Announcing the 2025 Outstanding Operator Winners
Food On Demand is excited to announce the recipients of our second annual 2025 Outstanding Operator Awards!
After combing through a wealth of nominations, our editorial team has selected 20 brands that are excelling in areas like off-premises operations and digital guest engagement. These brands are setting the bar with their strong loyalty programs, delivery strategies, strategic use of automation and so much more.
As part of the program, we’ve once again invited all 20 brands to join us at the upcoming Food On Demand conference, May 5-7 at The Bellagio in Las Vegas, where they will be recognized on stage. Each brand will also receive a $1000 donation to the charity of their choice and be interviewed by our team for a feature article.
There’s no one-size-fits-all solution when it comes to running a restaurant. In today’s omnichannel world, where orders are increasingly coming from both in-person and digital channels, striking the right balance is key. Meeting consumers where they are—whether online or in person—is now a necessity.
From sharing best practices for working with third-party delivery platforms to adopting hybrid delivery models and refining customer touchpoints, there’s a ton of knowledge to gain from these operators.
2025 Outstanding Operator Recipients
Cava
Charity: ReFed
ReFED is a U.S.-based nonprofit working to catalyze the food system toward evidence-based action to stop wasting food.
With a holistic view of the food system and deep expertise in the causes and impacts of food waste, key opportunities in the sector, and where capital can spark the most impact, we engage food businesses, funders, innovators, policymakers, and more to drive systems-level change.
Sal’s Pizza
Charity: St. Francis House Boston
St. Francis House rebuilds lives by providing refuge and pathways to stability for adults experiencing homelessness and poverty.
We are a welcoming and inclusive community. Every day of the year, we enable individuals to meet their basic needs for food, clothing, and shelter. We transform lives using a holistic approach to understanding and addressing behavioral health, housing, and employment needs. We commit ourselves to helping those we serve achieve renewed lives of dignity and self-determination.
Viva Chicken
Charity: St Jude
The mission of St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital is to advance cures, and means of prevention, for pediatric catastrophic diseases through research and treatment. Consistent with the vision of our founder Danny Thomas, no child is denied treatment based on race, religion or a family’s ability to pay.
Playa Bowls
Charity: Surfrider Foundation
Surfrider is dedicated to the protection and enjoyment of the world’s ocean, waves and beaches for all people, through a powerful activist network. At the center of every action we take is our mission, our grassroots structure and local perspectives. We aim for positive impact and measurable results on behalf of the communities that we serve.
Jason’s Deli
Charity: Jason’s Deli Family Fund
The Jason’s Deli Family Fund helps employees and their families during emergencies, and provides scholarships to qualifying employees and their children.
Jack in the Box
Charity: JIB Foundation
The purpose of the Team Jack Relief Fund is to provide short-term financial assistance up to $2,000 to employees who are impacted by unanticipaite and unavoidable emergencies that cause financial hardship and are not otherwise covered by insurance, governmental or private agencies through their own personal financial resources.
Chef On Call
Charity: Food Banks Canada
In collaboration with a supportive food bank network that spans coast-to-coast-to-coast, Food Banks Canada’s mission is to provide national leadership to relieve hunger today and prevent hunger tomorrow.
Freebirds World Burrito
Charity: Ronald McDonald House- Central TX
For 40 years, the mission of Ronald McDonald House Charities of Central Texas has been to create, find, and support programs that directly improve the health and wellbeing of children and families. As our hospital partners expand their advanced specialty care and our Central Texas population continues to grow, we have exceeded our capacity to serve families.
Portillo’s
Charity: The Heart of Portillo’s Fund
Our charitable arm within the Portillo’s organization provides emergency assistance to eligible Portillo’s Team Members facing financial hardship due to unavoidable situations. There are many ways we raise money to support Team Members during their time of need.
7 Brew Coffee
Charity: Children’s Miracle Network Hospital
Children’s Miracle Network Hospitals raises funds for 170 children’s hospitals across the U.S. and Canada, helping make sure every child receives the best possible care. We let our member hospitals decide how to use these funds, ensuring the most urgent needs are met.
Dave’s Hot Chicken
Charity: World Central Kitchen
WCK is first to the frontlines, providing fresh meals in response to humanitarian, climate, and community crises.
White Castle
Charity: Pelotonia
At Pelotonia we’re driven by our mission: to engage, inspire, and challenge a community committed to change the world by accelerating innovative cancer research.
The Grill at OnCue
Charity: Our Daily Bread
Our Daily Bread is an organization established in 2017 from a combination of several local food pantries. Instead of continuing to do a little bit separately, they believed they could do more together. Our community is a vital part of the work we do here. From giving their time volunteering in a variety of ways to donating food to supporting us financially, it takes us all working together to truly make a difference.
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Charity: Hoboken Community Center
The Hoboken Community Center (HCC) is a 501(c)(3) not-for-profit organization located at 1301 Washington Street. The building opened its doors in 1927 as the Hoboken-North Hudson YMCA and served the dual purpose of providing housing to low-income men and offering affordable recreational programs for the local community.
Potbelly
Charity: Potbelly Gives
We show our respect and appreciation for our team members in many ways, including our Potbelly GiVes employee relief program, a 501(c)(3) fund. We created this program to provide an opportunity for employees to help one another in the event of catastrophic and other unforeseen emergencies. All money donated to this fund goes directly to employees in need.
The Outstanding Operator program is supported by these industry leading partners
