[SpotOn Series] Simplicity Meets Flavor With Britni DeLeon and Kasia Bednarz, Co-founders of FARE

Britni DeLeon and Kasia Bednarz are the Co-founders of FARE, a healthy fast-casual restaurant chain local to Chicago specializing in nutritious, seasonal, and locally sourced meals. Under their leadership, FARE has expanded to multiple locations in Chicago, garnering significant media attention and a loyal customer base for their innovative approach to healthy eating.

Kasia Bednarz Britni and Kasia’s journey began with their shared passion for simply prepared and wholesome food, which has translated into a thriving business that challenges traditional notions of fast food. They are committed to making healthy food accessible and flavorful while focusing on sustainability and community engagement.

Here’s a Glimpse of What You’ll Hear:

[02:07] How Britni DeLeon and Kasia Bednarz’s partnership was serendipitously formed
[05:01] The fear and excitement of opening their first location
[08:03] The unexpected challenges of launching their restaurant
[08:45] The philosophy of simplicity in FARE’s delicious recipes
[11:19] How Britni and Kasia collaboratively create their seasonal menus
[14:53] The adaptability needed for diverse restaurant locations
[22:16] Why transparency is key to FARE’s culinary philosophy

In this episode…

The restaurant industry is a competitive field where success requires a combination of passion, innovation, and adaptability. How did two women turn their shared love of healthy food into a thriving restaurant business?

According to Britni DeLeon and Kasia Bednarz, Co-founders of FARE, the key to their success lies in their commitment to simple, delicious food made with high-quality, seasonal ingredients. They also emphasize the importance of transparency, building trust with customers by openly sharing their values and sourcing practices. Their collaborative approach to menu creation, embracing adaptability when expanding to new locations, and actively staying informed about health trends have also been crucial to their growth.

On this episode of the Top Business Leaders Show, Rise25’s Chad Franzen talks to Britni DeLeon and Kasia Bednarz about their journey as co-founders of FARE. Britni and Kasia discuss their shared passion for healthy eating, the challenges of opening their first location, the importance of team culture, and the value of transparency and sustainability. They also share insights into their collaborative menu creation process and their vision for future expansion.

Resources mentioned in this episode:

Quotable Moments:

“Food is most delicious in its simplest form if you’re using really good ingredients.” – Britni DeLeon [08:30]
“Healthy food doesn’t have to be utilitarian, and flavor is one of our core values.” – Kasia Bednarz [10:08]
“There was a certain level of naivety that you just had to have to jump off and do something like this.” – Britni DeLeon [04:46]
“It’s about honoring the ingredients, the seasonality, and letting those things shine.” – Britni DeLeon [09:48]
“We want food that’s healthy to be approachable and we want you to crave it.” – Kasia Bednarz [10:21]

Action Steps:

Embrace Simplicity in Food Preparation: Start with high-quality, seasonal ingredients and let their natural flavors shine with minimal enhancement.
Prioritize Transparency and Trust in Food Choices: Always know what is in your food by choosing eateries or products that openly share their ingredients and processes.
Adapt and Listen to Consumer Needs: Be flexible and responsive to dietary preferences and restrictions, ensuring your offerings are inclusive and accommodating.
Stay Informed About Health Trends: Keep up-to-date with the latest research and trends in healthy eating and sustainability, but avoid fleeting fads.
Incorporate Seasonal Menu Changes: Regularly update your menu to align with seasonal produce, which is not only fresher and more nutritious but also supports local agriculture.

Sponsor for this episode

SpotOn:

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Partner with SpotOn today! Visit spoton.com today to schedule your free demo or to view SpotOn’s products. You can also call SpotOn at 877.814.4102 at any time. Let SpotOn help you make the difference with your business!

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Episode Transcript

Intro 00:03

Welcome to the Top Business Leaders Show, powered by Rise25 media. We feature top founders, executives and business leaders from all over the world.

