Houston — Atlanta-based Tin Drum Asian Kitchen, a Pan-Asian restaurant that transports its guests to a street side café in Asia, complete with hawker style cuisine and atmosphere, will open the first of five restaurants in Houston this year. Tin Drum has tapped experienced Houston restaurateurs Shairoz Lakhani, Avez Maredia and Faizan Momin to own and operate the five units in the Houston area. They are currently identifying potential locations and plan to open by early 2020.
Spouses Lakhani and Maredia currently own and operate three Wingstop restaurants in Texas with two more under construction. After turning around a Wingstop in Wichita Falls, Texas, the couple were approached by the brand to grow their Wing Stop franchise to three units. Now, along with Momin, they are expanding their business to add a fast-casual restaurant, Tin Drum.
“Houston is one of the most culturally diverse cities in the country with diners who crave international flavors,” says Steven Chan, Tin Drum founder and CEO. “Shairoz, Avez and Faizan are the perfect owners to help us grow our brand. They are quality young entrepreneurs who have been diehard fans of Tin Drum since the beginning. Their combination of operational experience and ability to understand our customer make them the perfect team for our Houston debut.”
Lakhani comes from a restaurant family who grew up learning and appreciating the restaurant business. Throughout her childhood, her father Aziz Lakhani, owned more than 30 restaurants during his career, including major brands like Dunkin’, Popeyes, Ginger’s casual dining and more.
Lakhani, Maredia and Momin discovered Tin Drum while they were students in Atlanta at Emory University and Georgia State University, respectively, where the restaurant made its debut in Atlanta more than 15 years ago.
In addition to growth throughout Georgia, Tin Drum is actively looking for owners in other cities in Texas, Tennessee, Alabama, North Carolina, South Carolina and Florida. Tin Drum will open its first location in the Savannah, Ga., area in 2019.
The restaurant’s franchise growth is backed by the private equity firm BIP Capital, majority owner of Tropical Smoothie, who has invested more than $250 million in emerging, high-growth brands across the franchising, software, technology and consumer products industries. BIP Capital leverages its leadership team’s deep franchise experience to help emerging brands accelerate growth.
With 11 locations throughout metro Atlanta, Tin Drum Asian Kitchen Tin Drum innovates the Asian food experience. Inspired by music and life around Asian curbside cafés, the menu packs bold flavors into dishes prepared in an open kitchen. For more information, visit www.TinDrumFranchise.com or www.tindrumasiankitchen.com.
SOURCE: Tin Drum Asian Kitchen