These brands prove that being a family-friendly restaurant means more than just featuring a kids meal on your menu—it means positioning yourself as a gathering place for all life’s milestones and memories
By Rachel Debling
Who do you call family? For some, it’s strictly parents, siblings, and maybe your closest extended family. For others, it means generations of distant cousins, or the ride-or-die friends who will always be there when you call. No matter who you consider family, it’s indelible—you know it when you see it.
With that theme in mind, Franchise Canada spoke with two brands that hold their family-friendly label above all others, one in the quick service restaurant category and the other in full service. Their stories show the generational impact of welcoming dining rooms and menus chock-full of comfort food options; perhaps they will inspire you to investigate your own franchise ownership story in this feel-good sector.
Mr. Greek Restaurants
There are two surefire ways in which brands can authentically call themselves family friendly: have a kids menu, and be family-run.
For Mr. Greek Restaurants, a Toronto-based franchise system that started from humble beginnings in the city’s Greektown neighbourhood, both are true. But its dedication to serving families in the 15 communities in which its locations reside (soon to be 16, with their newest location launching in late 2024) stretches far beyond those two simple facets.
Take the Raios family, helmed by George who, along with two partners, launched the brand in 1988 with a single restaurant. By 1993, the company began franchising, and George’s family was an integral part of building the business. His daughter Vicki has been working in some capacity for her father since the young age of five at the original Mr. Greek location on Danforth Avenue, where she was tasked with setting tables. But in a life lesson that Vicki has never forgotten, she was reprimanded her first day on the job.
“The standard was that the fork had to go on the R and the knife on the second E in our logo,” she explains, a rule which she apparently didn’t adhere to.
“Excuses—justifications for not doing the job right,” jokes George. Evidentially, she course-corrected and proved her value: she is now Mr. Greek’s vice president of corporate affairs and, as George says, his boss.
Aside from the family behind the scenes, Mr. Greek upholds its family values with its franchisees by ensuring an open-door policy, encouraging them to approach George and the head office with any questions or concerns and guaranteeing that they’ll respond within a half hour. This helps create trust and shows location owners that they are truly the backbone of the company.
On the menu, the brand’s healthy, made-to-order souvlakis, gyros, and salads appeal to a diverse range of diners, from the kindergarten crowd trying the brand in their school lunch program to those who have been enjoying Mr. Greek’s wares for nearly 40 years. “The people we used to serve as children in our early years are now bringing their own children to us,” Vicki shares, adding that they often run into customers who remember going to the first Danforth location in their youth—and in return, George often remembers them.
Even the littlest and pickiest of eaters clamour for the fresh ingredients that make the brand’s offerings stand out. The souvlaki meal, in fact, was given the unofficial title of “Niko’s Favourite” after Vicki’s son was convinced by George to try the pork version, then the chicken, after refusing to eat meat for years.
“Niko’s the president of the Picky Eaters Association,” laughs Vicki. “You’ve heard the expression of ‘I’m not only the president, I’m also a client’? That’s Niko.”
On the philanthropic side, Mr. Greek franchisees give back through their association with Lunchbox, a school meal program, though many work directly with schools to deliver high-quality and highly nutritive meals to students. The company also has its own charitable foundation, HELIOS, which supports local communities with an emphasis on children’s programs.
“Just because the name [of the foundation] is Greek, it does not mean that we are focused only on the Greek community,” explains George. “I’ve been involved with the Greek community for many years with philanthropic initiatives. However, we don’t forget where we came from.”
And where Mr. Greek comes from is a place of love—a love of family, of food, and of franchising. Ultimately, all these elements have brought the company to where it is today.
Ricky’s All Day Grill
“How has the family changed, and what do we need to do to encourage all family members to come in?”
That was the big question the head office team at B.C.-based Ricky’s All Day Grill asked themselves several years ago, says Stacey Hansson, senior vice president at FDF Brandz, the restaurant’s parent company (which includes several complementary foodservice brands, including abc Country Restaurant, later rebranded to Ricky’s Country Restaurant; Humpty’s Big Plate Diner; Fatburger Canada; and Famoso Neapolitan Pizzeria). Since 1962, Ricky’s has been growing in the West, from B.C. to the Yukon, Alberta, and Manitoba, and is seeking to gain and establish dominance in the family eatery sector. After all, for more than 60 years, the Ricky’s name has been synonymous with morning meals and comfort food familiar to Canadians of all ages.
“When Ricky’s started in B.C., it was all about the $1.99 pancake breakfast,” Hansson shares of Ricky’s early days. “Guests would line up for our famous pancakes that were delicious and have a friendly price point.” Over time, other menu items started to gain many followers as well, such as the year-round turkey dinner and the Famous Clubhouse Sandwich.
The move into their neighbouring province brought new opportunities, and it was at that point Ricky’s began offering all-day eats by improving its lunch and dinner menus, and elevated the brand’s décor, moving from a more traditional, homestyle appearance to the clean, modern interior it boasts today.
And while Ricky’s certainly caters to the 10-and-under crowd with its ‘Kids Corner’ program, encompassing everything from the children’s menu itself to its activity booklets featuring the brand’s mascot, Panko the Pug, Hansson is quick to point out that “family-friendly” doesn’t necessarily just refer to parents and kids. In fact, Ricky’s focuses on a multi-generational approach to family dining, striving to make it the place to take your parents, grandparents, aunts and uncles—anyone who you consider part of your innermost circle.
“A lot of times, when we talk about family, we talk about kids, but seniors are a huge part of that, and seniors have always been the backbone of our business,” notes Hansson. “They are our original customers. They’ve been with us the entire time that we’ve been a company. They’re the ones that brought their kids. They’re the ones that brought their grandkids. They are the most loyal guests, and we appreciate them so much. And we always make sure we show that to them.”
Building a strong hospitality strategy is also one of Ricky’s key approaches. To make sure guests feel like they are taken care of, the concept of “family-friendly” also extends to the Ricky’s family, as many location owners and staff have been with the company for decades, in some cases 35 or more years. Being a member of the Ricky’s family and team for a decade or more means that they know their guests well and even become a part of their regulars’ lives, witnessing milestones like birthdays and post-sports tournament lunches, and are able to ask about the latest accomplishments of customers’ grandchildren, siblings, parents, and more.
Affordability and big portion sizes is also part of Ricky’s popularity. Its “stick-to-your-ribs” menu is structured to not only put value at the forefront but to also ensure that guests don’t leave hungry—and maybe even with some leftovers for the next day. Also, serving great food in an inviting, comfortable, and familiar environment is important to a family enjoying their meals at Ricky’s.
“Many of [our customers] say that they used to come every weekend morning with their parents or grandparents,” says Raymond Ho, vice president of marketing and communications for FDF Brandz. “It’s nostalgic, and now they are looking forward to extending that experience they had to [the next generation].”
Though satirist Peter De Vries may have once quipped “Nostalgia isn’t what it used to be,” for Ricky’s franchisees, it’s exactly where they—and their customers—want to be. It’s also what will keep their biggest fans coming back, year after year, for generations to come.
