In mid-March, franchisee Matt D’Alessio and business partner Laurence Wintersteen opened their second Amsterdam Falafelshop in the Boston area. It opened on Beacon St. in the Kenmore Square area. The partners opened their first unit on Elm St. in Davis Square in the Somerville area in mid-2012 and are planning to continue expansion throughout the Boston area targeting such student-populated markets. This latest quick casual restaurant is the Washington DC-based chain’s seventh location and the franchise chain has several more locations under development. Franchise and multi-unit agreements are currently in place for about 18 locations, including the seven already open. The company is focusing its expansion primarily on the East Coast though urban locations in other select markets are also considered. As example, construction is just underway on a location in Dallas, Texas that will open in the Spring. Husband and wife team Scott and Arianne Bennett opened the first Amsterdam Falafelshop in 2004 in Washington DC modeled after the Middle Eastern-style street food they encountered on business trips to Europe. The concept is built on a simple menu of falafels and the customer can modify the dish to taste by adding several sauces and toppings. The falafels are served as a sandwich or in a bowl along with the Dutch-style double fried fries. The Bennetts are now sourcing qualified franchisees to develop the larger markets in the Northeast, Southeast, Eastern Seaboard as well as the Midwest areas. The units target high traffic and highly visible sites in the 1300 to 1700 square foot range. Currently there are restaurants in Maryland, Massachusetts, Virginia and Washington DC.
CATEGORY: Quick Casual
Chain Name: Amsterdam Falafelshop
Company Name: Amsterdam Falafelshops Inc.
Street Address: 2425 – 18th St. NW, Washington DC 20009
Tel: 202/468-6489 & 888/788-7771 (franchising) Fax:
Email: Website: www.falafelshop.com
Menu Specialty: Falafel sandwiches & bowls with various toppings and sauces along with Dutch-style double fried fries.
Introduced: Introduced by Arianne and Scott Bennett in the Adams Morgan area of Washington DC in 2004 and franchising since 2010.
No. of Locations: Seven in Maryland, Massachusetts, Virginia and Washington DC.
Areas of Operation: National, presently targeting the Northeast, Southeast, Eastern Seaboard and Midwest.
Types of Location: Street Front
BusinessType (corp., franchise, jv): Franchises
Size Req’d: 1300 to 1700 sq.ft.
Special Requirements (patio, drive-thru, etc):
Contact Name: Scott Bennett – Chairman of the Board ([email protected])
Arianne Bennett – President, CEO ([email protected])
Richard J. Sharoff – Exec Vice President, Franchising ([email protected])
Chris DeLuca – Director, Construction
REAL ESTATE REPRESENTATIVES:
FRANCHISE REPRESENTATIVES:
PARENT COMPANY: Amsterdam Falafelshops Inc., Washington DC
Related Chains:
Last Report: Restaurant & QSR Expansion Report #132 Last Update:
NOTES, NAMES & NUMBERS: