Eat Up Canada Inc. is sharpening its growth strategy by exiting two restaurant concepts it founded and concentrating on expanding a pair of master franchise brands it believes offer stronger national scaling potential.
George Heos, CEO and co-founder of Eat Up Canada, said the decision reflects a deliberate shift toward building platforms that can grow quickly across the country rather than operating a small number of standalone locations.
“We just didn’t think that there was enough of a lane for us to really expand those quickly across the country,” Heos said in an interview. “We didn’t want to be operators of a handful of locations. Our model is to successfully grow brands across Canada.”
Strategic brand reset
Heos said Eat Up Canada has exited its involvement with Bombay Frankies and is in the process of exiting Mighty Bird through a combination of closures and sales. Both brands were founded by the company, but leadership concluded that capital and operational focus would be better deployed elsewhere.
The move leaves the company concentrating on two key concepts — Pokeworks, where Eat Up Canada serves as the master franchisee for Canada, and Playa Bowls a more recent addition to its portfolio.
The company has built eight Pokeworks restaurants in Canada over the past two years and is planning to open between four and six additional locations this year.
Heos said the Playa Bowls agreement, signed several months ago, represents a longer-term national growth opportunity. The master franchise arrangement covers the potential development of up to 160 locations across Canada.
Two corporate-owned Playa Bowls restaurants are currently under construction in the Greater Toronto Area, with the first expected to open at The Well development in downtown Toronto in early May. A second location is being built in Etobicoke near CF Sherway Gardens.
Beyond corporate stores, the company is also working with franchise partners to bring additional locations to markets including Vaughan, Ottawa and Halifax, with a target of opening four to five units this year.
Execution over expansion pace
Heos said Eat Up Canada’s strategy is rooted in experience scaling restaurant brands, citing the company’s earlier effort bringing Firehouse Subs into Canada.
“We opened 50 locations in six years,” he said. “We sold that business and then started these other businesses.”
He added that while industry attention often focuses on branding, real estate and menu innovation, sustained success in the restaurant sector depends on consistent operational execution.
“At the end of the day it really comes down to execution day in, day out,” Heos said. “Sometimes that’s the forgotten ingredient in business, especially in the restaurant business.”
The company places a strong emphasis on customer experience, tailoring operations to the different expectations of dine-in, takeout and delivery customers. Order accuracy and service consistency are critical factors in maintaining guest loyalty, he said.
“Nothing annoys somebody more than waiting for their product at home and it shows up and it’s not what they ordered,” Heos said. “If they’re coming into the location, it’s about making them feel special.”
He suggested that service standards across the industry declined during the COVID-19 pandemic and have not fully recovered, creating an opportunity for operators who prioritize hospitality.
“Service levels have dropped off,” he said. “It was magnified during COVID, and people used it as an excuse to provide poor service.”
Industry outlook and brand positioning
Despite ongoing economic uncertainty, Heos said he remains optimistic about the restaurant sector’s ability to absorb new entrants — provided they maintain clear positioning and disciplined growth plans.
“There’s always room for new brands — but new brands that really know what they stand for,” he said. “They don’t try to be everything to everybody.”
He pointed to Playa Bowls as an example of a concept with a defined identity and strong consumer appeal. The brand combines a health-focused menu with a distinctive atmosphere designed to create a positive in-store experience, he said.
“We were drawn to it because it’s kind of an interesting mix between great taste and a healthy-focused menu,” Heos said. “There’s this vibrant energy that the brand has. When you walk into Playa Bowls, a smile comes up on your face.”
He added that the brand’s rapid expansion in other markets demonstrates the potential for similar growth in Canada. The brand was started by a couple of surfers.
For Eat Up Canada, the immediate focus remains on building out its current portfolio and supporting franchise partners as new locations come online.
“We’re very bullish on our businesses because we think they’re in the right category and we think we can execute,” Heos said.
As the company advances its expansion plans, Heos said maintaining operational discipline and guest satisfaction will remain central to its national growth ambitions.
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