Nashville, Tenn. — Back Yard Burgers has opened its new prototype and restaurant of the future in Gulfport, Miss. The new restaurant, which is owned by Back Yard Burgers’ largest franchise partner, Ridgeland, Miss.-based Resolute Brands LLC, is the first to feature the new Back Yard Burgers logo, exterior and interior signage, interior color scheme and décor, open kitchen design, furnishings, outdoor patio and more.
restaurants
Dallas — Pie Five Pizza Co. will enter Knoxville, Tenn., with the opening of its newest restaurant on October 21, 2016. Located at 9313 Kingston Pike, the opening marks the first Pie Five location in Knoxville and the eighth opened by veteran Applebee’s franchisees Fred Gustin and Kurt Guttshall.
Dallas — Twin Peaks has agreed to sell a majority interest in the company to its largest franchise group, Atlanta-based La Cima Restaurants, which currently owns and operates 15 Twin Peaks sports lodges across six southern states. Terms of the acquisition were not disclosed.
Jackson, Miss. — On October 10, 2016, Newk’s Eatery will be moving onto the Palm Beach, Fla., dining scene. Opening in Palm Beach Gardens’ Legacy Place, the area’s first Newk’s restaurant will be the first of 10 Newk’s Eateries planned for Southeastern Florida.
Honolulu and Glendale, Calif. — Applebee’s® Grill and Bar began with a single restaurant in suburban Atlanta in 1980. Today it has more than 2,000 locations in 49 states, two U.S. territories and 17 countries, but there has never been a location in Hawaii — until now.
Auburn, Ala. — Chicken Salad Chick, a Southern-inspired, fast-casual chicken salad restaurant concept, will be expanding in Tennessee with its first location in the Nashville market in Murfreesboro. The new restaurant will open on October 11, 2016. This company-owned location marks the third Chicken Salad Chick restaurant in Tennessee.
Dallas — Rave Restaurant Group, Inc., the parent company of Pie Five Pizza Co. and Pizza Inn, has hired Brett Heinen as the new director of franchise development. In this role, Heinen will be tasked with maintaining a robust development pipeline for both Pie Five and Pizza Inn as the brands look to expand in new and existing markets across the country.