. Funds The Lynn Sage Scholars program, providing $100,000 per year for up to two years to promising breast cancer researchers in Chicago.
• Giving KitchenminorOthersSupport of Giving Kitchen's expansion into the Chicago area in 2025. Organization provides emergency assistance to food service workers through financial support and community resources.
• World Relief ChicagominorOthersNon-profit organization providing resettlement, social and legal services to refugees. Donations requested in memory of partner Rick Diarmit (1959-2018). Organization is headquartered on Chicago's Northwest side.

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• Landry's Inc. Large public multi-concept hospitality operator behind The Palm, Morton's, Mastro's, and Chart House. Comparable in multi-brand strategy and full-service dining focus, though much broader scale and publicly owned.
• Hillstone Restaurant Group: National, mature multi-concept operator of Hillstone, Houston's, and Bandera concepts. Comparable multi-format portfolio model but at much larger scale and more standardized full-service casual dining positioning.

Direct peers

• BR Guest Hospitality: NYC-based restaurant group operating brands like Blue Smoke, Atlantic Grill, and Dos Caminos. Comparable multi-concept operator with similar city-anchored strategy and full-service dining formats.
• Thomas Keller Restaurant Group: Chef Thomas Keller's group behind The French Laundry, Per Se, Bouchon, and Surf Club. Comparable chef-led identity, James Beard-recognized culinary excellence, and concentrated fine-dining portfolio.
• Major Food Group: NYC-based hospitality group behind Carbone, Dirty French, The Grill, and other chef-driven concepts. Comparable to One Off in high-end chef-driven concepts, design-forward identity, and tiered dining portfolio.
• Union Square Hospitality Group: Danny Meyer's NYC-based restaurant group encompassing Union Square Cafe, Gramercy Tavern, and Shake Shack (founded within the group). Closely comparable founder-led, chef-driven multi-concept model with hospitality-forward brand emphasis.
• The MINA Group: Chef Michael Mina's multi-concept restaurant group operating 25+ concepts nationally. Comparable chef-led multi-format portfolio spanning fine dining, fast-casual, and brewery concepts.
• Lettuce Entertain You Enterprises: Chicago-based, founder-led multi-concept restaurant group operating 60+ concepts across casual and fine dining. Comparable to One Off Hospitality in city focus, founder-driven culture, and broad portfolio of distinct restaurant brands.
• Gibsons Restaurant Group: Chicago-based hospitality group operating Gibsons Steakhouse, Hugo's Frog Bar, and The Ashburn. Comparable to One Off in Chicago multi-format operations and established brand reputation built over decades.
• Boka Restaurant Group: Chicago-based chef-driven restaurant group behind Boka, Girl & the Goat, and other concepts led by Kevin Boehm and Rob Katz. Comparable to One Off in chef-driven identity, James Beard recognition, and Chicago-centric multi-concept strategy.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/one-off-hospitality

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles7 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about One Off Hospitality Group