restaurants

Santa Monica, Calif. — A rapidly growing international fast-casual concept, Poke House, has invested in Sweetfin, a leader of the poke bowl and plant-based bowl category in the United States. The partnership plans to bring 80 additional openings to Europe and the U.S. in 2022. With its investment in Sweetfin, Poke House becomes the largest investor of the chef-driven, California-inspired poke concept. The European foodtech company already boasts more than 75 restaurants in Italy, France, Portugal, Spain and the United Kingdom. The partnership brings the group’s location total to 90. …

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Irving, Texas — Mongolian Concepts, the powerhouse management group behind three renowned create-your-own bowl brands — Genghis Grill, FlatTop Grill and bd’s Mongolian Grill — has promoted industry vet Lori Cominsky to vice president of operations and training. She’ll play a pivotal role in the continued success and growth of the Mongolian Concepts brands. “We are thrilled about the new leadership team we’re putting together, and what this means for Mongolian Concepts,” says Gregg Majewski, CEO of Mongolian Concepts. “2022 is going to be a great year for us as …

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Irvine, Calif. — Wienerschnitzel, the world’s largest hot dog franchise, has signed an exclusive development agreement with Tejas Dogs, LLC, to build 20 new Wienerschnitzel restaurants throughout Arkansas over the next 12 years. The Tejas Dogs agreement follows a separate 20-unit announcement by the brand in 2020 to develop throughout Louisiana and paves the way for Wienerschnitzel to further expand its iconic quick-service footprint throughout Southern and Midwestern states. There are already plans to begin building three stores in northwest Arkansas to jumpstart the development schedule. “With personal roots in …

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Glendale, Calif. — Dine Brands International plans to open its first IHOP® in Nassau, The Bahamas, in late 2022 through an agreement with Bahamas Limited, which also calls for 16 IHOP restaurant openings in the Caribbean over the next few years. “We are excited to bring IHOP to the English-speaking Caribbean islands. We’ve seen success in Puerto Rico and believe guests in this new market are sure to fall in love with the brand’s world-famous pancakes and familiar comfort foods,” says William Urrego, regional vice president of franchise operations, Dine …

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Dallas — Bonchon, a popular global restaurant concept known for its flavorful Korean fried chicken, is celebrating a year filled with new market expansion and growth, positive sales figures, a new fast-casual model and two decades in business. First establishing itself in the U.S. in 2006, Bonchon is heading into 2022 with rapid franchise growth plans to add 30 new locations with the help of multi-unit operators in thoughtfully selected growth markets. The brand has confirmed new development agreements covering Illinois, Colorado, Maryland, North Carolina, Florida, New York, Minnesota, Tennessee …

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Fort Worth, Texas — Chill-N Nitrogen Ice Cream (Chill-N), the made-to-order nitrogen ice cream pioneer, is planning the construction and buildout of its first-ever store in Texas. The new Fort Worth Chill-N is set to open in the next several months at 2473 South Hulen St. in the Stonegate Crossing shopping plaza just down from Trader Joe’s. The new store is owned and operated by local resident and entrepreneur Harold Gernsbacher. “We’re ice cream, yogurt, alternative milk and toppings loving locals that live and breathe Fort Worth,” says Gernsbacher. “I …

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Fayetteville, Ark. — Slim Chickens made brand history in 2021 by closing out the year with more signed development deals and openings than ever before. The past year, the brand celebrated a number of milestones including its 150th store opening, entered 65 new markets with development deals and had close to 40 openings. It also inked 350 signed agreements, bringing the total units in development to 750. On top of the rapid franchise growth, Slim Chickens also had a 25% positive comp store sales growth — in fact, the brand …

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Toronto — Redberry Restaurants has promoted Christian Racine to the position of chief operation officer (COO), effective immediately. He will provide companywide leadership to the Operations, Marketing and Development teams, as well as provide his vision and guidance on Redberry’s strategic direction. “Christian is a passionate QSR veteran who is uniquely qualified to help Redberry achieve its vision to be Canada’s largest and fastest growing multi-unit QSR Franchisee,” says Ken Otto, CEO of Redberry Restaurants. “This announcement is a testament to Christian’s breadth of knowledge and commitment to excellence. We …

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San Francisco — SpotOn, a leading software and payments provider, has added three new executives in the roles of chief financial officer, chief people officer and chief revenue officer. The appointments come on the heels of more than 100% year-over-year growth in 2021, two major acquisitions, $425 million in new funding at a valuation of $3.15 billion, and the addition of hundreds of new employees to support customer demand. The three appointments also follow a year of major new product introductions in the restaurant and retail industries. Lisa Banks joins …

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Redwood City, Calif. — Presto, a leader in the restaurant hospitality technology industry, has been selected by Checkers Drive-In Restaurants, Inc., the operator of Checkers & Rally’s drive-thrus, as the exclusive provider of automated voice ordering for all its corporate-owned drive-thru restaurants. The announcement marks the largest and first of its kind rollout of an A.I.-based voice assistant solution in the hospitality industry. Designed to help restaurants maximize labor efficiency, Presto’s next generation solutions help improve order accuracy, increase upsells and provide a superior guest experience. The Presto systems are …

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