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FREEMONT, CA (Tuesday, May 08, 2007) - The Canadians are coming, claiming to bring healthy food with them. Extreme Pita, a restaurant franchise from Toronto, is moving into the Bay Area, opening two shops so far and promising to open as many as 40 in the next five years.
The Northern California territory has been sold to a franchisee investor who is looking for franchisees to open stores locally. Ray Zandi, formerly of Fremont and now of New Mexico, is that man.
"When I heard about Extreme Pita, I wanted to buy into it immediately," he said. "It was fresh new concept and it was healthy."
Zandi, under the corporate name DesertBay Development, has been the operator and franchisee of Quiznos and Subway stores, as well.
He gave up most of his Quiznos investments and all of his Subway interests when he invested in the Canadian chain, which expanded into this country in 2005.
Extreme Pita's products emphasize health by offering fresh fast food, assembled from local growers and suppliers. Its outlets offer the consumer a combination of attractions. First, customers can have it their way. Customers walk up to a cafeteria-style food bar and can order exactly the content and condiments they want wrapped in their pita sandwich. Sandwich options range from tuna, steak and ham to vegetarian options, including falafel and hummus, among other choices.
Second, the consumers know the nutritional components of every item on the menu, down to the gram. For example, the small grilled chicken pita sandwich has 253 calories, 22.7 grams of protein, 2.3 grams of total fat, 0.6 grams saturated fat, no trans fat, 38.6 grams of carbohydrates, 6.5 grams of fiber and 728 milligrams of sodium, according to the menu. For the regular size, those figures are bumped up at least 10 percent.
Prices range from $3.99 for a veggie pita, the most economical item on the menu, to $7.99 for a double Philly cheese steak.
Much of the company's image is based on avoiding trans fat. Its menu instructs the consumer how to avoid trans fat in constructing a sandwich.
Richard Martin, West Coast-based executive editor of Nation's Restaurant News, an industry magazine, said Extreme Pita offers an attractive alternative for consumers.
"Besides the good-for-you angle . . . the open-table format where you pick and choose is extremely efficacious," he said. "The customer is involved in customizing his food. The customer has confidence that his food is being assembled the way he wants it and that it is fresh."
Extreme Pita started a decade ago in Ontario, Canada, opened by two brothers next to a university, a captive clientele.
"It was a monstrous success," Zandi said.
A member of the International Franchise Association, the chain ranked 172 among Entrepreneur magazine's top 500 businesses for 2007.
It now claims more than 200 stores, including 20 in the U.S. Besides the stores in Fremont and San Jose, six more are in development in Northern California and are expected to open this year. Southern California has three open with three more opening this year.
Zandi bought territorial development rights for Northern California from San Luis Obispo to Oregon, but said he'll concentrate on the Bay Area.
Farid Saalabi is the franchisee for the recently opened store at Auto Mall Parkway and Hugo Terrace in Fremont. He also has signed on to open three new stores and he's looking for sites in San Jose and Sunnyvale.
Although he also operates a Domino's Pizza operation, Saalabi said he was drawn to Extreme Pita.
"I like the freshness, I like its image, and I like new challenges," he said.
Zandi and his partner, Dino Nomicos, vice president of operations, train new franchisees in DesertBay Development's corporate office in San Jose.
"In the next four to five years, I hope to open 40 stores, mostly in the Bay Area," Zandi said.
Without providing many details, Zandi said new stores are under construction in the San Ramon Valley area and Modesto, and DesertBay Development partners are also negotiating with a franchise possibility on the Peninsula. The partners also are looking at another store in the Fremont-Union City area.
A Bay Area franchisee can look to pay between $156,000 and $266,000, with $20,000 up front, to open a new store, depending on location, Zandi said.
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