News

VooDoo BBQ enters Florida market

September 6, 2011

VooDoo BBQ & Grill Franchise is taking its mojo to Florida, signing a 26-location agreement in Florida that will double the Louisiana-based company's locations.

The Florida franchisee is BBQ Boyz LLC, owned and operated by friends and neighbors Jack and Ilene Flechner, Fred Burgess and Joe and Barbara Sloboda in Broward County, Fla.

Their first restaurant will open in Miami within eight months. The territory encompasses most of Florida and will have locations in Miami, Fort Lauderdale, Orlando, Tampa, St. Petersburg and Jacksonville.

"For us, this is absolutely huge," said VooDoo CEO Tony Avila. "We're establishing a large footprint in the nation's fourth-most-populous state. I think years from now, we'll look back at this agreement with BBQ Boyz as a monumental moment for VooDoo BBQ."

BBQ Boyz plans to open 13 restaurants in the next five years and 26 units within a decade. The deal is the largest in VooDoo's nine-year history. Recent expansion has boosted the company's total number of scheduled openings to 41.

"There are good barbecue places down in Florida," Flechner said. "VooDoo is different in that it's fast casual rather than the kind of mom-and-pop shack or the much larger sit-down restaurants that are prevalent. I think VooDoo is really well situated to fill a niche in between."

VooDoo specializes in competition-style barbecue and serves unique, chef-designed side dishes atypical for barbecue restaurants, such as corn pudding, Gris Gris greens and sweet potato soufflé.

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