Are Focused Restaurant Menus Over? Why This Poke Chain Shook Things Up to Win New Guests
•February 19, 2026
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Original Description
In this episode of Take-Away with Sam Oches, Sam talks with Seth Cohen, cofounder of Sweetfin, a Los Angeles based fast casual that launched a decade ago as one of the first players in the poke category. Sweetfin has grown to 15 locations in Southern California, but in order to unlock more growth, the leadership team decided that the core menu needed a facelift. Chef Daniel Patterson was recruited to develop new menu items for Sweetfin, and the result was a line of warm bowls featuring cooked proteins, as well as new salads and vegetable sides. The new menu, which leans into Sweetfin’s identity as a California-Asian inspired concept, debuted at one location earlier this year, and Seth joined the podcast to talk about why the brand felt it needed to expand beyond poke, and which metrics he’s watching to see if it’s a success.
In this conversation, you’ll find out why:
Your menu needs to evolve every once in a while — sometimes in a big way
The era of extremely focused menus may be over
Your menu must have a point of view
All brand evolution must be filtered through your core values
To be successful, you have to make bold decisions
Have feedback or ideas for Take-Away? Email Sam at [email protected].
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00:00 – Why Sweetfin Evolved
02:10 – Sweetfin’s Origin Story
05:16 – The State of the Poké Category
09:20 – Why the Menu Needed to Change
12:24 – Fast Casual’s Competitive Future
18:12 – California + Asian Identity
25:23 – Partnering With a Michelin Chef
30:18 – Rollout Strategy + KPIs
33:23 – Bold Moves in Tough Markets
39:16 – Takeaway #1: Evolve Your Menu
40:22 – Takeaway #2: Focused Menus May Be Over
42:28 – Takeaway #3: Have a Point of View
44:13 – Takeaway #4: Filter Through Core Values
45:13 – Takeaway #5: Be Bold
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