Charlotte’s Hot Dog Restaurant Named #43 in List of Top 50 Restaurants in Fast Casual’s Prestigious Annual List
JJ’s Red Hots is officially moving and shaking.
The Charlotte-based upscale hot dog brand was honored Sunday night by Fast Casual as one of the year’s Top 50 restaurants, finishing #43 in the publication’s 2014 Top 100 Movers & Shakers list.
With restaurants in Ballantyne & Dilworth, JJ’s Red Hots was the smallest brand on the list for number of units, the only Charlotte-based brand and the only Hot Dog/Sausage concept to make the list. But that’s just fine with owner and founder Jonathan Luther, who accepted the award at the National Restaurant Association show in Chicago with JJ’s director of marketing and brand development Brandy Newton.
“We couldn’t be more thrilled,” said Luther. “We feel like we have a world-class brand that is ready for the right growth. And we will strive to deliver on the quality, service, value brand promise upon which we were founded.”
Newton, who oversees all promotional activities for the brand, maintains an impressive following on behalf of JJ’s on Twitter (1500+), Facebook (3100+) and Instagram (1000+), according to the Fast Casual special report.
“Our two-word mission statement is ‘Create Joy’ and that is exactly what we’re doing with the brand,” said Newton. “From Frank the Tank (JJ’s ubiquitous hot dog cart) to our kick-ass hot dogs, we are having fun and making people happy.”
According to Cherryh Butler, senior editor of FastCasual.com, this year’s honorees were selected from nearly 900 nominations and evaluated by industry experts: “We applied multiple criteria against the nominees, including innovation, unit and revenue growth, use of technology and social media, branding and marketing and overall contribution to the industry.”
JJ’s Red Hots is the premier purveyor of “hand-crafted” char-grilled hot dogs and sausages in the Charlotte metropolitan area. The restaurant concept is built on solid, hardworking values and is modeled after venerable establishments like Ted’s in Buffalo, NY, Gene and Jude’s in Chicago, and many others. Still, JJ’s is true American original featuring house-made, scratch prepared sides and toppings served alongside time tested, revered American brands like Tabasco, Weber’s Mustard, Martin’s Rolls, Coca-Cola and Mt. Olive Pickles. Perhaps most proudly, JJ’s Red Hots serves smokehouse hot dogs from Sahlen’s Meat Packing Company in Buffalo, NY. Sahlen’s is a 143 year-old company that remains family owned and operated, and makes, in our opinion, the best hot dogs in the world.