C3 - Largest and Fastest Growing Virtual Kitchen Company Launches Delivery-Only, 100% Vegan Concept, Plant Nation

LOS ANGELES, May 22, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- C3 (Creating Culinary Communities), the leader in virtual kitchen and culinary concept development, announced the launch of its third delivery-only restaurant concept, Plant Nation. The brand is now open with eight locations in the Los Angeles market and plans to expand rapidly during the next six months adding over 40 locations in San Francisco, New York, Chicago, Miami and Los Angeles.

Sam Nazarian, Founder & CEO and majority shareholder of C3 commented, "Plant Nation follows in the footsteps of our recent launches—Sam's Crispy Chicken and Krispy Rice - with offerings that serve a new subset of our customers who are looking for elevated, plant-based options. We will continue to innovate within our strong group of brands and look forward to serving our community, especially during these uncertain times."

C3's Chief Culinary Officer Martin Heierling developed the 100% vegan Plant Nation menu to showcase the versatility and decadence of high-quality, sustainable ingredients. Perfect for lunch or dinner, the menu features pizzas, sandwiches, warm bowls, salads and sides—many items highlight plant-based meat alternatives from industry leaders such as Impossible Foods. With cheeky names—Queen Supreme and HOLY G.O.A.T—Plant Nation is fun and approachable for not just the plant-based community, but for foodies looking to be more sustainable without sacrificing flavor.

"Vegetarian food has gone mainstream – with the online food delivery segment up 30% this year alone, Plant Nation is the perfect platform to show our guests how we use modern culinary techniques to create a memorable and seemingly indulgent experience," stated Chef Heierling. "We are excited to share Plant Nation's inventive dishes and innovative partners with our community."

The playful, bold packaging design is a result of a collaboration with sbe and award-winning creative marketing agency Digital Kitchen who together created custom carbon-neutral and compostable packaging made from recyclable materials. The visually eye-catching, innovative boxes were thoughtfully designed to maintain the integrity of the food while adding a pop of fun to your meal.

Succeeding sbe's debut of two new delivery only restaurant concepts, Sam's Crispy Chicken and Krispy Rice, Plant Nation is the latest driving component of C3 introducing the world to a never-before-seen approach to ghost kitchens and mobile delivery. sbe plans to chart new territory in the growing ghost kitchen industry that's disrupting the future of dining, giving consumers the ability to order a meal at the touch of a button by opening over 250 ghost kitchens by 2022. Reinforcing sbe's commitment to this growing field, the global company has coined the term phone to table, cementing its role in the evolving restaurant industry. The concept marks sbe's foray into the food delivery spectrum that's set to become a more than $75 billion business in the next two years. By the end of this year, C3 will operate over 180 ghost kitchens spanning multiple existing and forthcoming brands.

Utilizing sbe's vast network of restaurants and partner ghost kitchens, Plant Nation will be delivered to your doorstep quickly, and is currently available in Los Angeles for delivery daily from 11:00 a.m. - 11:00 p.m. through Postmates, UberEats, Doordash, GrubHub, and Caviar. For more information, visit www.plantnation.com and follow along @plantnationbysbe on Instagram. 

About C3

C3 is a partnership between sbe; Simon, a global leader in the ownership of premier shopping, dining, entertainment and mixed-use destinations; and Accor, the world- leading augmented hospitality group offering unique experiences in more than 5,000 hotels and residences across 110 destinations. By combining sbe's ability to build and grow successful, award-winning food and beverage concepts, Simon's extensive real estate footprint and Accor's international hotel base of 5,000 properties, C3 is enviably positioned to be the leader and pioneer in the virtual kitchen space and currently operates four virtual brands with over 60 kitchens in New York, Chicago, San Francisco and Los Angeles. To learn more, visit www.c3sbe.com 

About sbe

Established in 2002 by Founder and CEO Sam Nazarian, sbe is a privately held, leading lifestyle hospitality company that develops, manages and operates award-winning hotels, residences, restaurants and nightclubs. Through exclusive partnerships with cultural visionaries, sbe is devoted to creating extraordinary experiences throughout its proprietary brands with a commitment to authenticity, sophistication, mastery and innovation. Following the acquisition of Morgans Hotel Group, the pioneer of boutique lifestyle hotels, in partnership with Accor, sbe has an unparalleled global portfolio which will see 36 hotels and over 200 global world-renowned culinary, nightlife and entertainment venues by the end of 2020. The company is uniquely positioned to offer a complete lifestyle experience - from nightlife, food & beverage and entertainment to hotels and residences, and through its innovative customer loyalty and rewards program, The Code, as well as its award-winning international real estate development subsidiary, Dakota Development - all of which solidify sbe as the preeminent leader across hospitality. The company's established and upcoming hotel brands include SLS Hotel & Residences, Delano, Mondrian, The Redbury, HYDE Hotel & Residences, and The House of Originals. In addition, sbe has the following internationally acclaimed restaurants and lounges under subsidiary Disruptive Restaurant Group: Katsuya by Chef Katsuya Uechi, Umami Burger, Cleo, Fi'lia, Carna by Dario Cecchini, Leynia and Diez y Seis by Chef José Icardi, HYDE Lounge, S Bar, Doheny Room, Nightingale, Skybar, Bond, and Privilege. To learn more, visit sbe.com.

SOURCE Plant Nation