From humble beginnings to fast food fame: Fat Shack, star of ABC’s Shark Tank, shares its story of passion and entrepreneurship  

Late night done right’: the slogan of innovative late-night restaurant concept, Fat Shack, but it’s much more than just a motto – it’s a promise. You might recognize the name from Season Ten of ABC’s Shark Tank, but since then, Fat Shack has boomed and now boasts 30 locations across 13 states. The concept was founded by college graduate, Tom Armenti, in 2010, with co-owner, Kevin Gabauer, joining the business in 2013. Emerging from a humble bagel shop, the business personifies the ‘grind mindset,’ and Tom and Kevin’s immense work ethic has transformed the concept into a fast-food empire centered around passion, hard work and entrepreneurial spirit. Fat Shack’s business model operates around franchising and uplifting others in the industry to reach their full potential as owner-operators.  

Today, Fat Shack continues upon its growth trajectory as it prepares to open its 30th location. With 2025 marking its 15th year in business, Food Chain sat down with Tom and Kevin to learn more about Fat Shack’s success story and what the future holds for its next chapter.   

“We started out in 2010 in New Jersey, originally in a location that was shared with a bagel shop,” Tom begins, reflecting on the journey thus far. “Right after I graduated from college, I was looking to get into the restaurant business with a late-night concept because there was virtually no competition. After getting some quotes, we didn’t have the money to build out a full restaurant, so I approached a local bagel shop and was able to negotiate a deal where I came in after they closed at night and operated the Fat Shack concept from 6pm until 3am out of their shop. I got the whole thing started for around $5000, serving burgers, sandwiches and late-night favorites.  

“In 2011, my family in Colorado convinced me to move out to Loveland and I was able to open the first Fat Shack in Fort Collins near Colorado State University; I opened the store and just grinded it out for the next couple of years building up the business. In 2013, Kevin quit his corporate job and moved to Colorado, and he and I started building Fat Shack together. We opened our first store together in Boulder in 2013 and then started franchising in 2015. In the beginning, we’d find people within our existing team – kitchen workers and delivery drivers, for example – and we’d build them up to own and operate their own Fat Shack locations.  

“Fast forward to 2018, we had 11 locations and decided to go into the Shark Tank,” Tom continues. “We ended up getting the call, flew out to LA and filmed the show; we had offers from four of the five sharks and we ended up sealing a deal with Mark Cuban. When that episode aired in 2019, we ended up getting thousands of franchise requests and tons of publicity – everything just went crazy. It’s been a crazy ride.”   

When asked his reflections on the investment, Mark says: “It was pretty clear in the Tank that Tom and Kevin knew where they were headed and had the work ethic and entrepreneurial spirit to get there. I typically only invest in healthier food businesses, but everyone needs a cheat day!”  

Exceptional customer experience 

One of Fat Shack’s most notable traits is its dedication to providing delicious food and exceptional service at any time, day or night. Originally established for late-night dining, Fat Shack maintains its commitment to quality, care and consistency, centralizing the customer experience in ways where its competitors often fall short. Its menu combines classic favorites with guilty pleasures, creating an indulgent culinary affair that’s flavorful with every bite – even after an alcoholic beverage (or three)! Fat Shack specializes in burgers and sandwiches, all filled to the brim with a variety of fried foods and sauces, all available with your favorite sides, or ‘Munchies’ – fries, onion rings, jalapeño poppers, and more. Its menu also features a range of other dishes – such as wings and the famous Philly cheesesteak – as well as a range of fried desserts. Fat Shack’s latest innovation – the ‘Fat Stacks’ – offers an exciting twist on its existing offerings.   

“We’ve just added the ‘Fat Stacks’ to our menu – smaller sandwiches served with value fries for $5.99,” Tom shares. “We decided to add these following the trends here in the US with a lot of restaurants moving towards value pricing. Our Fat Stacks are priced super competitively; it’s an even better deal than you’ll get at a lot of fast-food restaurants right now.”  

Championing people

Fat Shack’s brand strategy emphasizes promotion from within. Its people are the beating heart of the business, and Tom and Kevin are passionate about empowering individuals to be the best they can be.  

“Location is important when choosing new franchises, but not as important as the owner,” Kevin explains. “Tom and I making crazy food in the middle of the night has been fun, but a lot of our motivation behind growing the business has been on the people development side – building people up into the entrepreneurs that they could be. It’s been an integral part of our journey. From the very early days, Tom and I both believe deeply that if you just put in that effort, time and care, it doesn’t matter how old you are or how much you know, that passion can get you to where you need to be. Finding those people early on and being able to spot that talent and develop it over the years, that’s what motivates Tom and I for sure. In the very beginning, it was that work ethic from Tom and me directly, but as we’ve grown, there’s no chance we would’ve been able to do it without our people having the same mentality.” “One of the biggest things for us is the store-level operations. That’s what it all comes down to: giving awesome service and serving quality food, no matter what time at night it is,” Tom says. “If you can have people, at every level but especially at store level, that deeply care about the brand and the customers, I think that’s what really gives restaurants their energy and it’s what’s given us the competitive edge. That owner-operator focus is important to us and it’s what helps us to continue growing. It’s that grinding mentality, that ‘whatever it takes’ mentality. Everybody’s come up the ranks and worked their way up to either being an owner or working with us corporately, and everybody’s got that mentality.”  

Embracing the grind 

Capitalizing on its iconic concept and strong values, Fat Shack is well-positioned on the path for continued success. Further growth is on the horizon for the business, with many more franchising opportunities around the corner and lots more talent yet to be discovered.   

“Our goal for the rest of this year is to open several new stores, both in the markets that we’re already in and in new areas. For the next few years, our goal is to grow those individual territories, get more units open and continue on that path,” Kevin reveals.   

Elaborating on these plans, Tom adds: “We want to continue with the franchising side of our growth model and find more owner-operators that are going to be passionate about the business and grow with it. Our goal is to open new franchises with the right people who are the right fit so that it can be a successful business for them. We want to get up to 50-to-60, even 100, locations but it’s super important that we do it in the right way.”   

With our conversation ending, we cannot wait to see Fat Shack continue to expand and flourish. Concluding our interview, Tom and Kevin hone in on the key ingredients keeping Fat Shack in the spotlight.   

“We have two core values in our company: to embrace the grind and to care beyond expectation. That’s the other side of why we’ve been successful,” Tom affirms. “We want to truly give that awesome experience to our customers. Whether it’s two in the morning or two in the afternoon, we’re going to give you that same awesome service. Our big thing has been leaning into caring, especially in a world today where service is falling off in a lot of places, particularly in the fast-food sector. Within the industry, we’re really trying to shine above with our concept.”  

“We really do care for, not only our customers, but our staff too,” Kevin finishes. “All our team members care and go above and beyond for each other. It’s what really keeps us going.”  

www.fatshack.com