Miami-based Mila is the top-grossing independent restaurantm with more than $51 million in gross food and beverage sales. | Photo courtesy: Mila.
This year’s Top 100 Independent restaurants generated a collective $1.96 billion in total gross food and beverage sales for 2024, with this year’s No. 1 ranked restaurant, Mila, in Miami, garnering $51,115,747 in gross food and beverage sales.
Despite rising costs and inflation, consumer restaurant spending rose steadily throughout 2024, and the National Restaurant Association now predicts an industry that will reach sales of $1.5 trillion and a labor force of 15.9 million by the end of 2025.
Costs were up across the board for operators in 2024. Food, rent, utilities, labor and tech costs rose, with full-service operators spending a median 36.5% of sales on salaries and benefits last year, according to the National Restaurant Association.
Independent restaurants in the Washington, D.C., area have faced major labor challenges due to efforts to eliminate the tax tip credit, according to John McDonnell, president and CEO of Clyde’s Restaurant Group, operators of Old Ebbitt Grill, The Hamilton, Tower Oaks Lodge, Willow Creek Farm, and Clyde’s of Gallery Place. Rising pre-tip wages, combined with inflation from Covid and the added pressure of tariffs, have made it increasingly difficult to manage costs. “Buying and staffing and holding your standards without passing it all on to the consumer is the biggest challenge, not just for us, but probably for just about every restaurant,” McDonnell said.
Even with these ongoing challenges, independent restaurants are finding ways to adapt and thrive, with many cities experiencing significant growth.
As markets like New York, Los Angeles, Dallas, Houston and Atlanta continue to expand, operators recognize that long-term success depends on building and maintaining their teams—a challenge and an opportunity.
Creating a culture of care to retain top talent
Turnover rates in restaurants are notoriously high, so investing in employees has become a strategic priority for many independent restaurants. Retaining reliable staff is essential for consistency and quality service, so operators are placing a greater emphasis on professional development, competitive compensation and fostering supportive work environments.
At Taste of Texas in Houston, owner Nina Hendee fosters a culture of support and personal development for the restaurant’s 230 staff members who serve 8,000 guests per week. “We pay for gym memberships and financial training, offer education scholarships and have a dozen counselors on staff,” said Hendee. “When life is overwhelming for these kids, they’ve got someone to talk to. I just want them to leave our employment better than they walked in the door.”
Methodology
RB’s Top 100 Independents ranking is a measure of the country’s highest-grossing independent restaurants. Only restaurant concepts with no more than five locations are considered “independents” for the purpose of this list. Rankings are based on gross 2024 food and beverage sales. Information was gathered through surveys and interviews.
Want your restaurant to be considered for next year’s Top 100 Independents list? Contact us at jonathan.maze@informa.com.
Some operators have found success in promoting stability for their teams. The h.wood Group employs a total of 270 staff members across its three Delilah locations on this year’s list. “We’ve done a really good job of keeping people happy for a long time,” said John Terzian, co-founder and co-president of h.wood Group. “We have people coming to us from other places saying, ‘I’m never paid on time.’ We never have those kinds of issues at our restaurants.”
Mila staffs 350 to 450 employees, depending on the season, and has deployed an innovative hiring tactic. Designed to enhance the Riviera feel of its properties, staff are recruited from Europe, and a management company is used to facilitate visas and relocation. Once hired, staff take part in daily tastings and regular mentorship programs to motivate them toward new opportunities, according to Marine Giron-Galy, partner and chief brand officer at Riviera Dining Group.
Ultimately, maintaining consistent sales is closely tied to a restaurant’s overall success. At Clyde’s Restaurant Group, McDonnell said it’s obviously easier to keep employees happy when you have a busy restaurant that’s making money for everyone. “Sales cures a lot of things; it allows you to pay more and for those in the front of house to make more,” he said. “We have an education system for soft-skills—days of workshops with role-playing scenarios. When all salaried people go through that, you end up with a consistent culture.”
Driving sales with entertainment, events and community engagement
In addition to memorable dining experiences and stellar service, top restaurants are finding new ways to entertain customers and connect with communities.
For example, beyond its experiential atmosphere, popular Sunday brunch and exclusive chef series, Mila’s MM Lifestyle membership club that launched in 2023 expanded in 2024 to grant members access to additional Riviera Dining Group venues all around Miami, with perks like priority reservations during peak hours. And when Mila diners want more, they get it. Founder and CEO Gregory Galy said sales really took off when Mila expanded its late-night hours until 4 a.m. Thursday through Saturday.
