A hi-tech vegan fast-food restaurant

The brand makes healthy food fun, delicious, and accessible

Spotted: The global fast-food market was valued at more than $712 billion (around €671 billion) in 2021, and experts predict annual growth of almost five per cent from 2022 to 2029. After decades of worry about the effects of empty calories on human health, many fast-food chains have significantly improved the healthiness of their products, with some brands beginning to include vegan options. 

Seeing an opportunity to introduce a dedicated vegan fast-casual dining option, Dutch brand Howie Roll created a plant-based fast sushi menu. Tofu, jackfruit, vegan shrimp, and beautifully presented veggies are the stars of the menu. With a slogan of “Come hungry, leave happy,” the brand leans into the speed and ease of fast-food, promising to have orders ready in five minutes. 

Howie Roll restaurants include waiting areas for people ordering takeaway, dining space upstairs, and a specially designed area with its own entrance for delivery order pick-up by drivers. Touchscreen ordering, modular designs and layouts, and Happy Meal-style boxed takeaways take their inspiration from the world’s most successful fast-food chains, but without the meat-based guilt and carbon footprint. 

The first restaurant was recently opened in Vredenburg in Utrecht. But since there is no dairy, meat, or fish used in the food, Howie Roll restaurants are designed specifically to be quick and easy to scale for a truly global reach.  

Increasingly, the world is moving more towards plant-based diets. Alternatives to traditional meat proteins are being grown in many different ways, and Springwise has spotted the use of beer production waste to create a protein powder, and lab-grown fish fillets and pork sausages.

Written By: Keely Khoury