Australians living in the US have been left confused after a new restaurant appeared in New York that bears a striking resemblance to a popular Australian dining establishment.
Expats and visitors living in the Big Apple took to social media after they spotted some signs in New York’s NoHo resembling the Fishbowl restaurant with a slightly modified name.
‘Surely this is Fishbowl, but they couldn’t just call it Fishbowl. I really hope so, I missed it,’ one fan said in a clip shared on social media.
In fact, more than an imitation, the young founders of the company have confirmed that they are taking their Global takeout business of Asian-inspired protein bowls and salads.
The group is preparing to open its first establishment on Australian shores, but had to do so under the name This bowl in the USA
Fishbowl’s first store in the United States will be in Manhattan’s NoHo. Image: Supplied
Fishbowl founders Nathan Dalah, Nic Pestalozzi and Casper Ettelson at the Parramatta restaurant. Photo: Nikki A
The founders of Fishbowl have revealed how they went from being university students to owners of a brand worth millions (pictured, a Japanese-style salad from the restaurant)
The New York store will open its doors in mid-2024, when the three founders of the company, who are friends from the University, set their sights on the enormous American market.
Nic Pestalozzi, one of the three founders, said the company wanted to have a big launch in the United States by entering the New York market.
“New York is the absolute retail mecca of the world,” he said.
‘We debated other cities. We thought, ‘Should we go to Los Angeles or should we go to London’?
“But we said, ‘Look, if we do that we’ll still have to prove that we can do it in New York, whereas if we go straight to New York and make that work, then the world is in your hands.'”
Pestalozzi, Nathan Dalah and Casper Ettelson, the founders of salad bowl restaurant Fishbowl, opened their first store in Bondi Beach in 2016.
The friends wanted to create a brand and product around healthy living and their salad bowls are designed with Japanese, Malaysian, Southeast Asian and Chinese influences.
“Bondi’s image is not something we have intentionally tried to convey,” Pestalozzi said.
‘It’s pretty much where we started. The brand is who we are and the lifestyle we live has that kind of healthy, outdoorsy Australian feel.
“We want to create an authentic brand experience.”
He’s confident the Fishbowl experience will move to the United States, despite the name change.
The trio threw caution to the wind when they decided to open their first store in Bondi and knew little about the challenges they would face during the Covid pandemic.
Fishbowl offers healthy Asian-inspired salad bowls for under $20.
The entrepreneur believes casual bowls are ready to compete in New York’s ultra-busy dining space.
“Our product is definitely up to the challenge,” he said.
“We wanted it to be something with maximum appeal and the fact that it’s healthy, super fresh, very delicious and at great prices, the product alone has a point of difference in the New York market in terms of that fast, casual product healthy. bowl market.’
Menu offerings include a coconut chicken bowl with cabbage, carrot, red onion, cilantro, lemon-olive oil dressing, crispy shallots and a bowl called OG, which features salmon sashimi or poached chicken with kale, beets , edamame, red onion, roasted sesame dressing, seaweed salad, tobiko, crispy shallots.
All bowls are priced under $20, which is a major facet of the company’s mission to help people make healthier lifestyle choices.
Fishbowl has expanded rapidly since 2016, with 46 stores open across Victoria, New South Wales and Queensland.
“Our fit-out costs are significantly lower than typical hotel fit-out costs,” said Mr. Pestalozzi.
“We have a central kitchen and then we produce all the food daily and deliver it to the stores daily, so when we fit out a place, we actually pay for some refrigerators and furniture, whereas a typical restaurant or a hospitality business is paying kitchen equipment and almost double the investment just to open a store.
“The payments and payback period for our stores are quite fast and that allows us to be more profitable and open more stores.”
The company now employs up to 450 people and plans to open 12 new stores, bringing the total number of Fishbowl experiences to 40 across Sydney, Victoria and Queensland.
Well-heeled mates Nathan Dalah, Casper Ettleson and Nic Pestalozzi (pictured left to right) opened their first Fishbowl restaurant in Bondi, Sydney’s eastern suburbs, in 2016.
Its co-founder, Nathan Dalah, welcomed a baby with Australian supermodel Georgia Fowler, 29, in September, a daughter the couple named Dylan (the couple is pictured).
Pestalozzi said the business had surpassed $50 million in revenue in the past 12 months and would aim for $100 million by 2025, with an expansion rate of about eight new stores a year.
“This gives us enough time to train staff, fund growth and just make sure we don’t get too far ahead of ourselves,” he said.
Global expansion beyond New York is also firmly in mind, but Pestalozzi says the team followed a “one store” mentality, that is, achieving excellence store by store rather than thinking about its aspirations too broadly.
At the moment, that means overtaking the United States via 65 Bleecker.
“I think it’s going to be like the ultimate Fishbowl flagship, so we’re really excited,” he said.
“We are putting many of you wholeheartedly into this one store.”
Fishbowl’s initial expansions were self-funded, but in the last two years private Australian investors have come on board.
The company has also attracted interest from American investors, but Pestalozzi said the trio wanted to keep it “local” for now.
“We say we’re empowering people to choose healthier lifestyles, so it’s not just about our product,” he said.
‘We have always tried to build a brand and an experience around the product.
“People want to feel better.”