The team behind PLNT Burger is branching out beyond the plant-based patty. A new spinoff concept called PLNT Cafe is headed to downtown Washington, D.C., with a 26-seat space built around tacos, wraps and salads rather than the chain's signature burgers and shakes.
The news comes from The Business Journals, which reports that the PLNT Burger team developed the new cafe concept and plans to open its first location later in 2026. The compact 26-seat footprint marks a shift in format for a brand that has largely built its reputation on burgers.
A Different Menu From the Burger Chain That Built the Brand
PLNT Burger describes itself as the plant-based, fast-casual restaurant concept that's redefining America's classic comfort foods, according to the company's own site. The chain was co-founded by Spike Mendelsohn, who PLNT Burger notes is widely known for being the season four Top Chef fifth-place finisher and PLNT Burger co-founder. The new cafe concept leans into a different, lighter lane of the menu than the burgers and shakes that made the original brand's name.
PLNT Burger has been expanding steadily along the East Coast. The company's site states that the quick-service restaurant now has 14 total locations along the East Coast, a footprint that includes outposts far from the nation's capital.
Comparable Expansion in Boston and New York
PLNT Burger's growth pattern elsewhere offers a sense of how the brand typically rolls out new spots. In Greater Boston, the chain moved into a standalone space at 297 Harvard Street in Brookline's Coolidge Corner, joining existing outlets inside a Whole Foods in Boston's South End and at Dedham's Legacy Place, according to NBC Boston. That Brookline location offers burgers, fries and shakes that are 100% plant-based, the station reported.
Timing details on that Brookline opening have varied by outlet. NBC Boston reported a grand opening set for December 11, while Brookline, MA Patch had earlier reported the location was set to open in late July with Wellesley native Seth Goldman involved in the launch.
In New York City, PLNT Burger added a third location in the Bryant Park neighborhood at 11 West 42nd Street, joining existing NYC spots in Union Square and Nomad, per Fast Casual's reporting on the company's existing footprint. PLNT Burger's own announcement said the Bryant Park shop would operate seven days a week from 11 a.m. to 11 p.m.
A Shrinking but Still Sizable Market
PLNT Cafe's debut arrives as the broader plant-based food category shows signs of cooling even as it remains a multibillion-dollar business. The U.S. retail plant-based food market was worth $7.9 billion in 2025, according to the Good Food Institute. That figure is double the $3.9 billion the market posted back in 2017.
Still, 2025 brought a dip. Plant-based unit sales were down 3 percent from 2024 and dollars were down 2 percent, the institute's data shows. Plant-based foods made up 1.1% of total retail food and beverage dollar sales in 2025, even as 60% of U.S. households purchased plant-based foods that year — evidence that the category remains widely tried but is not immune to broader sales pressure.
No address, opening date, pricing or staffing details for the downtown D.C. location have been confirmed beyond the broad later-in-2026 timeline reported by The Business Journals. Whether PLNT Cafe will expand to other cities the way its burger-focused sibling has in Boston and New York remains to be seen.