Events have played a significant role in boosting sales for Clyde’s Restaurant Group, with Old Ebbitt and The Hamilton experiencing notable year-over-year growth, driven not only by price, but by traffic growth. “We do late-night happy hours, strong pre- and post-theater traffic, and get a late-night industry crowd,” said McDonnell. The addition of new social media staff has helped to promote chef’s dinners, specials and events to a customer base that’s 30% tourists and 70% locals.
Other restaurants, like Delilah and Taste of Texas, have deepened community involvement with catered events and entertainment experiences. “You’re really winning or losing outside of your four walls,” said Terzian, who co-owns an annual chicken tender festival and participates in several other community events each year. “We’re really in people’s lives—catering their bar mitzvahs and their weddings.”
In addition to hosting popular wine dinners that help fund employee scholarship programs, Taste of Texas adopts families during the holidays and after weather-related disasters. And, since 1982, it has been an official museum, welcoming schoolchildren into the restaurant every school morning for a personal guided tour by Hendee, followed by lunch. “I started it as a way to give back to the community,” said Hendee, who averages around 160 tours per year. “But the end result has been that it makes raving fans out of 10-year-olds, and they come back throughout their life.”
Just as Taste of Texas demonstrates its commitment to employees and the community, other restaurants are finding impactful ways to support local causes and advance industry sustainability efforts.
With seasonality and sustainability top of mind, Clyde’s Restaurant Group is the largest provider of shell matter to the Oyster Recovery Partnership, a program that rebuilds oyster beds. Team members also have opportunities throughout the year to engage with the farming community through volunteering at field days, workshops and events as a partner of Future Harvest, a nonprofit dedicated to educating the next generation of Chesapeake Bay farmers.
These community connections can often lead to the next phase of growth for an operation.
Building momentum: How top restaurants continue to grow
A common theme among Top 100 independent restaurants is their commitment to growth and development. This approach not only creates opportunities for employees to advance within the organization but also brings fresh energy to emerging markets.
Multiple operators invested in significant makeovers ranging from bar and patio upgrades to lobby and restroom revamps, and complete décor overhauls, illustrating that strategic, well-publicized renovations that make sense operationally can enhance the guest experience and encourage repeat business.
Others are investing in growing store counts, such as Delilah, which is expanding into new territories this year. “Our GM, who was here at our place called The Nice Guy, just moved to Dallas to open a new Delilah location. So, people get to move, and they get to open their own restaurant,” said co-founder and co-president of h.wood Group, Brian Toll. “People see that and hear about it, and it gives people a path for the future.”
This focus on advancement, opportunity and improvement is seen at other restaurants, too.
At Mila, the challenge is always to be better than the previous year, according to Galy. Whether it’s the menu, design, guest experience or guest journey, Mila is always refining its approach. “After four or five years we’re challenged to reinvent ourselves a little bit each year,” he said.
Part of this reinvention involves embracing new technologies like AI, which is gradually becoming a part of Mila’s marketing, reservations and project management operations. “But at the end of the day, we work in hospitality,” said Giron-Galy. “This should never be lost; hospitality starts with the human touch.”
As restaurants adapt, innovate and navigate rising costs, many operators find that true success comes from becoming a meaningful part of their customers’ lives. “The hospitality business is the best business anywhere, and it’s fun to transition with the times,” said Hendee. “It’s really such a gift to be a part of a single owner-operator business right in the middle of the community.”
In an industry known for its challenges, the nation’s top independent restaurants prove once again that putting people first pays off for everyone.
Top 100 ideas to borrow
Independent operators shared clever ways they keep costs in check, guests engaged and teams motivated. Here are a few worth borrowing:
- Multi-use space = double revenue: Oxford Exchange in Tampa, Florida, serves only breakfast and lunch, then transforms into an event venue at night, turning downtime into profit.
- Farm-to-fork partnerships shield inflation: The Ranch at Las Colinas in Irving, Texas, leans on long-standing Texas producers to help keep pricing steady, navigating market volatility without sacrificing the guest experience.
- The irresistible brunch tower: Oxford Exchange’s three-tiered tower of shareables—fried chicken, frittatas, bacon and smoked salmon—became a viral hit and a brunch staple.
- Tech meets hospitality: Operators who added POS-integrated online ordering report smoother operations and happier guests.
- Grow your own leaders: Haywire in Plano, Texas, supports the LEAD (Leadership, Exploration and Development) program to help train staff for lasting careers in hospitality.
- Training for peace of mind: Fleet Landing in Charleston, South Carolina, conducts regular I-9 audits and ICE-preparedness training so employees always feel secure and supported.
- Private events as profit centers: Several operators expanded private dining options this year to capture steady revenue from celebrations and corporate groups.
Members help make our journalism possible. Become a Restaurant Business member today and unlock exclusive benefits, including unlimited access to all of our content. Sign up here.
