14-unit poke concept Sweetfin began in Los Angeles a decade ago during the fast casual land grab, when operators were applying the Sweetgreen model to categories like pizza and global cuisines. At the time, these players’ niche focus allowed multiple concepts to offer chef-driven menus at far lower prices thanks to their quick-service model. But fast forward to today, the tables have turned as calorie swimlanes have been disrupted by delivery-only players like Goop Kitchen and groceraunts like Erewhon, to name a few. In response, publicly traded players like $SG and $CAVA are increasingly playing in each other’s sandbox to expand their addressable markets and weekly meal occasions. Meanwhile, Sweetfin has taken a different approach, hiring Michelin-starred chef Daniel Patterson (Coi, Alta, Jacaranda) to help usher in the next evolution of its menu as part of its Innovation Kitchen. This week, HNGRY sat down with its Co-Founder and President Seth Cohen to discuss how the casual chain is bringing fine dining principles into a micro-format fast casual environment with a ventless equipment stack.