# Mediterranean fast casual under $600,000

Mediterranean, on a franchise shortlist, usually means three packets. The
Halal Guys is chicken, beef gyro, rice and falafel. Shah's Halal Food is
chicken and rice. The Great Greek Mediterranean Grill is gyro, souvlaki,
wraps, salads and dips in a 1,800–2,000 square-foot room. Fast casual under
$600,000 is a different question, and it does not return those three as a
set.

The screen that matches the phrase is the high end of Item 7, not the low.
A low end under $600,000 is common. A high end that stays there is not. Three
ranges in this directory do: Shah's at $197,000–$405,000, 375° Chicken 'n
Fries at $324,100–$521,500, and Döner Haus at $359,500–$586,000. One of those
is a Mediterranean label. One is chicken. One is the Berlin sandwich, and it
is the compact fast-casual shop with doors already open.

<div class="stats" markdown="1">

<div class="stat" markdown="1">
**3**
<span>Ranges under $600,000</span>
<p>High end included. Shah's, 375° Chicken 'n Fries, and Döner Haus. Everyone else in the directory prints higher, or prints no Item 7 at all.</p>
</div>

<div class="stat" markdown="1">
**$586,000**
<span>Döner Haus</span>
<p>2026 Franchise Disclosure Document. One 850–1,200 square-foot imbiss. Six shops open in three years, none closed.</p>
</div>

<div class="stat" markdown="1">
**$1,088,560**
<span>Great Greek</span>
<p>The Mediterranean grill. FDD issued 17 August 2023. Low end $582,014, and that low uses an affiliated-owner discount.</p>
</div>

</div>

## The Mediterranean aisle against the line

**Shah's Halal Food** is the Mediterranean row that stays under $600,000.
FDD issued 10 April 2024: $197,000–$405,000 for a 1,200–2,000 square-foot
restaurant, franchise fee $30,000, 7% stack. Item 20 recorded 58 outlets as
of 2023 — 14 company-owned, 44 licensed, zero franchised. Maryland's 31
October 2024 consent order treated those licenses as unregistered franchise
sales. A cheque under $600,000 attached to a brand with no franchisees
operating is a footprint, not a franchise track record. There is no Item 19.

**The Great Greek Mediterranean Grill** is the row the words “Mediterranean
fast casual” usually mean, and it does not stay under the line. FDD issued
17 August 2023: $582,014–$1,088,560, 1,800–2,000 square feet, 31 outlets (24
franchised, 7 company-owned) as of 2023. The low end is a discounted
franchise fee for owners of affiliated brands. A first-time buyer pays
$39,500. The stack is 10%. Item 19 is present. The term is 35 years, against
ten almost everywhere else here. The low end sits $18,000 under $600,000
only on that discounted fee. The high end is a million-dollar grill.

**The Halal Guys** is the gyro platter people file next to Mediterranean.
May 2024 comparative study: $461,400–$1,333,500, 93 outlets as of 2024, 9%
stack, $60,000 franchise fee, no Item 19, no typical square footage in the
study. The low end clears a $600,000 screen. The high end is the widest
Mediterranean-adjacent band in the directory, about $872,000 from bottom to
top. Certification is a separate fact: the company publishes documents for
its chicken and beef gyro. A category label does not certify the building.

The [Mediterranean and halal essay](/mediterranean-and-halal/) is those three
filings read as an aisle. This page is the cheque they do not share.
[Döner versus gyro](/doner-vs-gyro/) is the food split a gyro search keeps
collapsing.

## The compact shop that stays under

Döner Haus is German döner, not a Greek grill and not a platter cart. The
2026 Franchise Disclosure Document prices one standing-service imbiss of
850–1,200 square feet at $359,500–$586,000. Franchise fee $35,000. Royalty
3% and brand fund 2%, with $2,000 a month of local advertising spent in the
operator's own market, outside that 5% stack. Item 19 covers corporate
stores and early franchised units. Six shops opened in three years from a
2023 founding — East Village, Astoria, Hell's Kitchen, Bayside, Sunnyside
and Central LA — and none has closed. Seven or more are in construction.
The company states 55 franchise commitments as of August 2026. The
[official franchise page](https://doner.haus/franchising) describes that
takeout format. The range above is the filing, not the brochure.

Put beside the Mediterranean grill, the contrast is the building. Great
Greek assumes up to 2,000 square feet and a high end of $1,088,560. Döner
Haus assumes a window, a kiosk and a high end of $586,000. Same lunch hour,
different rent, different labor chart, different Item 7.

German Doner Kebab does not join this list. Its 2024 Item 7 starts at
$690,500 per outlet inside a five-outlet minimum and runs to $1,123,000.
Five later US shops have closed. Doner Shack's 2025 range of
$498,000–$1,007,000 crosses the line, records zero US outlets, and as of
2026 the brand is not selling US franchises.

## Who else prints a high end under $600,000

375° Chicken 'n Fries, FDD issued 30 April 2024, is the other operating
franchise whose whole Item 7 stays under the line: $324,100–$521,500 for
800–1,500 square feet, five outlets as of 2023, three company-owned and two
franchised. Item 19 is present. It is chicken and fries. It belongs on a
capital screen and nowhere on a Mediterranean one.

Mad for Chicken's full restaurant, FDD issued 12 March 2025, is
$321,125–$691,700 for 2,000–4,000 square feet. The high end misses. The same
filing discloses an express range of $243,500–$470,700, which would pass a
$600,000 screen and is not the restaurant the ranked row describes. A
three-outlet development agreement at $263,500–$711,700 is a commitment, not
a store.

Dog Haus, May 2024 study, prints $357,437–$625,800. The low end sits next to
Döner Haus. The high end clears $600,000 by about $26,000. Capriotti's in
the same study runs to $748,500. Crave Hot Dogs and BBQ runs to $1,192,500
across more than one format. Pepper Lunch starts at $609,200. Wienerschnitzel
and bluTaco have no Item 7 in the files behind this directory, so they are
not scored as bargains for lacking a number.

| Brand | Item 7 | High end under $600,000 | What the range is |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Shah's Halal Food | $197,000–$405,000 | Yes | Licensed restaurant, zero franchises in Item 20 |
| 375° Chicken 'n Fries | $324,100–$521,500 | Yes | Compact chicken shop, five outlets |
| Döner Haus | $359,500–$586,000 | Yes | One 850–1,200 sq ft German döner shop |
| Dog Haus | $357,437–$625,800 | No | Sausage shop, high end just over |
| The Great Greek | $582,014–$1,088,560 | No | Mediterranean grill, affiliate discount on the low |
| The Halal Guys | $461,400–$1,333,500 | No | Gyro and chicken platters |
| German Doner Kebab | $690,500–$1,123,000 | No | Per outlet, five-outlet minimum |

The [entry-cost ranking](/by-investment/) still sorts by the printed low,
which is why Shah's leads it and a licensed restaurant looks like the
bargain. This page sorts by whether the high end survives a $600,000
ceiling. Format still wins. A Mediterranean grill, a gyro platter and a
döner window are three fast-casual ideas, and only the window's filing
stays under $600,000 with shops open and franchisees to call.

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HTML: https://franchiselandscape.com/fast-casual-under-600k/
