Ethnic Eateries in the USA

Interesting insight into who owns the Ethnic Chain restaurants. From Business Week

Who's Behind the Ethnic Eateries?
Some of the biggest fast-food chains own stakes in "fast-casual" outlets -- but they're not eager to publicize the link

Did you like that whole-wheat penne with smoked mozzarella and roasted eggplant at the trendy Pasta Pomodoro outlet the other night? If so, thank Wendy's. Yup, the fast-food chain famous for its all-beef burgers has a stake in these Italian eateries, where guests can also order organic wine at cozy wood tables illuminated by hand-blown Italian lamps. It's a far cry from tiled floors and neon lighting.

Pasta Pomodoro, which has 45 locations in California and Arizona, isn't Wendy's only foray into so-called fast-casual dining. The Dublin (Ohio) company also has invested in Caf� Express and Baja Fresh Mexican Grill.

A few examples from the list:

Fast-casual spawn: Baja Fresh
The concept: More than 300 quick-casual Mexican food restaurants in 23 states
Fast-food name behind it: Wendy's

Fast-casual spawn: Boston Market
The concept: About 630 home-style cooking fast-casual restaurants in 28 states
Fast-food name behind it: McDonald's

Fast-casual spawn: Tim Hortons
The concept: More than 2,700 fast-casual restaurants with a bakery focus
Fast-food name behind it: Wendy's

There is nothing wrong with this but still, it would be nice for them to be a bit more transparent about it. I don't do fast food in general but I do electronics and geek stuff and I choose to not shop at Best Buy for a number of reasons (price and customer support). I would not like to be shopping at some other retailer and find that it was a subsidiary.