Image from I_M_BonBon's Flickr stream
Who says you need to sell tangy froyo or pocky for world domination. We found a press release that says Jeff Weinstein, owner of The Counter in Santa Monica, has more than 95 Counter restaurants scheduled to open across the country over the next three years. His build-your-own-burger concept opened near the SM airport in 2003, and everyone from GQ's Alan Richman to Oprah's gal-pal Gayle raved about the goods. (Others... not so much.) Since appearing on "The Oprah Winfrey Show," Weinstein's people say sales went through the roof. The burger proliferation will be aggressive:
The Counter recently opened the first franchised location in Palo Alto. Twelve to fifteen restaurants are expected to open in 2007, followed by 20 to 25 in 2008. Long-range projections call for as many as 400 to 600 U.S. locations.Weinstein hooked up with Craig Albert, who's repsonsible for franchising Tacone and City Kitchen. Weinstein aslo plans to infiltrate the media market and launch an online magazine called "The Counter Culture" in 2007.
· The Counter Has Over 95 Restaurants Under Development [PR.com]
· The Counter on Oprah [Chowhound]
