Pancake House on expansion mode

Much loved Filipino brand, the Pancake House – part of the 70-year old Max’s Group family business – that opened in Dubai last year, is all set to launch more restaurants. Following the first restaurant in BurJuman, Pancake House will soon open in The Dubai Mall, followed by The Mall at World Trade Center in Abu Dhabi in addition to at least two more locations in the UAE within this year.

“Opening at a prime property like The Dubai Mall in the emirate will help us to cater for multiple nationalities on a daily basis. It’s a big thing to be able to introduce one of our iconic brands – Pancake House – to people from across the world visiting The Dubai Mall,” says Robert Trota, president of Max’s Group International during an exclusive interview with us.

“We are very cautious about the quality of retail space with every brand, we operate,” stresses Sajan Alex, vice president, Tablez Food Company, which holds the franchise rights for Pancake House in the UAE. “We, in fact, delayed the launch of Pancake House in the UAE to scout for that perfect location. When we saw Pancake House in the Philippines, we realised its position within the fast-casual dining category, as opposed to the value space. The ambience is great while the price points are attractive. So when BurJuman happened, we decided to launch Pancake House there, which has worked very well. We will follow the same strategy with every subsequent location. Along with The Dubai Mall and The Mall at World Trade Center in Abu Dhabi, there is scope for another mall-based location in Dubai and one each in Al Ain and Ras Al Khaimah.”

“We have seen around 500 customers a day at Pancake House in BurJuman. That’s because our price points are attractive. The food is of very high-quality,” Alex adds.

The full story will be published in our July-August edition