Chad Franzen 00:18

Hi Chad Franzen here, co-host for the show where we feature top restaurateurs, investors and business leaders. This is part of our SpotOn series. SpotOn has the best in class payment platform for retail, and they have a flagship solution called SpotOn Restaurant, where they combine marketing software and payments all in one. They’ve served everyone from larger chains like Dairy Queen and Subway to small mom and pop restaurants. To learn more, go to spoton.com.

This episode is brought to you by Rise25. We help B2B businesses to get ROI, clients, referrals and strategic partnerships through done for You podcasts. If you have a B2B business and want to build great relationships with clients, referral partners, and thought leaders in your space, there’s no better way to do it than through podcasts and content marketing. To learn more, go to rise 25.com or email us at. Support@rise25.com.

My guests today are Kasia Bednarz and Britni DeLeon, the co-founders of the fast casual restaurant FARE. Kasia and Britni, inspired by a shared love of fresh seasonal food, partnered in 2013 to create a restaurant specializing in healthy, delicious meals with multiple Chicago locations and wholesale prepared foods. Prepared Foods line fair is dedicated to using high quality, simple ingredients, making and making eco friendly decisions. Kasia and Britni are passionate about building their healthier communities and changing how people think about healthy eating. Hey Kasia and Britni, thanks so much for joining me today. How are you?

Britni DeLeon 01:40

Great. Thank you for having us.

Chad Franzen 01:41

Hey, tell me, what were you guys doing in 2013 or before 2013 when you first came up with this idea? Like, what were you doing? Obviously not involving FARE.

Britni DeLeon 01:52

Yeah, I can, I can start there. I’m Britni, so happy to be here. So thank you again for having us. Kasia and I were working together at a restaurant here in Chicago called the Gibson, called Gibson Steak House, and we worked for the entire group, the Gibson’s Restaurant Group. We found our way there, you know, working jobs for them during our time in college.

And then started our first careers there in the private dining department. That’s where we initially met each other and we were really young. We were in our early 20s at the time, just exploring what it meant to eat healthy and feel good and feel good about the things that we were putting in our body, and we were really exploring those things at the same time. And so it was this very serendipitous moment of sharing similar looking lunches at work and being excited about ingredients and really feeling like, why doesn’t anything like this exist to fuel us through our busy, long, long hours at the restaurant?

Chad Franzen 02:51

So how long had you guys been talking about it without before coming up with an idea like, okay, we’re going to start our own thing?

Kasia Bednarz 02:58

Well, originally Britni wasn’t a big fan of me, so, you know, we had to get her to come around. We decided it was better to join forces and work together. We actually started with an idea for a protein bar. You know, we were on the go and we wanted to create something that was really accessible and easy to eat that we felt really nourished by. And so we worked on a protein bar.

Our bar beat us to it. And after cooking for friends and, you know, bringing in these lunches to the office, and we’re in an office where you got free lunch, you know, from these like, beautiful restaurants, people were really interested in what we were doing. And so we started cooking for people in the office, and we started catering and doing like, side gigs, you know, basically anything anyone that would be interested in what we were doing, we were willing to make food for them. And I would say it was probably like a year of doing that. And we were doing that while we were working at Gibson’s, you know, side hustle, they know now and are great partners of ours.

But we were definitely, you know, on the weekends and on our lunch break, delivering catering orders for what was a different company or called a different company at the time. But we did that for about a year, and then eventually it just became busy. And we’re like, we can’t continue doing this like this. Like, let’s actually turn this into something. And so we made a business plan and, you know, we shopped it around and started looking for locations.

But it was one of those situations where it was the chicken, you know, before the egg. So you couldn’t get the space without having the money. You couldn’t get the money without the space. And so we kind of went down this rabbit hole for a while, but eventually we got our first, you know, first taker, and we got a small investment from some friends and family. And then it became easier and we found a location.

And so, yeah, I would say about three years in the making.

Chad Franzen 04:38

Nice. Very nice. So Britni, tell me about the early days of that first location. Like what was it like the first day that you opened?

