It's Hot Steak Summer

Fast-casual power players Cava and Sweetgreen recently added steak to their veggie-heavy menus at hundreds of locations nationwide. So why after the obsession over "plant-based" foods are chains suddenly bullish on beef ?

The big picture: For nearly 20 years, author Michael Pollan's simple answer to the complex question of what best to eat has driven diet trends: "Eat food. Not too much. Mostly plants."

• The last decade has seen a huge boom in plant-based diet culture and the rise of the "alternative meat" industry , which has seen a backslide in revenue and popularity with consumers' growing concern over processed foods (the new bad guys , according to experts).

Meanwhile, Sweetgreen is touting steak as the anti-Impossible Burger — a whole, holistic food.

• "Our [steak] launch comes at a time when consumers are leaning into conversations around health and the power of protein," co-founder Nicolas Jammet tells Axios.

Follow the money: It's also a potential revenue driver, despite the rising cost of meat. Part of the reason Sweetgreen beefed up its menu at over 225 locations is to attract dinner buzz . During a test phase in Boston, steak made up a fifth of nighttime orders.

• Sweetgreen's steak bowls are priced around $15-$17. At Cava, which launched grass-fed steak this month, a Med-style "steak and cheese" and mezze bowl are both around $15. Not cheap, but also not as pricey as a steak entrée in most casual restaurants.
• Even vegetarian-friendly chain Taim , which has a location in D.C. and many more in NYC, recently added "honey harissa steak" for nearly $14 — a pay upgrade from the $11 falafel.

Zoom in: Cava co-founder Ted Xenohristos tells Axios that dinner already makes up 46% of the chain's booming business at 300-odd locations nationwide. Unlike fellow D.C.-born Sweetgreen, which is just now selling beef after 17 years in business, Cava created beef meatballs and still serves lamb.

• Adding Mediterranean steak — which customers can see cooking on live-fire grills — was about "meeting a huge pent-up demand," says Xenohristos. "When you ask Americans 'What do you want for dinner?' as diverse as the county has become, steak and potatoes is still the answer."

By the numbers: Nearly nine in 10 Americans consume meat, according to 2021 polling data . Three in five people said that eating red meat is an "American way of life."

Zoom out: The cattle industry is a big contributor to greenhouse emissions, which has prompted some — including the New York Times — to point out that beef doesn't fit neatly with Sweetgreen's climate-neutral goals.

The other side: Sweetgreen and Cava argue that they're growing a positive environmental model by sourcing responsibly raised, grass-fed beef and serving it to the masses.

• Both chains mostly source from farms in Australia, plus Sweetgreen also counts New Zealand among its "gentle" regenerative farms .

What's ahead: Cava, which had a hugely successful IPO , is planning to double its size to some 700 locations in the coming years. Xenohristos says ideally they'd like to source American grass-fed beef, but the supply isn't currently there. He hopes they can help drive up demand in the American industry.

• "As we build and grow, we get to help change the way the world of food works in a positive way and be a dynamic player in how we source," adds Xenohristos.