Local Japanese street food with a touch of Austin soul, East Side King, has plans to expand in the Central Texas area. Austin-grown Murphy Adams Restaurant Group, who also owns Mama Fu’s and Austin’s Pizza, has purchased the licensing rights to operate East Side King in Central Texas between San Antonio and Waco.
Two new East Side King locations will open in January. The first in Cedar Park is scheduled to open on January 15, located at 4701183A Toll Rd. Ste. C Cedar Park, TX 78613, and the second at the Arboretum is scheduled to open on January 29 at 10710 Research Blvd. Suite 328 Austin, Texas 78759. Two more locations are slated for February and March 2020: one in the Bulverde area and the other off of North Guadalupe near the University of Texas campus. Operations for East Side King will be managed by Murphy Adams Restaurant group and East Side King founder and managing partner Moto Utsunomiya.
Says Murphy Adams Restaurant Group CEO Randy Murphy, “We see this as a great partnership of two longstanding Austin-owned restaurant companies, and the four new East Side King locations are excellent additions to our portfolio of operating brands. Moto Utsunomiya has done a fantastic job of developing the East Side King brand into a cultural and food icon, and his team has brought expertise and solid operations to prepare the brand for scale.”
East Side King licensee Murphy Adams Restaurant Group (MARG) was founded by Austinite Randy Murphy in 2008 when Murphy and co-founder Mark Adams launched Mama Fu’s. Since then, Murphy, a University of Texas at Austin graduate, has grown the Mama Fu’s brand to 12 locations and has introduced core operational elements to Mama Fu’s such as their own delivery service, limited menus, and full adoption of technology in all areas of the business. In 2018, MARG acquired all locations of local brand Austin’s Pizza. Josh Gibson is the Sr. Vice President of Operations for MARG and Chef Moto Utsunomiya will remain a managing partner in the East Side King expansion.
