Auntie Anne's, Chicago

In 1988, Auntie Anne's founders, Anne and Jonas Beiler, purchased a Pennsylvania farmers-market stand, where they experimented with dough until they created a pretzel that seemed to strike the perfect chord with their customers. Today, at more than 1,600 locations worldwide, pretzel makers still hand roll the original recipe, but Auntie Anne's has added to the menu with inventive options, such as the pepperoni pretzel and eight signature dipping sauces. The team constantly explores new uses for the pretzel dough, such as wrapping it around hot dogs, slicing it into bite-size nuggets, or stuffing it with bacon and cheese. To transform the snack into a meal, they accompany it with specialty drinks, including frozen lemonade mixers.

When not twisting dough, Auntie Anne's partners with Alex’s Lemonade Stand Foundation to fight childhood cancer. Since 2011, Auntie Anne’s has donated more than $2.4 million to the organization, funding more than 48,000 hours of research.