New gourmet-burger player

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This article was published 05/05/2016 (3478 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Mooyah Burgers, Fries & Shakes is the latest gourmet-burger chain to wade into the local fast-food fray with today’s opening of a restaurant on Kenaston Boulevard.

Although the nine-year-old Plano, Texas-based chain has nearly 100 outlets, its new restaurant at 1765 Kenaston Blvd. is only its third in Canada.

The outlet is owned by Winnipeg’s Dhillon family — Rajpal and Pim Dhillon and their daughter, Rubina — also owns 10 Subway restaurants in the province.

Rubina Dhillon said in an interview if all goes well, the family hopes to open up to seven Mooyah Burgers outlets in the city over the next three to five years. After that, they may also look at expanding into some rural Manitoba centres.

“But right now, our focus is on Winnipeg,” she added.

In the Winnipeg market, Mooyah Burgers will be duking it out with two other U.S.-based gourmet-burger chains — Five Guys Burgers & Fries and Fatburger — and a number of locally owned gourmet-burger restaurants such as Nuburger and Boon Burger.

They’ll also be going up against other more traditional burger combatants such as McDonald’s, Wendy’s and Burger King, as well a host of independent players such as Mrs. Mike’s, V.J.’s Drive Inn and Dairi-Wip.

“They’re also cutting into the fast-casual category,” which includes pizza, fried chicken and subway-style sandwiches,  said Ken Yee, a retail-leasing specialist and senior vice-president of the Winnipeg office of Cushman & Wakefield.

Yee and Chad Falk, executive director of the Manitoba Restaurant and Foodservices Association, said while the fast-casual segment  is getting crowded, there’s still room for another gourmet-burger specialist such as Mooyah Burgers.

“It’s a very interesting evolution of the (fast-casual-food) market, and it’s interesting because it gives the customers a better choice of selection,” Yee said. “That’s the good part.” 

But while there’s room for another player such as Mooyah Burgers, Yee said if the Dhillons open up to seven restaurants and the other existing players also add a few more outlets, that may discourage other gourmet-burger chains from entering the Winnipeg market.

“We’re kind of reaching that critical-mass point,” he explained. “Just from a market-share perspective, they might think twice about coming here.”

But Falk said if they offer something unique or different, there still could be room for them.

“I think there’s always room for good, healthy competition, and I think Winnipeggers are always hungry for something that’s different or unique. So whether it’s a new U.S. brand or a new made-in-Manitoba brand, or whatever it is, I think we’re always looking… to try something new.”

‘I think there’s always room for good, healthy competition, and I think Winnipeggers are always hungry for something that’s different or unique’– Cam Falk, executive director of the Manitoba Restaurant and Foodservices Association 

Yee said gourmet-burger meals tend to cost about $3 more than a mainstream burger meal. But he and Falk think there are consumers who are willing to pay more if the quality is there or there’s something unique about the product.

“I think consumers are almost expecting that these days and are looking forward to that,” Falk added.

Rubina Dhillon said Mooyah Burgers’ products include beef, turkey and veggie burgers on freshly baked buns, with a wide assortment of cheeses and toppings from which to choose. The milk shakes are 100 per cent ice cream shakes, and the french fries are hand-cut in the store, washed six times to remove most of the starch, power-fried for three minutes then allowed to cool for 24 hours before being deep-fried and served.

“You get a lighter, crisper fry if you wait until the next day. And it has a really distinct taste,” she said. 

“I have a whole new appreciation for french fries now,” she added with a laugh. “It’s not just pulling them out of the freezer and throwing them in a deep fryer.”

murray.mcneill@freepress.mb.ca