Cook Out
Cook Out is a privately held, company-owned quick-service restaurant chain founded in 1989 and headquartered in Greensboro, NC, operating 300+ locations across ten southeastern US states. It serves individual consumers affordable, freshly prepared burgers, BBQ, hot dogs, chicken, and shakes via a vertically integrated commissary-driven 'Always Fresh, Never Frozen' model.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded1989
- HeadquartersGreensboro, United States
- Headcount5,001–10,000
- GTM typeB2C
- OfferingServices
What Cook Out does
Cook Out is a privately held, founder/management-owned quick-service restaurant chain headquartered in Greensboro, North Carolina, founded in 1989. The company operates more than 300 company-owned restaurant locations across ten southeastern states — Alabama, Georgia, Florida, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, Virginia, West Virginia, Kentucky, and Maryland — serving individual consumers seeking affordable, freshly prepared fast food. Its menu centers on burgers, BBQ, hot dogs, chicken sandwiches, and hand-spun shakes, delivered primarily through the chain's signature combo-tray format with Southern side items such as hushpuppies. There is no franchise, licensing, or wholesale distribution; all revenue is generated through direct, in-store consumer transactions.
The company's operating backbone is a vertically integrated meat commissary established in 1999, in which all beef is ground and pattied daily, loaded onto company trucks, and delivered fresh to each store every day. This 'Always Fresh, Never Frozen' supply chain is the principal operational differentiator and the foundation of brand positioning in a market otherwise dominated by national frozen-pattey chains. Cook Out has scaled entirely through organic, self-funded unit growth — from a single Greensboro location in 1989 to its 300th store in Memphis, Tennessee in 2022, with first entries into Florida (Pensacola, 2025) and the Outer Banks (Kill Devil Hills, NC, 2025) marking its most recent geographic milestones.
The business model is a pure direct-to-consumer QSR with no public financial disclosures, no external funding rounds, no M&A activity, and no franchise layer. The technology footprint is minimal: a corporate website, SMS-based customer feedback and applicant communication, and standard WCAG 2.1 AA accessibility compliance — with no mobile app, no API surface, and no disclosed AI/ML capabilities. Growth is reinvestment-driven, and the company appears to allocate cash flow exclusively into new unit openings and supply chain capacity rather than digital or platform initiatives.
Cook Out firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Cook Out
- Legal name
- Cook Out
- Website
- https://cookout.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 1989
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 5,001–10,000 employees
- Short description
- Cook Out is a privately held, company-owned quick-service restaurant chain founded in 1989 and headquartered in Greensboro, NC, operating 300+ locations across ten southeastern US states. It serves individual consumers affordable, freshly prepared burgers, BBQ, hot dogs, chicken, and shakes via a vertically integrated commissary-driven 'Always Fresh, Never Frozen' model.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Cook Out industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Quick-Service Restaurants
- NAICS
- Limited-Service Restaurants (722513)
- SIC
- Retail-Eating Places (5812), Retail-Eating & Drinking Places (5810)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Burger Fast Casual (THAFABAA)
Keywords
Where Cook Out is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Greensboro
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Offices1 record
Markets served
Cook Out business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2C
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Personnel, Supply Chain, Operations, Infrastructure, Marketing or Sales
Revenue model
- Restaurant Sales: Cook Out generates revenue through company-owned fast food restaurant locations. The chain sells burgers, BBQ, hot dogs, chicken sandwiches, shakes, and combo trays directly to consumers at its restaurant locations across multiple states.
Go-to-market motion2 records
Distribution channels1 record
Marketing channels3 records
Cook Out product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Cook Out operates a fast-food restaurant chain selling freshly prepared burgers, BBQ, hot dogs, chicken sandwiches, hand-spun shakes, and signature combo trays directly to consumers at more than 300 company-owned locations across 10 southeastern US states. All meat is ground, pattied, and delivered fresh daily from the company's in-house meat commissary under the "Always Fresh, Never Frozen" standard, and orders are typically fulfilled via combo trays that pair an entrée with sides and a drink.
Product overview
Cook Out operates as a fast-food restaurant chain offering a unified menu of freshly prepared fast food items. The core product portfolio centers on burgers, BBQ, hot dogs, chicken sandwiches, and shakes, with combo trays representing their signature meal format. All menu items are prepared fresh daily following their 'Always Fresh, Never Frozen' motto, with meat ground and pattied in-house at their own meat commissary. The company also offers sides like hushpuppies and beverages including Cheerwine.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Products and services
- Burgers Cook Out's signature hamburger offerings using fresh, never-frozen beef patties prepared daily at the company's in-house meat commissary and cooked fresh at each restaurant location. Sold to walk-in and drive-thru consumers as part of combo trays or à la carte.
