How This Fine Dining Chef and Restaurant Owner Built an Emerging Franchise Brand

Grégoire Jacquet has spent the last 20 years watching the Berkeley, California eatery he founded blossom into a well-loved neighborhood food spot where people come for high-quality food in a convenient carry-out setting. The model at Grégoire has worked well for the past two decades, through the 2008 recession and the pandemic, and has afforded Jacquet, an internationally-trained chef from France, to live out the American dream of business ownership. 

“When the pandemic started, restaurants struggled and closed, but we were able to still do business, and we never shut down or even lost money,” said Jacquet. “It made me realize that this was a business model people could rely on — both customers and business owners. I wanted to share that experience, and franchising is a great way.”

Grégoire recently signed its first franchise agreement, and Jacquet is looking forward to bringing more owners who are passionate about providing a quality experience for customers into the system. He has created the model so franchisees do not need to have any kitchen experience; he prefers a “people person who is easy going, wants to be part of the community, loves food and is customer service oriented. I am always interacting with the customers and want other owners to do the same.”

Franchisees can focus their energy on operations and the business as a whole because Jacquet has spent 20 years refining his process. For example, he established a culinary hub kitchen where ingredients will be prepared and delivered daily to the restaurants. 

Jacquet tried out this process for years when he had a second location open in Oakland, and he feels confident the model is ready to roll out to multiple regional franchisees and then eventually grow to have hub kitchens and restaurants in different cities across the country. 

“After closing the Oakland location, I began looking at the business differently. I learned to delegate so I can focus on the business,” said Jacquet. “Deciding that the business was ready to franchise was a big milestone, and I hope to disrupt the industry and change the way people think of franchising being associated with fast food or lower scale food.”

Grégoire’s fine fast-casual concept is unlike any other, and even in the 20 years since opening his location, Jacquet says there are no competitors that come close to their fresh, locally-sourced ingredients and seasonally changing menu items paired with the quick takeout service they offer.

“There is nothing like it out there. From the quality of food for the price and timeliness to the franchise business model, we are in our own category. That’s a very exciting prospect for franchise candidates to take advantage of,” said Jacquet.