Nick Nanakos is taking the long view.
Founder and CEO of Austin-based ZIKI, Nanakos is on a “multi-decade, global-scale conquest to build the most significant company to ever exist in food.”
His Spartan ancestry has made him a fighter for excellence, and his Macedonian heritage (think Alexander the Great) may be what helps drive him toward empire.
Venture capital firm Gigafund, core Elon Musk backers who invested more than $1B into SpaceX, are backing Nanakos’s expansive vision of disrupting and transforming the food industry on an industrial scale.
His plan to optimize and re-aggregate multiple elements—ingredients, chefs, cooking techniques, agriculture, teams, factories, real estate, systems, technology, design, and logistics—all integrated on a foundation of proprietary technology, reminds at least one of his investors of a famous trillion-dollar Austin-based company.
“ZIKI is approaching restaurants the same way Tesla approaches cars—with a master plan to be the fastest, most creative company in the category,” said investor Ryan Metzger.
ZIKI is short for “Tzatziki,” Greek cuisine’s most iconic flavor
ZIKI is a fast-casual restaurant serving Greek & Mexican fusion. Signature bowls, zurritos, salads, sides, drinks, and desserts. The brand’s hot pink color illuminates from a distance and is impossible to miss. Food is prepared fresh daily. Veggies, dairy, and meats are sourced locally.
Head of Quality Control, Chef Mo, outlines the system and philosophy: “Proper food sourcing, agricultural partnerships, and quality control systems are imperative to our kitchen operations. The food must always look good, and make people feel good as well.”
Nanakos says that it’s as much about the heart as it is the head. “Food is a passion business. Embracing our chefs by creating the best possible environment for them determines the outcome of the food. Our chefs are the backbone to our business. When they are happy, they thrive.”
Get ready, Austin—you’re about to turn pink
With the boost from Gigafund, ZIKI’s goal is to quickly have the largest restaurant presence in all of Austin, before expanding to other cities.
“Austin’s love of food, culture, and tech are what add to its vibrancy,” says ZIKI’s Head of Marketing, Kat Vasylyshyn. “We’re painting the city pink.”
ZIKI is a member of the largest commercial kitchen in Texas. This serves as their central point of logistics for local restaurant operations. Food inventory arrives here from suppliers. It’s prepared on-site, ensuring the highest quality, with an added level of safety and control.
A fleet of Sprinter vans brings the food to modular kitchens for final prep.
ZIKI’s systems identify areas with the highest order volume densities and target those areas for placement of new kitchens.
Getting big fast: Why ZIKI is the Tesla of restaurants
CEO Nick Nanakos is not afraid to state his bold plan: “Our vision is to become the fastest-growing restaurant company on the planet, with unstoppable unit economics.”
That doesn’t just happen on its own. ZIKI’s Chief of Staff, Anthony D’Apolito III, says the Gigafund backing is the green light for a fast start: “We’ve spent an enormous amount of time building systems prior to our funding, which has positioned us well for scale, and that’s showing now in how quickly we’re moving.”
ZIKI believes that a restaurant should control its own expansion destiny. This is why they’re vertically-integrated, manufacturing modular restaurants in the company’s Texas factory.
Cutting-edge developments in manufacturing, technology, real estate, and hiring complete the picture.
ZIKI is a company led by a driven, visionary founder that’s ready to conquer the world, starting by making you happy with their Greek/Mexican fusion fare, right here in Austin.
You can keep up with ZIKI on Instagram, YouTube, TikTok, and their website.