Britni DeLeon 04:46

Scary. Yeah, we were terrified, honestly. You know, I think that there I tell people this a lot, being where we were in life, there was a certain level of naivety that you just had to have to jump off and do something like this. And so we’re really grateful that we had that. We felt confident we had worked in restaurants before.

We could certainly figure out how to serve salads out of 300 square feet. Well, we had to be really innovative early on and get creative about how we were going to take this really big concept that we originally thought was going to be an 1800 square feet, squash it down to 300 square feet. And then we didn’t even, you know, think about really volume at that time. How are we going to move people through this line quickly? So actually, some of our first team members that we brought on board, we really looked to them and we were like, you’ve been in the fast casual space, you tell us what to do.

And so it’s really humbling looking back at those early days and just remembering how uneasy we felt about it all and how scared we were once that people started coming. I think that’s something that we really have in common and something that we love about hospitality and restaurants, and drew us in from the beginning. We love being around the people and being able to interact with them and in such a close and intimate way because of the size of the space, was really energizing. And so I think that the initial fear slowly wore off as we saw those people coming in the door. And we knew, you know, deep down that there were there were many people like us craving something new and refreshing and transparent and full of good ingredients that were going to make them feel good.

So we were just really proud of the product we were offering. And I think quickly that that fear kind of mellowed as we welcomed people in the space.

Chad Franzen 06:30

Was the the first day, was there a lot of people showing up like they were ready, they were ready to try it out? Or were you waiting around for people to come in?

Kasia Bednarz 06:37

It was busy from from the bat. We had a really great location. We were right on the corner of two really busy intersections in Chicago, and we had, you know, windows on all sides. And our food is really aesthetic. And so we display everything really beautifully.

And so even if people had the intention to like, check out what was this food market that we were in, you know, they ended up coming back to our space because the food was just so beautiful and, you know, available for them to see. And we definitely believe that, like, you eat with your eyes first. And so we had a pretty long line. And I actually remember the first day that we were there. I think both of us were like, I don’t we’re not going to be we don’t know how to serve the customers well, just like, how are we going to talk to these people?

We don’t know how to do this. But that quickly went away. And yeah, it was just so busy. And then it was a matter of optimizing like efficiency, like really, how can we push these people through? Because they had a very short amount of time for lunch and the efficiency from that, you know, front or that first location has really carried us through through, because it’s a lot harder going from a big space to a small space, you know, than vice versa.

Chad Franzen 07:36

Is there one thing that stands out to you that you remember, like maybe once the people started flowing in, like, I didn’t realize I didn’t know this, you know, like I didn’t know that. I didn’t know this. Was there something that stood out to you at that time?

Kasia Bednarz 07:48

Oh, man. So many.

Britni DeLeon! 07:49

Yeah, there’s so many, so many things. Hum. Yeah.

Kasia Bednarz 07:55

I mean something like our bowl sizes, you know, we’re like, well we want people to be mixing around their salad and their bowl. So let’s just buy a big bowl. Well obviously you have a big bowl and then your team members are just like loading it up. So we would give people like £3 of food, you know, and like people were taking leftovers home for dinner. And we’re like, well, this doesn’t make sense.

And so little things like that, that you just learn from experience that we wouldn’t have, you know, figured out otherwise.

Chad Franzen 08:21

So, Britni, I mentioned you and Kasia quickly bonded over your shared love for well prepared but not over involved food. What does that mean?

Britni DeLeon 08:30

It means that food is most delicious in its simplest form. If you’re using really good ingredients. And so I think that when people have a fear of cooking or preparing food or meal prep or whatever it is, if they have certain goals that they want to reach, it feels very intimidating. And it’s because I think we’ve let everything become so over-complicated. But if you start with high quality ingredients that are seasonal and locally sourced, you’re using the best quality you can find, and all you’re really having to do at that point is enhance.

Like their natural goodness and flavor. And so that comes with, you know, maybe it’s a drizzle of like a local honey or really good salt or one or two fresh herbs or dried, you know, seeds or something that’s going to just bring out either the sweetness or the smokiness in those ingredients that you’re using. And so we like to say that, you know, simply good that it’s it’s it’s delicious. It’s simple. You can look at the food and see what’s in it and really not have many questions past that.

