Perkins Griddle & Go Makes US Debut in New Jersey

Perkins Griddle & Go opened its first US restaurant in Flemington, New Jersey, on 19 October 2026, bringing a new counter-service breakfast format to the American franchise community. The debut follows a Canadian pilot and comes with 46 franchise locations already committed across New Jersey — a development pipeline secured before the concept began serving US customers.

A new format for an established name

The opening takes the Perkins name into a different style of restaurant from the full-service family dining format on which its reputation was built. Developed by parent company Perkins American Food Co., Griddle & Go uses counter service and a shorter menu centred on breakfast and brunch, positioning the concept between quick-service and casual dining.

That distinction matters when considering the launch. Flemington is the first US restaurant for Griddle & Go, rather than the American debut of Perkins itself. Perkins Restaurant & Bakery was founded in 1958 and became known for its breakfast platters and made-from-scratch pies.

The new concept therefore combines an established brand name with a format that is only now beginning its US operating history. Brand familiarity and experience running the traditional Perkins restaurant are part of its background, but the counter-service proposition represents a separate test of customer demand.

New Jersey commitments precede the opening

New Jersey is the centre of the initial US development programme. An initial 10-unit agreement was signed in late 2024, as reported by Restaurant Dive. Subsequent agreements expanded the state's committed footprint to 46 locations, according to reporting by NJ Biz and Chain Store Age.

The franchisee groups involved include the Lahara family operation, which signed one of the early multi-unit agreements. Those commitments were made before franchisees could observe customer demand at an operating US Griddle & Go restaurant.

The distinction between commitments and openings is important: the figure of 46 represents the development pipeline, not a network of 46 trading restaurants. The Flemington opening marks the start of the concept's US restaurant operations.

No other state has publicly announced a comparable development pipeline for the brand. That gives the New Jersey launch particular significance as the first operating reference point for a concept with multiple franchise locations already under contract in the same state.

Canadian pilot provided the starting point

Griddle & Go's first location opened in Canada in November 2024. Data from that pilot supported the US franchise rollout now under way in New Jersey.

The sequence gives the concept an operating history before its American launch, while leaving an important distinction between the two markets. The Canadian restaurant provided a basis for development; Flemington now begins the process of establishing a US trading record.

The launch also follows an earlier restructuring of the wider Perkins business. Perkins Restaurant & Bakery filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in May 2019, citing declining same-store sales and rising operating costs. It emerged from that process later the same year with a restructured balance sheet and more than 280 company-owned and franchised locations operating across the United States and Canada at that time.

Griddle & Go adds a counter-service route for the brand rather than simply reproducing its traditional sit-down restaurant model.

What prospective franchisees should examine

Perkins American Food Co. has not publicly disclosed a near-term target for the total number of US Griddle & Go restaurants. It has also not publicly released the concept's total franchise investment range. The announced New Jersey commitments should therefore not be treated as either a national opening target or an indication of the capital required for an individual restaurant.

For prospective franchisees, the key development is the transition from pilot experience and signed agreements to an operating US location. That creates a clearer distinction between the concept's development ambitions and the trading evidence available to assess them.

Practical takeaway: Treat the Flemington opening and the 46-location pipeline as separate milestones. Before investing, seek concept-specific cost disclosures, development obligations and operating evidence rather than relying on the size of the committed network or the familiarity of the Perkins name.