News

Burger 21 will plant flag in Chicago

November 3, 2014

Burger 21 has signed a franchise agreement to develop its first restaurant in Chicagoland, marking the brand's entry into Illinois. Additionally, the company signed a franchise deal for the development of one restaurant in Dallas.

According to a news release, Burger 21 currently has 15 open locations and more than 20 franchised restaurants in development across the country.

"We are thrilled to announce the signing of these new franchise agreements that will bring our chef-inspired brand to Dallas and Chicagoland for the very first time," President Mark Johnston said in a news release. "With the development of these new restaurants, we see great potential to further expand the brand's footprint in both Texas and Illinois. We look forward to building on this momentum as we continue to drive our national expansion efforts across the country."

Ed Karayanes and Art Chmiel bring years of multi-nit restaurant operations experience with McDonald's and plan to develop the first Illinois restaurant in the Rosemont area of Chicagoland, which is expected to open by fall 2015.

Additionally, Ken and Chantrell Goodgames plan to develop their Burger 21 location in the Irving-Las Colinas area of Dallas. Ken will oversee the restaurant's daily operations when it opens in the latter half of 2015. The franchisees plan to open additional locations in the Dallas market throughout the next few years. Earlier this year, the brand inked a franchise deal with another franchise group to bring its first Texas restaurant to Austin, which is expected to open by summer 2015.