- Mr. Greek
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MR. GREEK Restaurants Inc. Type Family Industry Restaurants (casual dining) Founded 1988 Headquarters Toronto, Ontario Number of locations 25 (10-Mediterranean Grill locations, 14-Express) Key people George Raios, President & CEO Website http://www.mrgreek.com Mr. Greek is a mediterranean restaurant chain with locations throughout Ontario, Canada. There are two different franchise concepts used by Mr. Greek; Mediterranean Grill and Express.[1] It is a leading restaurant company in Canada as well as the largest and fastest growing Greek Cuisine restaurant franchise in North America.[2]
Contents
History
Mr. Greek began in 1988 when George Raios purchased a small restaurant on Danforth Avenue, in the heart of Toronto’s Greektown. A few important upgrades were made, including menu changes to eliminate MSG and trans fats, and a renovation.
In Toronto, the restaurant's affordable prices and generous plate sizes helped give it notoriety;[3] a feat, considering its flagship location is on a street renowned for its many restaurants.[4]
In 1992, a decision was made to venture outside of the relatively 'safer 'confines of Greektown and open a second Mr. Greek location, in the east end of the city in Scarborough. The success of the Scarborough location was pivotal as it expanded the restaurant's customer base while raising the confidence of management. Spurred by success, and responding to the growing popularity of Mediterranean cuisine, Mr. Greek began franchising in 1993. 1997 saw further innovation from Mr. Greek. The more hurried lifestyles of the ‘90’s led to the launching of Mr. Greek Express – a smaller version of the restaurants, offering an abridged menu, counter service, and takeout – using the slogan Great food for the new generation on the go.® The franchise credits its core values of Quality, Competence, Integrity for the success it has had in the Canadian hospitality industry.
Menu
The Mediterranean Diet is the oldest and healthiest diet in the world.[5] The Mediterranean diet which demands the use of fresh ingredients, emphasizes the use of olive oil when food is fire-grilled. No MSG or tenderizers are used in any of their recipes, and the oil used is trans fat free.
Mr. Greek has been recognized a number of times as one of Toronto's best Greek restaurant including a first place ranking by the Toronto Sun.[6] and "Favourite Family Restaurant”, as voted by their guests.
Expansion plans
Mr.Greek is now expanding throughout the Southern Ontario region and has identified several areas of future development. Brantford, Cambridge, Guelph, Hamilton, Kitchener-Waterloo, Barrie, Markham, Mississauga, Toronto (Downtown), Toronto (West), Toronto (East), Georgetown, Kingston, London, Ottawa, Peterborough, St. Catherines, Stouffville, Wasaga Beach, Windsor.
Helios Foundation
Local community groups, school and charities have benefited from their support through donations and sponsorships.[7]
Helios actively supports charities of all types, with a special emphasis on children’s charities. Fundraising for Helios occurs 365 days a year, with at least three major initiatives per year.
References
- ^ "Ask Mr. Franchise - George Raios (video)". 2010-03-23. http://www.mefeedia.com/watch/29849791.
- ^ "Mr. Greek Says OPA! To Health". November 6, 2006. http://www.crfa.ca/resources/nutritioninformationprogram/news/mr_greek_says_opa_to_health.asp.
- ^ "Richmond Hill Restaurants". 2011. http://richmondhillrestaurants.com/restaurant-mrgreek9218yonge-8566.
- ^ "Metro - Food and drink the order of the day on diverse danforth". March 23, 2010. http://www.metronews.ca/toronto/work/article/484466--food-and-drink-the-order-of-the-day-on-diverse-danforth.
- ^ "The World's Healthiest Cuisine?". http://health.msn.com/health-topics/heart-and-cardiovascular/the-worlds-healthiest-cuisine. Retrieved 2011-07=11.
- ^ "Mr.Greek". 2009-11-26. http://www.torontosun.com/specialsections/readerschoice/foodanddrink/2009/11/25/11922556.html.
- ^ "Adopt-A-Wish Sponsor: MR. GREEK". 2009-08-07. http://www.makeawish.ca/application/uploads/contents/mrgreek_tyler.pdf.
External links
Categories:- Companies based in Toronto
- Restaurant chains in Canada
- Franchises
- Fast-food franchises
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