Mediterranean fast casual chain · 459+ locations · TX, NY, CA, VA, MD, and 24 other states + DC
Two of Cava's three Greek-American founders still shape the food at this 459-location chain. But a $1.4M settlement with NYC over Fair Workweek scheduling findings sits on the labor record, affecting roughly 1,200 workers.
The Big Picture
Two of Cava's three Greek-American founders still shape the menu and concept nearly twenty years in, and the CEO has been there since 2009 — rare continuity for a chain of this size. But the labor record has a real blemish: a $1.4M settlement with NYC in 2024 over Fair Workweek scheduling findings affecting about 1,200 workers at nine locations, plus 2022 restitution over the firing of a worker who took protected sick leave. Publicly traded with 94% institutional ownership and no founder voting control, Cava answers to its shareholders — and its growth pace, 75 new locations a year, is set by them.
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Company data last updated July 2026
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