Big Bowl
Big Bowl is a casual Chinese and Thai restaurant chain operating five full-service locations in Illinois and Minnesota, owned by Lettuce Entertain You Enterprises. It serves individual diners, families, and group events through dine-in, carry-out, delivery, and catering.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded1998
- HeadquartersChicago, United States
- Headcount101–250
- GTM typeB2C
- Offering—
What Big Bowl does
Big Bowl is a casual-dining restaurant chain specializing in Chinese and Thai cuisine, operated as a brand under Lettuce Entertain You Enterprises, Inc., a privately held Chicago-based restaurant group. The company runs five full-service restaurants — three in Illinois (downtown Chicago, Lincolnshire, Schaumburg) and two in Minnesota (Edina, Minnetonka) — sited primarily in lifestyle centers and malls. Its core offering is dine-in service built on made-from-scratch cooking using high-quality and locally sourced ingredients, with a menu centered on signature pad Thai, housemade curries, dipping sauces, potstickers, and customizable spice and dietary options (vegetarian, gluten-free). The underlying technology is conventional restaurant food-service operations featuring wok-based cooking, supported by a consumer-facing website and the LettuceEats mobile app on iOS and Android for online ordering and reservations.
The business generates revenue from multiple on-premise and off-premise streams: dine-in restaurant sales with full bar (craft cocktails, beer, wine), carry-out and delivery (direct online plus third-party delivery partners), catering and party platters (serving 4-6 per platter and packaged group menus for 8-30+ at $275-$725), and group/semi-private dining for events of up to 45 guests at $25.95-$39.50 per person. Pricing is per-transaction, with unit items at $7-$14 for drinks, $15.95-$17.95 for weekday lunch bowls, and $36-$83 for platters. A 3-3.5% surcharge is applied at most locations to offset rising costs. Customer segments are individual diners and families (primary) plus group events and private dining (secondary), and go-to-market is direct-to-consumer across physical locations and digital channels, with marketing conducted through organic social (Facebook, Instagram), email newsletter, mobile app, and the corporate website. The Frequent Diner loyalty program, gift cards, and shared corporate services are administered centrally by parent Lettuce Entertain You Enterprises.
Big Bowl firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Big Bowl
- Legal name
- Lettuce Entertain You Enterprises, Inc.
- Website
- https://bigbowl.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 1998
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 101–250 employees
- Short description
- Big Bowl is a casual Chinese and Thai restaurant chain operating five full-service locations in Illinois and Minnesota, owned by Lettuce Entertain You Enterprises. It serves individual diners, families, and group events through dine-in, carry-out, delivery, and catering.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Big Bowl industry classification
Industry- NAICS
- Full-Service Restaurants (722511)
- SIC
- Retail-Eating Places (5812), Retail-Eating & Drinking Places (5810)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Ethnic & Regional Cuisine Restaurants (THAFACAD)
- akta.pro secondary industry
- All-Day Dining Restaurants (THAFACAJ)
Keywords
Where Big Bowl is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Chicago
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Offices5 records
Markets served
Big Bowl business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2C
- Cost components
- Personnel, Supply Chain, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure
Revenue model
- Dine-in Restaurant Sales: Revenue from customers dining at physical restaurant locations in Illinois and Minnesota. The restaurants offer lunch and dinner service with full bar including craft cocktails, beers, and wines.
- Carry-out and Delivery: Online ordering for carry-out and delivery from all five restaurant locations, including direct delivery to downtown Chicago and partnership with third-party delivery services.
- Catering and Group Dining: Catering services for events including party platters, lunch bowl catering, and group dining menus. Offers pre-set menus for groups of 8-10, 16-20, and 24-30 people, as well as family-style dining and group lunch menus.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Unit Pricing | Pay-as-you-go | Lunch Bowls - $15.95-$17.95 per person |
| Unit Pricing | Pay-as-you-go | Group Dining - $25.95-$39.50 per person |
| Unit Pricing | Multi-year contract | Catering Party Packages - $275-$725 |
| Unit Pricing | Pay-as-you-go | Party Platters - $30-$80 per platter |
| Unit Pricing | Pay-as-you-go | Chef's Favorites To-Go - $75-$79 |
| Unit Pricing | Pay-as-you-go | Drinks - $7-$14 per item |
Go-to-market motion1 record
Distribution channels4 records
Marketing channels5 records
Big Bowl product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Big Bowl operates a casual dining restaurant chain serving authentic Chinese and Thai cuisine across five locations in Illinois and Minnesota. The company offers dine-in service, carryout and delivery, catering and party platters, and group dining for private events, with menus built around made-from-scratch cooking, locally grown produce, and signature items such as pad Thai, homemade curries, handmade dumplings, and craft cocktails.
Product overview
Big Bowl is a Chinese and Thai restaurant chain operating five locations across Illinois (Chicago, Lincolnshire, Schaumburg) and Minnesota (Edina, Minnetonka). The company offers a unified dining experience centered on made-from-scratch Asian cuisine with high quality, locally grown ingredients. The core product is its dine-in restaurant service, complemented by carry-out and delivery operations, catering and party platter services, and group dining facilities. Additional offerings include a mobile app (LettuceEats), frequent diner loyalty program, happy hour specials, lunch bowls, Chef's Favorites To-Go meal bundles, crafted cocktails and beverages, and a kids' menu. Big Bowl positions itself on bold, authentic flavors with dishes like Pad Thai, housemade curries, and signature stir-fries.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Companies that use Big Bowl
Customer profileSegments2 records
Ideal customer profiles2 records
Big Bowl technology and API
TechnologyAPI detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Big Bowl partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
One partnership is on record.
- Lettuce Entertain You Enterprises, Inc.coreBig Bowl is a brand owned and operated by Lettuce Entertain You Enterprises, Inc. (LEYE), a prominent restaurant group based in Chicago. LEYE manages the parent company branding, corporate policies, and shared services including HR/employment systems, gift cards, and the Frequent Diner loyalty program.
Scale indicators2 records
Recent moves6 records
Expansion highlights4 records
Big Bowl competitors and assessment
Company assessmentMarket position
Competitive moat3 records
Key risks5 records
Key highlights6 records
Customer concentration
Big Bowl social profiles
Digital presenceBig Bowl financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Big Bowl leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Big Bowl funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Big Bowl 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 Big Bowl
What does Big Bowl do?
Big Bowl operates a casual dining restaurant chain serving authentic Chinese and Thai cuisine across five locations in Illinois and Minnesota. The company offers dine-in service, carryout and delivery, catering and party platters, and group dining for private events, with menus built around made-from-scratch cooking, locally grown produce, and signature items such as pad Thai, homemade curries, handmade dumplings, and craft cocktails.
Is Big Bowl a public or private company?
Big Bowl is a private company. It is currently operating.
When was Big Bowl founded?
Big Bowl was founded in 1998. It employs 101 to 250 people.
Where is Big Bowl based?
Big Bowl is headquartered in Chicago, United States, in the North America region.
How does Big Bowl make money?
Three revenue lines are on record. Dine-in Restaurant Sales are the primary driver. The others are carry-out and Delivery and catering and Group Dining.
Does Big Bowl have an API?
No public API is recorded for Big Bowl.
What industry is Big Bowl in?
Its primary akta.pro industry code is THAFACAD, Ethnic & Regional Cuisine Restaurants, with a secondary code of THAFACAJ, All-Day Dining Restaurants. Its NAICS code is 722511 and its SIC code is 5812.