- BBQ Barbecue menu items prepared using the company's daily-fresh meat commissary standards, offered as entrée options at Cook Out restaurants.
- Hot Dogs Classic hot dog offerings prepared fresh daily at Cook Out restaurant locations and sold to consumers as a core menu entrée option.
- Chicken Sandwiches Chicken sandwich offerings including the signature Cajun Style Chicken Sandwich, prepared fresh daily as part of Cook Out's core fast-food menu.
- Hand-Spun Milkshakes Hand-spun milkshakes offered in multiple flavors at Cook Out restaurant locations, promoted as a signature offering and featured in the chain's brand identity.
- Combo Trays Cook Out's signature value meal format that bundles a chosen entrée with two sides and a drink, representing the chain's primary ordering template across its 300+ locations.
- Hushpuppies Fried cornmeal hushpuppies served as a classic Southern side dish at Cook Out restaurant locations.
Companies that use Cook Out
Customer profileSegments1 record
Ideal customer profiles1 record
Cook Out technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Cook Out partnerships and signals
Strategic signalScale indicators3 records
Recent moves25 records
Expansion highlights5 records
Cook Out competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- Shake Shack: Shake Shack is a publicly-traded fast-casual burger and shake chain positioned similarly to Cook Out in core product mix (burgers, shakes, combo meals) and emphasis on premium ingredients and daily preparation.
- Steak 'n Shake: Steak 'n Shake is a regional burger and milkshake-focused chain with a similar fresh-patty positioning, comparable value-menu orientation, and overlapping diner-style customer base.
- Whataburger: Whataburger is a privately-held regional burger chain in the southern US with a similar privately-held, multi-state footprint, fresh-beef focus, and cult regional following comparable to Cook Out's Southeast presence.
- Checkers / Rally's: Checkers/Rally's is a drive-thru-focused value burger chain with comparable combo-meal menu structure, similar value-conscious customer targeting, and overlapping Southeastern US footprint.
- Zaxby's: Zaxby's is a privately-held regional chicken-focused QSR chain with significant Southeast overlap, comparable privately-held ownership structure, and similar menu value-pricing approach to Cook Out.
- Bojangles: Bojangles is a regional quick-service chain headquartered in the Carolinas with overlapping Southeast geographic territory, similar privately-held ownership profile, and comparable menu-driven value proposition.
- In-N-Out Burger: In-N-Out is a regional privately-held burger chain with a similar fresh-beef, no-freezer operating philosophy, cult customer base, and corporate-owned growth model that mirrors Cook Out's commissary and daily-prep approach.
- Five Guys: Five Guys is a fast-casual burger chain with a similar focus on fresh, never-frozen beef patties and a comparable regional-to-national expansion trajectory. It competes with Cook Out for the same burger-focused value-conscious consumer.
Regional players
- Hardee's: Hardee's (and sister Carl's Jr.) is a burger-focused fast-food chain with strong Southeastern US presence, directly competing with Cook Out for value-oriented burger customers across overlapping states.
Broad incumbents
- McDonald's: McDonald's is the dominant global fast-food incumbent whose value menu, app-based loyalty, and national marketing scale set the competitive baseline against which regional chains like Cook Out must differentiate.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat4 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
Cook Out social profiles
Digital presenceCook Out compliance and trust
Trust signalCompliance1 record
Cook Out financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Cook Out leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Cook Out funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Cook Out 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 Cook Out
What does Cook Out do?
Cook Out operates a fast-food restaurant chain selling freshly prepared burgers, BBQ, hot dogs, chicken sandwiches, hand-spun shakes, and signature combo trays directly to consumers at more than 300 company-owned locations across 10 southeastern US states. All meat is ground, pattied, and delivered fresh daily from the company's in-house meat commissary under the "Always Fresh, Never Frozen" standard, and orders are typically fulfilled via combo trays that pair an entrée with sides and a drink.
Is Cook Out a public or private company?
Cook Out is a private company. It is classified as founder individual operated bootstrapped and is currently operating.
When was Cook Out founded?
Cook Out was founded in 1989. It employs 5,001 to 10,000 people.
Where is Cook Out based?
Cook Out is headquartered in Greensboro, United States, in the North America region.
How does Cook Out make money?
One revenue line is on record: restaurant Sales.
Who are Cook Out's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are Shake Shack, Steak 'n Shake, Whataburger, Checkers / Rally's, Zaxby's, Bojangles, In-N-Out Burger and Five Guys. Hardee's is listed as a regional player. McDonald's is listed as a broad incumbent.
Does Cook Out have an API?
No public API is recorded for Cook Out.
What industry is Cook Out in?
Cook Out's product category is Quick-Service Restaurants. Its primary akta.pro industry code is THAFABAA, Burger Fast Casual. Its NAICS code is 722513 and its SIC code is 5812.