Roostar
Roostar Vietnamese Grill is a Houston-based fast-casual restaurant chain operating three storefronts and a stadium venue, serving authentic Vietnamese banh mi and noodle dishes to individual diners and catering customers via dine-in, mobile app, and third-party delivery.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2012
- HeadquartersHouston, United States
- Headcount1–10
- GTM typeB2C
- OfferingServices
What Roostar does
Roostar Vietnamese Grill is a Houston-based, privately held fast-casual restaurant operator specializing in authentic Vietnamese street food, primarily custom banh mi sandwiches, alongside noodle and rice dishes. Founded and operated by co-owners Ronnie and Linda Nguyen — both University of Houston alumni with degrees in Hotel and Restaurant Management — the company derives its menu from family recipes traced to Linda's grandmother's sandwich shop in Vietnam, including traditional French mayonnaise, pate, pork belly, and egg roll preparations. The company serves individual diners and catering customers in the Houston market.
Roostar operates three fast-casual storefronts in distinct Houston trade areas (Spring Branch at 1411 Gessner Dr., Galleria Uptown at 5551 Richmond Ave., and East End District at 2929 Navigation Rd.) and has a presence at Shell Energy Stadium. The digital ordering stack is built on the HungerRush platform for web orders and POS integration, supplemented by a proprietary iOS/Android mobile application that enables skip-the-line ordering. Distribution extends to third-party delivery aggregators UberEats, Grubhub, and DoorDash, plus the EZ Cater platform for corporate and event catering.
The business model is straightforward unit-pricing restaurant revenue across dine-in, takeout, mobile app, delivery, and catering channels. The company is entirely founder-owned and bootstrapped, with a single disclosed $150,000 capital infusion in November 2020 from unknown investors and no evidence of institutional backing. Roostar's brand has accumulated meaningful local recognition, including Yelp's Top 100 Places to Eat in the U.S. (2015), three consecutive Houston Press Best Banh Mi awards (2015-2017), Alison Cook's Top 100 Houston Restaurants (2019), and CultureMap Top 100 (2020), but its geographic footprint remains confined to the Houston DMA.
Roostar firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Roostar
- Legal name
- Roostar Vietnamese Grill
- Website
- https://myroostar.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2012
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 1–10 employees
- Short description
- Roostar Vietnamese Grill is a Houston-based fast-casual restaurant chain operating three storefronts and a stadium venue, serving authentic Vietnamese banh mi and noodle dishes to individual diners and catering customers via dine-in, mobile app, and third-party delivery.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Roostar industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Vietnamese Fast-Casual Restaurants
- NAICS
- Limited-Service Restaurants (722513), Caterers (72232)
- SIC
- Food And Kindred Products (2000)
- akta.pro primary industry
- All-Day Dining Restaurants (THAFACAJ)
- akta.pro secondary industry
- Full-Service Catering (Off-Premise) (HSACAGAA)
Keywords
Where Roostar is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Houston
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Offices4 records
Markets served
Roostar business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2C
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Personnel, Supply Chain, Operations, Infrastructure, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D
Revenue model
- Dine-in and Takeout Sales: Revenue from customers dining in or taking out at three Houston restaurant locations. Customers order in-person or via the HungerRush online ordering system.
- Third-Party Delivery: Commission-based revenue through UberEats, Grubhub, and DoorDash partnerships. The company pays commission fees to these platforms for order fulfillment.
- Catering Services: Corporate and event catering services. Orders can be placed through the company directly or via EZ Cater platform. Provides full-service catering for events of various sizes.
- Mobile App Ordering: Direct ordering through proprietary iOS and Android mobile applications, enabling direct customer relationships without third-party commission fees.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Unit Pricing | Pay-as-you-go | Standard dine-in and takeout pricing |
Go-to-market motion1 record
Distribution channels6 records
Marketing channels6 records
Roostar product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Roostar Vietnamese Grill is a fast-casual Vietnamese restaurant chain operating four Houston-area locations serving custom banh mi sandwiches, traditional Vietnamese noodle and rice dishes, and sides made from family recipes and fresh, handmade ingredients. Customers can dine in, take out, order through a proprietary mobile app, or use third-party delivery platforms, and the company offers a full-service catering program for corporate events and private functions.
Product overview
Roostar Vietnamese Grill is a fast-casual restaurant chain with three Houston-area locations (Spring Branch, Galleria Uptown, East End) offering Vietnamese street food, primarily custom banh mi sandwiches, alongside noodle and rice dishes. The core restaurant product operates as a fast-casual dining experience, supplemented by a mobile ordering app for iOS and Android that enables online ordering with skip-the-line functionality, and an extensive catering program for corporate events and group orders. The company uses the HungerRush online ordering platform for web orders and is available on third-party delivery platforms including Uber Eats and Grubhub.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Products and services
- Roostar Vietnamese Grill Restaurant
- Roostar Mobile Ordering App (iOS/Android)
- Roostar Catering Program
Quantifiable outcome
- Ranked in Yelp's Top 100 Places to Eat in the U.S. (2015)
- +3 more outcomes
Companies that use Roostar
Customer profileSegments2 records
Ideal customer profiles2 records
Roostar technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Roostar partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
Five partnerships are on record, tiered core.
