Everyone wishes they had gotten in on the ground floor of Facebook, Uber and other skyrocketing startups, and for good reason. Here's the breakdown of a few restaurants that have taken off over the 10-year stretch from 2004 to 2014, and how much cash you could have if you invested just $10k in them.
Chipotle

Percent Growth: 1454.3%
10-Year Value Of Your $10k: $155,430
The king of fast-casual [CMG] may be struggling to recover from E. Coli outbreaks, but unless its stock falls pretty seriously, your $10k cleaned up nicely.
Buffalo Wild Wings
Percent Growth: 924.08%
10-Year Value Of Your $10k: $102,400
This sports bar has taken off over 10 years, with shares hotter than their "blazin'" wing sauce. BWW [BWLD] would have probably been a better $10k investment than your March Madness bracket.
McDonald's
Percent Growth: 365.89%
10-Year Value Of Your $10k: $46,590
Mickey D's has been filling its coffers pretty heavily over the past 10 years. It had seen something of a downturn recently, although, with changes like all-day breakfast, the fast food chain has been turning itself around. McDonald's [MCD] even looked into monetizing its real estate recently, but shareholders ended up not lovin' the McREIT.
Starbucks
Percent Growth: 290.9%
10-Year Value Of Your $10k: $39,090
The Seattle coffee chain [SBUX] has seriously ramped up its operations over that 10-year period, more than doubling its locations. And recently, it's included giving its employees the chance to take paid-for undergraduate classes.
Popeyes
Percent Growth: 110%
10-Year Value Of Your $10k: $21,040
The most modest gain on this list is nothing to shake a drumstick at—investing in Popeyes [PLKI] in 2004 would've more than doubled your money. The South's renowned chicken joint is making efforts recently to improve its customer service.











