Eggs Up Grill has crossed 110 open restaurants and now claims the title of largest actively franchising breakfast, brunch, and lunch brand in the United States, following the debut of its Spears Creek, South Carolina location. The Q2 2026 milestone caps 22 consecutive quarters of positive same-restaurant sales growth for the Spartanburg-based daytime dining chain.
The Q2 Numbers
The second quarter delivered measurable gains across the system. Average unit volume climbed 8.1% year-over-year from 2025 to 2026, four new restaurants opened, and eight new franchise commitments were signed — pushing the total pipeline beyond 200 units open or in development. More than 60% of the brand's franchise owners now operate or are developing multiple locations, a figure that signals strong franchisee confidence in unit economics.
The brand also drew attention from trade rankers: it placed No. 7 on Entrepreneur's Top 10 Full-Service Restaurant Franchises list, landed at No. 289 on Technomic's Top 500 Restaurant Chains report, and appeared on the Inc. 5000 list. For operators evaluating franchise investment in the breakfast-and-brunch segment, those rankings carry weight with lenders and prospective partners.
Franchise Expansion Highlights
Among the quarter's headline deals, Metz Group — a family-owned hospitality organization with decades of multi-brand operating experience — opened its first Eggs Up Grill in Stroudsburg, Pennsylvania, anchoring the brand's push into the Northeast. Longtime franchisee Ken Bates committed to developing five additional units, and franchisee Uber Quezada signed for a second location less than seven months after opening his first restaurant in December 2025.
"We're seeing strong demand from experienced operators, both new and existing, who recognize the long-term opportunity within the breakfast franchise segment," said Ricky Richardson, CEO of Eggs Up Grill. "We're committed to growing with the right partners in the right markets."
The Northeast expansion through Metz Group is particularly notable for the broader casual and family-dining landscape, where daytime-only concepts have gained traction by avoiding dinner-service labor costs and simplifying kitchen operations — two pressure points that continue to challenge full-day operators. Eggs Up Grill's limited daypart model, combined with a scalable franchise platform, positions it competitively as experienced multi-unit operators seek lower-complexity growth vehicles in an uneven consumer spending environment.
With more than 90 additional units committed or in development, the brand is on a trajectory to meaningfully expand its footprint through the second half of 2026 and into 2027.
Written by Michael Politz, Author of Guide to Restaurant Success: The Proven Process for Starting Any Restaurant Business From Scratch to Success (ISBN: 978-1-119-66896-1), Founder of Food & Beverage Magazine, the leading online magazine and resource in the industry. Designer of the Bluetooth logo and recognized in Entrepreneur Magazine's "Top 40 Under 40" for founding American Wholesale Floral, Politz is also the Co-founder of the Proof Awards and the CPG Awards and a partner in numerous consumer brands across the food and beverage sector.