And then it is always a question of like, how did you make this so delicious? And people are often very surprised to learn that, you know, most of our dishes are less than 5 or 6 ingredients and that they can be as good as they are. So it’s just yeah, about honoring, I think the ingredients, the seasonality and letting those things shine.

Chad Franzen 09:54

Very nice. Hey, Kasia, I saw on your LinkedIn page that you said that fair is more than a restaurant. It’s a movement towards healthier and more sustainable living. What does that kind of mean?

Kasia Bednarz 10:04

Yeah, yeah. We want to change the way that people think about healthy food. Healthy food doesn’t have to be utilitarian, and flavor is one of our core values. That’s fair. Like, everything can really taste good and still be healthy at the same time.

And we believe in balance. And we want food that’s healthy to be approachable and we want you to crave it. So, you know, nutrition is really important to us. But also the flavor has to be delicious. Like we’re really big eaters.

You know, we feel so passionately about the food that we eat, and those two can work hand in hand, and we’re just trying to change that. And I think the other part of it is it’s not accessible. You know, like Brittany said, I think sometimes it’s intimidating to meal plan and to, you know, we live these busy lives to make these meals for yourself, and we want it to be available to you, you know, nationally at every corner, if possible.

Chad Franzen 10:55

Who comes up with your ideas? I know they are simple, flavorful and filling. Are you guys the main kind of proprietor of each menu item?

Britni DeLeon 11:04

We are. That’s something that we really come together on in the business, and it’s really where it all started. And so we find that it’s a great way for us to connect as partners and founders, stay close to what we’re doing and really get to interact with the customer in that way. I mean, in that first location on the corner of Wells and Wacker, we were there every single day chopping the vegetables, roasting them, serving them, sourcing them. And, you know, as we grow and have more locations, that’s just not that’s just not possible. And that’s not what we’re focused on so that we can grow in all the ways that we’re dreaming of.

And so when we come together to design each seasonal menu, that’s really a time for us to reflect on what we’re about and make sure that we’re staying true to our values and then also like, just have some fun again and creativity in the kitchen. So we’re really really proud of that. We’re not culinary, classically culinarily trained. Neither of us went to culinary school, but I really think that that’s one of our greatest assets. We don’t feel confined by rules or techniques.

We really just go off of flavor, what tastes good, what feels good, and and are inspired by the seasons of it all.

Chad Franzen 12:16

How many ideas make it compared to ones that never see the menu?

Kasia Bednarz 12:22

It’s a good question. There’s definitely some misses and we’re both pretty honest and transparent about that. We’re always like, oh, this one didn’t quite hit how we thought it was going to. I would say every season we maybe make 15 new what we call toppers, which are like composed veggie sides that go on top of the bowls and the plates about 15. And then we narrow it down to like seven core items that stay on the menu.

And our team is involved also. So they get to taste test some of these items and we get some feedback there. And of course every season you know there’s some favorites and we try to bring those back into the rotation in future seasons. And yeah, it’s been really fun. It’s definitely our favorite part of the business, working together on the menu and then seeing just the joy that it brings to people’s faces.

And everyone really loves the seasonal menu change and they get excited and hyped up about it. You know, both internally and the customers. And yeah, we love doing the menu.

Chad Franzen 13:14

How long had you been in that first location before you decided it was time to grow?

Britni DeLeon 13:22

We were there about a year and then we opened. We had the opportunity to open a second location at Time Out Market, which was another food hall in the Fulton Market neighborhood of Chicago. So we opened there in November 2019, and then we all know what happened just a few months later and Covid struck. I mean, we were in an interesting position because even with that other location open, we had already raised money to open a third, which would have been our first standalone storefront. So not in a food hall.

It was going to be like our flagship, which is actually, ironically, just a couple doors down from where our flagship location is now, which we opened post-Covid. So it was — yeah, it was an interesting time. Things felt like they were moving really quickly and we were so busy at Wall Street Market, we were excited to bring it to a new part of the city, only had, you know, so many months to kind of test that out, which was a, you know, a different neighborhood and a different experience before everything kind of shut down.

