Dog Haus, the celebrated gourmet hot dog, sausage, and burger concept, continues its ambitious expansion beyond its Pasadena, California, hometown with openings in Las Vegas, Nevada, and North Hollywood, California, this March. With the addition of these two franchise restaurants, Dog Haus is now operating 16 locations in five states (Arizona, California, Colorado, Nevada, and Utah) with upcoming plans for 125 locations from 25 different franchisees in eight states and the nation's capital. The latest batch of openings brings the hot brand, regarded for its use of premium ingredients and craft approach within the fast casual sector, up to double the number of locations in operation at this time last year.
"We wouldn't be here today without the passion that our franchisees have for the Dog Haus brand," says Dog Haus partner André Vener, who cofounded the concept with friends and fellow partners Hagop Giragossian and Quasim Riaz in 2010. "Their commitment and belief in what we are doing is the secret sauce to our current and continued success as we continue to grow into new communities and states."
The March openings will be followed by new franchise locations in Corona, Menifee, and San Diego in Southern California, and Fremont in California's Bay Area this spring. Plans are also in the works for the first locations in Minnesota, Ohio, Texas, and Washington ,D.C., with the first crop of restaurants in Texas next on the horizon for Dog Haus.
Giragossian, Riaz, and Vener initially made the decision to franchise Dog Haus in 2013, a decision that quickly precipitated a dramatic period of growth for the brand, originally conceptualized to elevate the humble hot dog, sausage, and burger for the adult palate. Dog Haus's core leadership and culinary teams, including Giragossian, who oversees menu operations, and Würstmacher (sausage-maker) Adam Gertler, work closely with the local franchisees to ensure the quality that has made the brand a "haus" name in Southern California is preserved as it crosses state borders. That extends far beyond Dog Haus's signature all beef skinless Haus Dogs, hand-crafted Haus Sausages and premium Haus Burgers made from a proprietary grind, all served on grilled Hawaiian rolls. Their inspired toppings, premium soft-serve ice cream and ambitious craft beer program further push the envelope of what is expected in the upscale fast casual sector. The new Las Vegas location will be Dog Haus's third Biergarten restaurant outfitted with a bar boasting craft brews on tap.
"Regardless of how big we grow, we have made it a priority to always challenge ourselves to think how we can improve our guests' experience when they visit a Dog Haus—whether it's in our LA hometown, Vegas, or D.C.," Giragossian says. "Dog Haus was founded on the principles of elevating something that we all grew up eating, and we want to continue to surprise people with elements that they might not expect in a fast casual setting. That's the fun part. The rest is just gravy."