In 2008, the privately held restaurant company tapped Russ Bendel, former CEO of Mimi’s Café and former chief operating officer of The Cheesecake Factory, as its new CEO. At the time, the company had about 20 units. Shortly after, the headquarters moved to Irvine, Calif., where it remains to this day.

The Habit Burger Grill launched a franchising program in 2013, as it began to think about expanding geographically. At the time, it was approaching 82 units in California, Utah and Arizona. The Habit Burger Grill is now in 13 states.

In 2014, parent company The Habit Restaurants Inc. filed for an initial public offering. It raised $90 million in its debut on the public market, more than doubling its share price. At that time, the brand had 104 units and had reported 42 quarters of same-store sales growth.

In 2017, Habit Burger Grill differentiated itself from other fast-casual burger brands by placing a strong emphasis on drive-thru locations. Bendel said the chain wanted to focus on bringing convenience and value to customers in this on-demand economy. To that end, the brand has also recently added delivery and self-ordering kiosks.