According to Nation’s Restaurant News, “Two fast-casual pasta concepts, including one developed by a former Cheesecake Factory executive, are scheduled to debut this year in New York and Los Angeles, looking to capture what some see as an untapped opportunity within the segment.”
“Hello Pasta this week will open the first of four locations planned for New York City. The restaurants will offer imported, organic Italian pastas and a choice of 11 “Italian-American” sauces made with natural, locally sourced and organic ingredients for under $10. In Los Angeles, industry veteran Howard Gordon, a former senior vice president of business development and marketing for The Cheesecake Factory Inc., said he is planning to launch a new concept called Itriya Café Spaghetti & Ssam in the fall that will explore the multicultural flavors of both pasta and ssam, or savory foods wrapped in lettuce, tortillas, bao or pita bread.”
Read more: http://www.nrn.com/article/new-fast-casual-concepts-focus-pasta#ixzz0svS42R27