Chad Franzen 14:20

What kind of new challenges did you know you’d already opened one. So you kind of knew what it was like to open one. But what kind of new challenges did expansion present to you? Obviously, Covid was a whole new, unexpected challenge. But, you know, just in terms of opening a new place, what kind of new challenges did that present?

Kasia Bednarz 14:38

Yeah, I think the neighborhood that we went into was a little bit more residential than where our first location was, which was in the central business district. And so the day parts shifted. And so instead of being extremely busy for this 1130 to 130 time period where we service, you know, 3 or 400 customers at Wall Street Market, we now had to figure out how to do breakfast on the weekends for brunch. And we were slinging egg sandwiches and dinner. And so I think what it really taught us is just being adaptable and really listening to the consumer and, you know, sticking to your core values.

But also what does the consumer want? How are we going to please these people? How are we going to serve them what they’re looking for? So I think that was a big challenge. But we were able to adapt and, you know, sold a lot of egg sandwiches on Saturday in a diner.

Britni DeLeon 15:23

It was like a diner. It was pretty fun.

Kasia Bednarz 15:24

And then at that time, you know, two locations, we were able to split up still, you know, now we have more. So it’s definitely a very different experience. And just really learning that your team is critical in growth. And so if your team, you know, is not buying into it and if the culture isn’t there, it’s really hard to execute at the level that you want to. So I think that was a really instrumental time in learning that.

Chad Franzen 15:47

How would you describe FAREs culture in terms of how the team would see it?

Britni DeLeon 15:52

Yeah, we try to again involve them in every step of the process and really make the seasonality of the food and the excitement around these menu shifts a good time for everybody. So it’s something that is unique to the fast casual space because it’s already, you know, such a quick paced environment. And so switching a menu every 12 weeks is a big undertaking, and we really need them to be on board with that. So we try to involve them in that. And then also just to teach them along the way about the ingredients and how important it is to, again, use quality things, to not use a lot of them to minimize, to minimize processed things and everything that we do and what and why we make that choice.

And then they get to pass that on. And so I think that there’s a lot of pride in what the product that they’re putting out there. And so I’d say that keeping them close to the values of why we’re doing what we’re doing has been a big part of keeping the culture strong within.

Chad Franzen 16:54

Do you think the culture kind of translates to the customer? Like a customer can see what the culture is like in any restaurant, let alone FARE.

Kasia Bednarz 17:02

Yeah, one of our team members last week just told us that they got matching tattoos at one of the locations. And, you know, our customers are very repeats. So it’s the same people come in over and over again and they form relationships with them and they chit chat about their weekends and they talk about the new menu items, and you can feel the camaraderie and, you know, just the passion for what they’re doing when they interact with the customers.

Chad Franzen 17:24

I was looking at your website. It looks like you have one standalone restaurant, one that’s in a food hall and one that’s in a hospital. Do you have to take so those are all kinds of different types of locations. Do you have to take different approaches at each place?

Kasia Bednarz 17:38

Yeah, sure. So we have two food hall locations in downtown, one standalone and one in the hospital. And yes, definitely different approaches in terms of the menu. We’re not open for breakfast at all the locations and they’re different customers. You know, the hospital customer is a different customer than the business district customer and, you know, different levels of speed. Sometimes you need more interaction.

You need to, you know, spend more time with the guests versus like in our, you know, very busy locations where people just want to get in and out. So yes, that that way there is a difference. But the food and the culture and the hospitality that we provide is consistent everywhere.

Chad Franzen 18:15

How much of a challenge is it to, from a logistics standpoint, to kind of manage all the seasonal ingredients from local farms?

Britni DeLeon 18:24

Yeah, we work with great partners. So our purveyors who we order produce and our dry goods and things like that from it’s nice because it’s something that people are asking for more. They want more transparency in their food and where it’s coming from. And so we’re able to get a lot of that from these larger vendors. You know, the farm piece of it is tricky.

