Nantucket, Mass. — Oath Pizza, known for serving better-for-you craft pizza at 60 locations throughout the United States, opened its first ghost kitchen on Oct. 16. The pickup and delivery-only location is located at 1308 W. Girard Ave. in Philadelphia. “We are thrilled to open our first-ever ghost kitchen to offer safe and delicious contactless pick-up and delivery options to residents of the Greater Philadelphia area,” says Drew Kellogg, CEO of Oath Pizza. “This opening is one of many unique ways we continue to pivot during these changing times. We’re …
restaurants
Canton, Mass. — Shares of Dunkin’ Brands Group Inc. rose by more than 15% on Oct. 26 as the Massachusetts-based coffee and breakfast chain moved forward with talks to be acquired by Atlanta-based Inspire Brands, the parent company of chains like Arby’s and Jimmy John’s. The New York Post reports that the deal, which would take Dunkin’ private, is valued at $8.8 billion. Dunkin’s stock price closed at $89.80 per share on Oct. 23 and peaked at $104.87 per share in trading on Oct. 26 before closing just below that …
Newport Beach, Calif. — Year-over-year revenue for Chipotle Mexican Grill increased 14.1% to $1.6 billion for third-quarter 2020. Digital sales soared 202.5% to $776.4 million, accounting for 48.8% of sales for the period. The company’s net income was $80.2 million. Despite the sales increase, the net income is a decrease from $98.6 million in third-quarter 2019 as expenses increased during the COVID-19 pandemic. In addition to increased revenue, the Newport Beach-based fast-casual chain opened 44 new restaurants and closed three locations during the third quarter, bringing the total restaurant count …
Bloomington, Ind. — Curry Up Now, an award-winning Indian fast-casual concept, has broken ground on its first Indiana location, which is slated to open in early spring 2021 in Bloomington near Indiana University. This expansion is part of a multi-unit franchise deal for the entire state of Indiana, with plans to grow Curry Up Now in the greater Indianapolis area and expand across the state to additional college towns such as West Lafayette and South Bend, and into suburbs like Fishers and Carmel. “We were attracted to Bloomington from the …
San Diego — QDOBA Mexican Eats®, the largest franchise opportunity in the fast-casual Mexican segment, has introduced new restaurant formats that set the stage for continued growth. QDOBA’s new concepts feature buildouts including mobile-order drive-thrus, walk-up windows, mobile-order pickup lockers, dedicated curbside pickup areas, ghost kitchens and concepts with updated outdoor seating. The new formats come on the heels of a major multi-unit franchise development strategy announced last month that is set to grow the brand to 2,000 units. “Today’s customer wants a frictionless, safe experience and we’re evolving to …
Nashville, Tenn. — Nashville, Tenn.-based Back Yard Burgers opened its new prototype in the greater Charlotte, N.C., area in September and plans to expand with the updated building design. The new interior design brings the outdoor backyard feel indoors with pergolas and an open kitchen that gives guests a better view of their sandwiches being cooked over the open flame with all of the sights, sounds and aromas. More modern exteriors featuring a mix of brick, wood and metal showcase new signage and the new Back Yard Burgers flame logo. …
Scottsdale, Ariz. — As consumers across the country seek dining options to fit their changing habits, P.F. Chang’s is expanding its P.F. Chang’s To Go concept, which is now launching in New York. Now open as of October 19 at 240 W. 40th in New York City, the location marks the first of three P.F. Chang’s To Go openings in New York over the coming weeks. It follows three other openings in Chicago, which launched earlier in 2020. These new restaurant additions will allow more guests to experience P.F. Chang’s …
Glendale, Calif. — IHOP® has expanded its franchisee portfolio with the addition of Suncakes, LLC, led by Guillermo Perales, through the acquisition of 41 IHOP restaurants. The restaurants, located in Tennessee, North Carolina, Virginia and South Carolina, were previously owned and operated by CFRA Holdings and its affiliates and transferred to Suncakes, LLC in July 2020. Financial details of the deal will not be disclosed. The 41 locations represent the first IHOP restaurants managed by Sun Holdings, Inc. Sun has one of the largest restaurant franchisee portfolios in the U.S. …
Jersey City, N.J. and Redlands, Calif. — Imperial Dade, a leading distributor of foodservice packaging and janitorial supplies, has acquired P&R Paper Supply (P&R). The acquisition strengthens Imperial Dade’s West Coast presence while enhancing the company’s differentiated value proposition to customers in the region. The transaction represents the 28th acquisition for Imperial Dade under the leadership of Robert and Jason Tillis, CEO and president of Imperial Dade, respectively. Financial terms of the private transaction were not disclosed. Headquartered in Redlands, Calif., with locations throughout the West, P&R Paper Supply is …
Charlotte, N.C. — Famous Toastery has been one of the fastest growing better-breakfast chains in the U.S. As an early pioneer of the breakfast-and-lunch-only sector, Famous Toastery has made a name for itself by offering all-day breakfast long before the quick-service giants had discovered the sales potential. After starting a franchise program in 2013, the North Carolina-based concept jumped from three to more than 25 stores in just 5 years. “Now, we are accelerating our franchise development efforts again, with the goal of doubling in size over the next 2 …