Fishbowl: How Australian mates turned idea into $60million business

The founders of Fishbowl, one of Australia’s most popular fast-food chains, have told how they went from being university students to the owners of a brand worth $60million.

Nic Pestalozzi, Casper Ettleson and Nathan Dalah opened their first restaurant in Bondi, in Sydney’s eastern suburbs, back in 2016.

In five years, the fast-food chain – which specialises in made-to-order Japanese-style salads – has become an empire set to make $60million in revenue in 2022.

Mr Pestalozzi, who met his co-founders at university, said the inspiration for the franchise came following a personal struggle to find healthier options on the go.

He said the trio had thrown caution to the wind when deciding to open their first store in Bondi and had known little about the challenges they would face.  

‘But we were young and ambitious and we knew we didn’t want to work for anyone else. And it was a fun excuse to get out of university,’ he told the Daily Telegraph. 

The popular Japanese-style salads come with a choice of salmon, chicken or tofu on a bed cabbage, carrot and shallots. 

Diners can pick from a choice of bases – including brown or sushi rice, mixed leaves, glass noodles or cabbage. Each bowl comes topped with roast sesame dressing, crispy shallots and wasabi peas.

For extra toppings, customers can add more ingredients at an additional cost – including 50 cent edamame, $2 avocado, $1 seaweed salad and more. 

The company now employs up to 450 staff with plans to launch 12 new stores, bringing the total number of Fishbowl experiences to 40 across three states. 

The team recently launched a new restaurant in Cronulla in Sydney’s south, with dreams of opening two stores in Queensland this year. 

Mr Pestalozzi told the Daily Telegraph the success of the cult eatery came from remaining unpretentious, and never preaching like a health food store.  

Mr Pestalozzi said he and his co-founders have remained humble throughout their success and still don’t count themselves as having ‘made it’ five years later. 

‘A lot of the time our salads are quicker to make than a burger,’ he said.  

‘It’s had a bad reputation for so long, but fast food can still be good food. We are happy to change what fast food means.’

His co-founder Nathan Dalah welcomed a baby with Australian supermodel Georgia Fowler, 29, in September, a daughter the couple have named Dylan. 

The couple confirmed their romance in February last year. 

‘Dylan Aman Dalah. 17.9.21. Welcome to the world. We love you so much,’ she wrote, sharing a series of photos of the newborn.