We wish it was a lot easier to work directly, but a lot of times size is an issue. Can we get the right quantity that we need? Is the product going to be consistent. And so yeah, working with some larger distributors who can kind of be that middleman between the two has been really key for us. And I think as we grow, those partnerships can blossom and grow and we hope to be able to do some more things like contract and grow, you know, certain ingredients that we use all the time to our spec that can be distributed all over to all of our stores.

Chad Franzen 19:22

Is it important to like, stay informed or up to date on trends in healthy eating and sustainability?

Britni DeLeon 19:29

For sure. Yeah, I think that we’re very much informed by what’s happening around us. We consider ourselves trendy, trendy people. And we’re always learning about new ingredients and why something is good for you. Or maybe it’s not anymore.

And that can be very confusing. And so it’s always kind of a balance between, you know, us being able to translate that to our customer in a way that feels really sturdy and solid, like we’ve made a commitment to not use seed oils as an example, ever in any of our restaurants. So we only use olive oil to roast with and in all our sauces and dressings, sometimes coconut oil or avocado oil. But never would you find a canola oil or sunflower oil or something like this that we just have enough research on to make the commitment to not do that. So I think it’s just choosing some of these things and looking at our menu as a whole and kind of our path for growth.

What are some upgrades that we’d like to make along the way that are going to make a really significant difference and matter to people? So it is a balance between, you know, what we find really trendy and we can geek out on health stuff and what kind of the masses are looking for and wanting to be on the forefront of those things, but also not like going too deep, too fast.

Kasia Bednarz 20:47

And the menu is very versatile. So we try to stay away from, you know, fads. But really, because the menu is so versatile, there’s so much that you can customize where we’re able to accommodate a lot of these, you know, diets that people may be experiencing at that time or what they feel is good for them. So, you know, as much as like, we’re not necessarily promoting that we’re keto or paleo or whatever it may be. I mean, the menu does accommodate a lot of these dietary restrictions, which really helps us.

Chad Franzen 21:13

Yeah. You guys are you’re you know, any type of dietary can really go there and eat there. How do you kind of make sure that the food is still delicious, even though maybe it doesn’t contain, you know, certain items that certain people won’t eat?

Britni DeLeon 21:28

How do we make it delicious? Yeah, the good ingredients? Yes, it all comes back to, really, the quality of the ingredients and using things that are in season. I mean, we do that for more than one reason. They taste better when you’re eating things that are growing during that time, when they’re not coming from overseas, and also, the nutrient density of those foods is greater when you’re eating them in the season that they’re growing in. So it’s going to make you feel better, and it’s going to taste better. It’s definitely, you know, win, win.density of those foods is greater

Chad Franzen 21:56

Why is it important to be transparent to your customers?

Kasia Bednarz 22:01

That’s always been really important to us. And that’s really why we started fair. You know, there were healthy places to eat, but we really didn’t trust what was in the food. And, you know, maybe you were having a salad, but who knows what was in that salad dressing. And so we just want to be a place where no matter what, you can go there and anything that you order, you know what’s in it.

And you trust that whatever we selected is good for you. It’s nourishing, it’s good for your body, and it’s actually what we say that it is. I mean, we eat there very often, our families eat there, and this is how we want to feed our people, and this is how we want to feed the community. And trust and transparency is important to us, and we want to give that to the community.

Chad Franzen 22:39

I think I saw that you’ve been featured in various Chicago media outlets, and you’ve been called a Chicago media darling. How important has that been in your growth and your success Britni?

Britni DeLeon 22:50

We’ve really been held by the community that we were in. I think that from day one, people were excited to see two women back there serving the food. And again, because we love that hospitality piece of it, we got to know, just like our team does now. We got to know a lot of those people who were coming in every, every day and every week. And so we kind of had that connection off the bat, and we really leaned on that to get us through some tough times like Covid and re-emerge with still a lot of brand loyalty, which was important to us.

