Ker’s WingHouse Bar & Grill, a Largo, Fla.-based sports-themed wing and casual dining restaurant chain founded by Florida Gator and National Football League (NFL) veteran Crawford Ker, announced it boosted 2012 revenue by approximately three percent with long-term investments in technology and menu engineering to help attract and retain customers. New digital menu boards along with Philly cheese steak wraps, spinach salads, honey mustard grilled chicken sandwiches, and grilled shrimp wraps, among other items, were introduced to drive guest counts and engage customers throughout the dining experience.
“Technology and menu engineering can be a real point of differentiation in the restaurant industry,” says Ker, CEO and founder of Ker’s WingHouse Bar & Grill. “By staying ahead of the curve in an increasingly competitive casual dining market, WingHouse will continue to deliver on its vision of great value and deliciously oversized classic American sports bar comfort food.”
In 2013, WingHouse plans to add three to five additional restaurants across Florida beginning with construction on a new location in Wesley Chapel, Fla., which is slated to open by mid-March. Last year, WingHouse launched an aggressive growth initiative to bring its wings, burgers, sandwiches and salads to more cities across Florida starting with Gainesville, where Ker’s football career began its rise as a member of the vaunted University of Florida Gators football team.
“We are excited to bring our extensive sports bar themed menu across Florida to feed the demand for a better, more casual and craveable dining experience,” adds Ker. “While there are other places to catch a game, WingHouse provides guests that game-day experience without the game-day price.”
As part of its planned growth, WingHouse also recently added industry expert Rick Akam to its management team as chief operating officer. Akam has extensive experience in restaurant operations and spent nearly 20 years as president and CEO of Hooters of America.
Since its inception, WingHouse’s mission has been to be “Brilliant on the Basics.” A full liquor sports bar, fantastic chicken wings, and award-winning hot sauces served up by the famous WingHouse girls, set the restaurants apart from the competition. Emphasizing fresh products over frozen, WingHouse’s oversized portions and classic American fare include other signature items such as skinless drumettes, naked wings, the Dallas burger, and a new drink menu.
WingHouse has 21 locations throughout Florida in Altamonte Springs, Bradenton, Brandon, Clearwater, Daytona Beach, Gainesville, Kissimmee, Lakeland, Largo, New Port Richey, Ocala, Orlando, Palm Harbor, Pinellas Park, Sanford, St. Petersburg, Tampa, and Winter Park.
WingHouse is currently seeking candidates to open additional franchise locations throughout Florida. This is an opportunity for interested and experienced multi-unit operators with a net worth of $1.5 million and $600,000 in liquid assets. Single-unit developers are required to possess $750,000 in liquid assets and a net worth of $1.5 million. For more information about franchise opportunities, please visit www.winghousefranchising.com.