- UberEatscoreThird-party food delivery partnership enabling customers to order Roostar menu items for delivery through the UberEats platform.
- GrubhubcoreThird-party food delivery partnership enabling customers to order Roostar menu items for delivery through the Grubhub platform.
- DoorDashcoreThird-party food delivery partnership enabling customers to order Roostar menu items for delivery through the DoorDash platform.
- EZ CatercoreCatering partner platform enabling customers to order Roostar catering services for corporate events and private functions.
- HungerRushcoreOnline ordering technology platform powering Roostar's website ordering system and integrated POS operations.
Scale indicators4 records
Recent moves9 records
Expansion highlights5 records
Roostar competitors and assessment
Company assessmentBroad incumbents
- CAVA: Public fast-casual Mediterranean chain with a build-your-own, mobile-ordering-driven model and significant catering business. Comparable in fast-casual format, digital ordering infrastructure, and catering focus rather than cuisine.
- Sweetgreen: Large fast-casual chain with a similar build-your-own, mobile-ordering-centric operating model and omnichannel digital strategy. Comparable in service format and technology-led direct ordering rather than cuisine.
- Lee's Sandwiches: Established Vietnamese-American banh mi and Asian fusion chain with locations across multiple U.S. states. Comparable as a scaled Vietnamese sandwich concept, though broader in menu and footprint than Roostar's single-metro focus.
Regional players
- Pho Saigon: Houston-based Vietnamese restaurant offering pho, banh mi, and Vietnamese staples. Directly comparable in cuisine and Houston geography, though full-service rather than fast-casual.
- Saigon Pagolac: Houston-based Vietnamese restaurant offering traditional Vietnamese dishes. Comparable in cuisine category and Houston geography, though more full-service than Roostar's fast-casual format.
- Lemongrass: Vietnamese restaurant group operating multiple Houston-area locations with a broader menu including pho and Vietnamese specialties. Comparable in geography and cuisine category.
Direct peers
- District M: NYC-based fast-casual Vietnamese concept specializing in banh mi and Vietnamese street food, operating a similar build-your-own sandwich and noodle model with multiple storefronts. Directly comparable in menu focus, format, and target customer.
- Bon Mi: Fast-casual Vietnamese restaurant concept serving banh mi, pho, and rice bowls in a similar build-your-own format. Directly comparable in cuisine, service model, and price point.
Emerging players
- Caphe Banh Mi: Vietnamese banh mi concept with locations in multiple U.S. cities offering a similar sandwich-forward menu. Comparable in cuisine focus and fast-casual positioning.
- Bol: Fast-casual Vietnamese concept offering banh mi, pho, and rice bowls with a build-your-own format. Directly comparable in cuisine, format, and price point, though operating in different U.S. markets.
Market position
Strengths4 records
Weaknesses4 records
Competitive moat4 records
Key risks5 records
Key highlights6 records
Customer concentration
Roostar social profiles
Digital presenceRoostar financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Roostar leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles2 records
Roostar funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds1 record
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Roostar 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 Roostar
What does Roostar do?
Roostar Vietnamese Grill is a fast-casual Vietnamese restaurant chain operating four Houston-area locations serving custom banh mi sandwiches, traditional Vietnamese noodle and rice dishes, and sides made from family recipes and fresh, handmade ingredients. Customers can dine in, take out, order through a proprietary mobile app, or use third-party delivery platforms, and the company offers a full-service catering program for corporate events and private functions.
Is Roostar a public or private company?
Roostar is a private company. It is classified as founder individual operated bootstrapped and is currently operating.
When was Roostar founded?
Roostar was founded in 2012. It employs 1 to 10 people.
Where is Roostar based?
Roostar is headquartered in Houston, United States, in the North America region.
How does Roostar make money?
Four revenue lines are on record. Dine-in and Takeout Sales are the primary driver. The others are third-Party Delivery, catering Services and mobile App Ordering.
Who are Roostar's main competitors?
Broad incumbents on record are CAVA, Sweetgreen and Lee's Sandwiches. Regional players are Pho Saigon, Saigon Pagolac and Lemongrass. Direct peers are District M and Bon Mi. Emerging players are Caphe Banh Mi and Bol.
Does Roostar have an API?
No public API is recorded for Roostar.
What industry is Roostar in?
Roostar's product category is Vietnamese Fast-Casual Restaurants. Its primary akta.pro industry code is THAFACAJ, All-Day Dining Restaurants, with a secondary code of HSACAGAA, Full-Service Catering (Off-Premise). Its NAICS code is 722513 and its SIC code is 2000.