And that was, you know, it’s been authentic and also strategic. We’ve taken them along for the ride on social media and kept in touch other ways with email marketing and in-store communications and things like that. So it’s any community that we’re in. And right now it’s mostly been the loop. And as we get ready for expansion, we will now be out in other neighborhoods and communities.

Like that’s going to be wildly important for us to be embraced, lean on them, gain their trust, and then and then those people become ambassadors for your brand. And so just saying staying close to the brand is how we’ve been able to do that.

Chad Franzen 24:01

Do you have anything coming up for the future? What’s some of your vision maybe for the future?

Kasia Bednarz 24:07

We have lots coming up for the immediate future.

Which is opening a lot of locations in Chicago. So we have nothing is quite signed, but we’re almost there. We have a location coming to Logan Square. We have another location coming to the loop, which is exciting. We’re also looking at a few other neighborhoods, and we also have some national expansion happening in early 2026 going to Charlotte, North Carolina.

So we’re really excited about that being our second market out of Chicago. So yeah, lots of things in the works.

Chad Franzen 24:40

What’s going to go into, you know, kind of going into a different state.

Kasia Bednarz 24:45

Again, that’s going to split us. So we’re lucky that there’s two of us, you know? But one of us will be able to travel and like we said before, it is just really having the team buy into what we’re doing and we allow the team to participate in what we call a profit share. And so we really also incentivize them. And we have operating partners.

And so our goal is to find an operating partner there that really takes on that market and helps it grow and is really like a true partner to us, not just, you know, an employee. So finding that person is going to be really, really, really critical to, you know, find someone that’s authentic to what we’re doing and, and someone that can help us, you know, really go to that next level there and someone that we trust. But it’ll be exciting exploring, you know, a totally different market. And yeah, in Charlotte there’s a lot of sunshine and a lot of need for healthy food.

Chad Franzen 25:33

I have one more question for you guys. But first, how can people find out more about FARE?

Britni DeLeon 25:39

Yeah, you can visit us at foodbyfare.com. And there you’ll find a list of all our locations, our philosophies and values on our food. A link to follow us on social media. Catering. Anything you.

Anything you’d want to know you can find there. And then, of course, you can visit us in-store in Chicago at any of our four locations.

Chad Franzen 25:59

So if you were to go to FARE as a customer, this may be challenging because you guys change your menu frequently, but what would you say is maybe like a go to item like this? This is my thing. When I go to FARE as a customer for each of you.

Kasia Bednarz 26:13

Right now, what I would pick for Fall vibes, we just launched a turkey sweet potato chili that served with a mini cornbread muffin that’s vegan and gluten free. Unintentionally, you would never even know and it’s so delicious. I think that’s what I would pick right now.

Britni DeLeon 26:28

Yeah, and I love to make a bowl. And because again, the season, it’s like all about hearty stuff. We’ve got some hearty things on the menu. I’d start with a base of kale, our lemony kale. I do our antipasto salad with like chickpeas and cucumbers.

Sun-dried tomatoes and some really good bold flavors in there. I do the squash, which is roasted butternut squash with agrodolce. It’s like a sweet and savory sauce, and it has toasted walnuts in it. And then I put a piece of salmon on top. And we just with this season launched a new dressing.

Our dressings are huge. Like we’re always sauces can be a mystery sometimes. Like what’s in there? Are there sugars, are there weird oils. And ours don’t have any of those things.

And we have a Greek yogurt ranch, which is just I mean, I could drink it, so that’s what I go for.

Chad Franzen 27:23

Nice. Very nice.

Kasia Bednarz 27:24

Brownie. We make some really great pastries. We like something sweet at the end of our meal. So we would have one of those.

Chad Franzen 27:30

Yeah. Perfect. I’m starving now. Hey, thanks so much, guys. Britni and Kasia, it’s been great to talk to you. Thanks for sharing your insights and your stories. Really appreciate it.

Britni DeLeon 27:48

Thank you for having us.

Chad Franzen 27:39

Thank you. So long, everybody.

Kasia Bednarz 27:40

Bye bye.

Outro 27:41

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