Walk-On's Sports Bistreaux has released additional details about the streamlined restaurant prototype it first announced in August, explaining how the smaller format is intended to function for operators and franchisees. The first store built to the new design is scheduled to open early next year at 8150 Perkins Road in Baton Rouge, Louisiana.
The "next-generation sports bar model" was created by Livit, a Madrid-based restaurant design firm, and is intended for stores between 3,500 and 4,500 square feet. According to the company, the aim is to help operators maximize space, improve operations and create a more engaging guest experience. A traditional Walk-On's spans 7,000 to more than 8,000 square feet, while the upcoming Baton Rouge location is approximately 3,688 square feet and will seat 125 guests.
Equipment and layout changes
In the back of house, new clamshell griddles are among the added equipment. The company says these are intended to simplify training, improve consistency and reduce ticket times without losing the ability to serve the full Walk-On's menu.
In the front of house, the bar remains the center of the restaurant, using a peninsula-style configuration that can adapt to different layouts. Pickup cubbies positioned near the hostess stand are designed to fill off-premise orders without disrupting restaurant flow.
A flexible "kit of parts"
Instead of one fixed layout, the new design is built as a flexible "kit of parts," allowing franchisees to select or add key elements based on their market, site and personal preference, according to the release.
The prototype builds on lessons from Walk-On's existing restaurants, including its 3,700-square-foot location at The Battery in Atlanta. That store showed the brand can deliver its full menu and sports-bar experience in a more compact, inline format, and Walk-On's is applying those learnings to a purpose-built prototype meant to give franchisees more options.
Company perspective
"We wanted to rethink what the Walk-On's experience can look like without losing what makes us Walk-On's," said Brandon Landry, CEO and co-founder of Walk-On's Sports Bistreaux. "The new design gives our franchisees more flexibility in where and how they build, while keeping the energy, hospitality and community connection our guests know and love."
Walk-On's was founded in 2003 in Baton Rouge by LSU Basketball walk-ons Landry and Jack Warner. The brand now has more than 80 locations nationwide.