50 on Fire will bring together D.C.’s best and brightest to recognize the disruptors, luminaries and visionaries that are pushing our city forward. Buy your tickets now and join us on Dec. 10 at Howard Theatre for the celebration and winners reveal.

Today, the District’s exciting lifestyle business scene is perhaps more prominent than it’s ever been before, as the city has also undoubtedly experienced rapid real estate development and solid growth in median household income.

High profile restaurants and celebrity chefs are migrating to the District to set up shop. Fresh coffee shops are becoming a common occurrence and unique, nationally recognized beer makers are reviving D.C.’s proud brewery scene.

Here at DC Inno, we recently unveiled the 150 finalists for our flagship, winter award show, 50 on Fire, which celebrates the entrepreneurs, advocates and investors behind D.C.’s growing innovation economy. 50 on Fire is a celebration that recognizes the area’s most influential characters, many of whom lead businesses and have spurred economic development in the region. Organized into nine categories, including marketing, design and tech, the nominees hail from a variety of industries.

 

Here’s the 18 finalists in our lifestyle category:  

 

&pizza – commonly referred to as the “Chipotle of pizza,” this growing restaurant chain has raised more than $15 million in just the last year from private investors. Riding on the wave created by similar fast casual restaurant franchises like sweetgreen, Cava Grill and Chipotle, &Pizza is a staple in D.C.’s food scene.

3 Stars Brewing – located in the Fort Totten area, on the outskirts of D.C. via the green/yellow Metro line, you may be surprised to find a highly decorated brewery with national presence. 3 Stars Brewing Co. is gaining in popularity throughout the local region, where it does a majority of it’s business. The company produces fresh, speciality craft beers on a rotating, seasonal basis, and this year started selling their brews in cans for the first time.

Atlas Brew Works – it’s hard to miss Atlas Brew Works if you’ve been living in the District long. Known by some as the staple craft beer for D.C., much like Sam Adams is for Boston, Atlas is served throughout the city and its brand is easily recognizable. Ivy City is steadily becoming home to a growing brew and distillery scene and Atlas Brew Works is part of this movement towards revitalizing the SE neighborhood.

Cava Grill – “cash, cash, money”… That’s how Cave Grill’s 2015 can be summed up in short. Backed by a number of prominent venture capital firms, including Revolution Growth and Swan & Legend, Cava Grill is part of the exploding fast casual food revolution that’s crashing over the District. The mediterranean food franchise is just getting started though.

CustomInk – CustomInk is a giant in the fuzed tech-enabled fashion space. Over the last several years, the company has continued to expand in both presence and size. They were early to the online, custom t-shirt game and have capitalized off early momentum inspired by a ton of funding from a number of VC firms, including investment via Revolution Growth.

Fishbowl – this Alexandria, Va.-based startup offers online marketing software and services for restaurants. Think of it as data analytics for the restaurant industry. The cloud-based software helps businesses by providing what it calls “predictable sales growth” and to maximize profitable decision-making. Fishbowl currently serves more than 90,000 restaurant locations throughout the U.S.

Galley Foods – Galley Foods is a hot commodity in D.C. right now. The food-tech delivery startup with close ties to tech incubator 1776 has been consistently growing in popularity. After expanding to Baltimore and with plans to further their presence elsewhere, this provider of healthy, on-demand meals (via mobile app) is finding new ways to grow. Their meals are fresh, creative and focused on a healthy living.

Pop! Wed Co. – think what the usual wedding plan schedule is like: you’re probably tired, stressed and annoyed with all the complexities, changes and challenges involved in planning a massive event for family and friends. And in the end, it’s your celebration, so why are you worry about everything? Well, that’s what Pop! Wed Co. hopes to solves. More from our recent story via DC Inno reporter Eric Schwartz.

Power Supply – operating in the same space as Galley Foods but with a different model, Power Supply caters to D.C.’s fit, healthy and active professional class. Their business plan involves selling meal subscription packages with the option of direct pick-ups at prominent local gyms. Earlier this year, the company made several acquisitions to execute a west coast expansion.

Surprise Ride – this D.C. company has long boasted a popular profile after their appearance on CNBC’s hit show Shark Tank. While they did not accept investment via the show, they’ve moved quickly to capture a slice of the valuable children’s toy market. Surprise Ride manages and delivers packages to customers that are filled with games and toys. It’s a prime product for parents looking for a unique and reoccurring gift for young family members. In January, the startup raised a $2 million round led by Qualcomm’s founder Irwin Jacobs.

Sweetgreen – carrying another Chipotle collation much like &Pizza, sweetgreen is the “Chipotle of salad.” They’re a hot brand that’s also expanding nationally and raised a huge round of investment earlier this year. In July, the D.C.-based farm-to-table shop raised $35 million led by T. Rowe Price and with participation from prior investors Revolution Growth.

ThinkFoodGroup (TFG) – Jose Andres may be the name to know when it comes to D.C.’s large food/restaurant profile. He’s the mind behind countless culinary concepts and innovations. TFG, headquartered in D.C., works as the parent organization managing all of Andres’ properties, restaurants and other product distribution efforts. This year the renowned chef launched a new restaurant, China Chilcano, and fast-casual chain Beefsteak.

Tony & Teresa Velazquez, Baked & Wired – this Georgetown staple, family owned coffee shop and bakery is famous both in D.C. and nationally for their fine baked creations and delicious coffee. This year they opened a second location, A Baked Joint, in Mount Vernon with a larger space and sit down meals.

Union Kitchen – District of Columbia’s one-of-a-kind food/chef incubator gives food entrepreneurs the chance to grow their businesses in a new and creative way. The company brings space, tools, mentorship and the environment to cook new meals and try new ideas for aspiring chefs. In September, they opened a new location in Ivy City, with double the square footage of their original space in NoMA.

Union Market – Union Market brings a rotating series of restaurants, culinary champions, merchants and chefs to a farmers market-style space so that guests can try fresh and new creations. It’s all about the open environment, tons of options and a great atmosphere, while promoting the area’s best in food and local products.

UrbanStems – though you may be unfamiliar with UrbanStems, they’re a big force in the area’s flower shop game. In February, just before Valentines Day, they announced a $1.5 million raise led by Middleland Capital. “UrbanStems offers a quick and easy way to order a variety of curated, seasonal bouquets (price varies from about $35 to $55), sending them by bike messenger to your lucky flower recipient. You get a photo of the flowers to prove their arrival and good condition when they arrive, curing one of the big complaints of the flower delivery industry … The success has also driven a greater variety in the flowers, which are shipped up from fair trade farms in Columbia and Ecuador run mostly by women, and housed in storage units in the area in advance of their delivery,” our Eric Schwartz reports.

WeddingWire – WeddingWire’s business falls somewhere between tech and lifestyle, with the core of their products being tied to the purchase of quality wedding services and products. In essence, WeddingWire has established a vibrant, global marketplace, similar to amazon, where customers can more easily find the right service provider for their special day. Whether its a baker, photographer or catering company, WeddingWire works to streamline the search for good services and purchase of them. Earlier this year, the company acquired its largest foreign competitor from Barcelona, Spain.

Zengo Cycle – Zengo, an indoor cycling studio business, currently claims the title of largest cycling boutique franchise in the area, with more than four locations. Founded in Bethesda, Md., in 2011, owner Marc Caputo still leads the business and prides himself on responding directly to customer emails and inquiries, according to The Washingtonian. The company fuzes a traditional cycling experience with a luxury backdrop and quality gym amenities.