|
 
Return
(North Olmsted, OH)---In the image-obsessed society we live in, it’s hard not to watch what you eat. Less is always more and any more than that is considered too much. Thankfully, local entrepreneurs Mark Holz and David Schneider are not as easily taken with celebrity. Their goal: to give people the kind of food they actually want to eat. They’ve succeeded twice before with restaurants in Mayfield Heights and Garfield Heights and recently opened their third Fatburger at 24954 Brookpark Road in North Olmsted.
“To put it as simply as possible, Fatburger has the best burger on the market,” said Holz, 35. “David and I were both born and raised in the Cleveland area and wanted to bring this concept to our home base. When we realized how perfectly it fit the demographic, we knew Fatburger had to come to the Midwest!”
Childhood friends Holz and Schneider are no strangers to the business world. Holz, a former Web site creator and owner, has been a real estate developer for years – a profession that has come in handy in selecting the sites and building materials for his growing Fatburger empire. Schneider, 36, is more familiar with the kitchen: he was one of the founding partners of Bin 36, a restaurant and wine bar in Chicago and Lincolnshire, Illinois, and former co-owner of Parallax, the Cleveland restaurant of renowned chef Zach Bruell. When the two heard about the opportunity to grow the Fatburger brand in Ohio, however, they left their former lives behind.
“We had both been involved in a variety of ventures but we knew that we wanted our names to be synonymous with the quality and service of Fatburger,” said Holz. “It was the only concept we were considering and the only one we thought was worth pursuing, which we told the Fatburger committee. The rest, as they say, is history.”
Santa Monica, Calif.-based Fatburger is a fast-casual takeout and sit-down restaurant serving big, juicy burgers made with fresh, 100% pure lean beef that is grilled right in front of you and customized to your tastes. What began in 1952 as a no-frills hamburger stand in Los Angeles, Fatburger has grown from its humble beginnings and celebrates its 55th anniversary with signed agreements for more than 200 franchise restaurants. Fatburger plans to open 24 additional restaurants in 2007, including 12 franchised and 12 company-owned locations.
Holz and Schneider opened their first Fatburger in Mayfield Heights in June of 2006, followed by their sophomore location in Garfield Heights that September. The North Olmsted restaurant is their third of a possible 15 locations throughout the Cleveland, Akron, Canton and Columbus areas. The North Olmsted location provided roughly 30 to 40 jobs and, though they are the owners, Holz and Schneider are present on a daily basis, doing everything from flipping burgers to getting customer feedback. According to Holz, giving back to the community that raised him is just as important as the food he’s serving.
“We take a lot of pride in creating jobs for people,” said Holz. “Employees approach us on a daily basis to thank us and ask how they can move up the ranks. Being able to have such an impact on someone’s life is really an amazing thing.”
|
|
|
|
