Featuring multiple restaurant brands, indoor and outdoor gathering spaces, interactive decor, weekly entertainment programming, a full bar, and private event capabilities, SocialBites offers elevated but affordable dining.
Aziz Hashim, founder and managing partner of NRD Capital, the firm behind the $80 million sale of Fuzzy’s Taco Shop, is betting his latest concept, SocialBites Food Hub, will become a household name. The first opened last month in Atlanta, and two more more are in the works for Georgia.
“SocialBites Food Hub is truly unlike anything the restaurant industry has seen before, an entirely new category in the space,” Hashim said in an interview with FastCasual. “We combined the best parts of franchising and restaurant operations with a carefully crafted labor structure and streamlined operations to deliver robust unit economics. Through our business model, we believe a rapid return on investment within about two years is achievable. For our guests, SocialBites Food Hub offers a vibrant and interactive space where individuals, groups and families can enjoy an experiential dining atmosphere alongside affordable meals.”
Although the concept houses four corporate franchised brands owned by Experiential Brands, The Original Hot Chicken, INKED Tacos, Flametown Burgers and Pinsa Roman Pizza, Hashim said SocialBites Food Hub wasn’t a standard food hall focused on carry-out and delivery traffic. Instead, it boasts indoor and outdoor gathering spaces, interactive decor, weekly entertainment programming, a full bar and private event capabilities to create community connections.
“Part of what differentiates us from food hall models is in our name,” said Hashim, who has decades of franchising and restaurant experience as both a franchisor and franchisee operating Dominos, KFC and Popeyes. “SocialBites was created to provide value and connection for consumers — something the restaurant industry sorely needs. We wanted to make dining social again, so the extra activities we have on-site (cornhole, oversized games to play, large television screens to watch events like the Olympics, Trivia night, and live music on the weekend evenings), all come at no additional cost to the guest while providing a fun, social atmosphere. Guests get a great experience interacting with our staff and enjoying elevated casual food at a reasonable price point.”
Another way it differs from food halls is its franchise twist.
“Instead of different businesses leasing spaces, four corporate franchises are all under one roof, with one point-of-sale system, one kitchen and the same staff,” Hashim said. “There’s no need for consumers to visit multiple locations or spots within the establishment to get their meals. Everyone can get what they want while staying together. After you order food, it’s brought to you table-side. “
The sharing of systems ensures efficiency and reduces operational complexities, and by converting second-generation spaces, including closed casual dining locations, SocialBites lowers initial investment costs and opens faster than restaurants built from the ground up.
“Traditional food halls also have a large build-out cost and footprint,” he said. “Our SocialBites Food Hub reuses existing restaurant real estate, literally reimagining a fast casual space.”
Later this year, a second company-owned SocialBites will open in the Atlanta suburb of Woodstock, while site selection is underway for additional locations, marking the beginning of a nationwide expansion.
“This allows us to test a variety of footprints, demographics, programming and trade areas,”Hashim said. “Currently Experiential Brands’ unique restaurant concepts, The Original Hot Chicken, Flametown Burgers, INKED Tacos, and Pinsa Roman Pizza, are rapidly expanding across the nation including openings at several major universities throughout the Southeast this fall. It’s hard to see why SocialBites wouldn’t follow suit.”
