The restaurant will be converted to a Smashed by Honest ‘pop up’ with the aim of launching in either late November or early December.
Restaurant understands that the group intends to open a dedicated site soon after, likely with a smaller footprint that will suit the quick service restaurant model.
It comes after Honest Burgers, which was launched by Tom Barton and Phillip Eeles back in 2011 and now operates 39 restaurants across England and Wales, raised close to £3m last year to enable it to ‘challenge the big guys’ in the QSR space with the new concept.
Barton says he hopes the new concept will allow Honest Burgers to expand into spaces it was previously unable to, including transport hubs.
Plans for the new QSR brand have been fuelled by the success of Honest Burgers' lighter and lower priced smashed burger, and comes amid a growing consumer appetite for smash burgers in general.
Diners at the restaurant group can currently choose between either a single or double smashed patty that’s served with American cheese, brown butter mustard mayo, sweet onions and pickles.
Bacon can also be added.
According to Barton, Honest Burgers has now served more than one million smash burgers, and they now outsell other burgers on the menu at several of the group’s restaurants.
Taking on the premium quick service burger market
Barton and Eeles have previously said they believe they can challenge bigger brands in the quick service burger market with a set-up ‘built for speed of service, convenience and value for money’.
They hope to position Smashed by Honest competitively within the premium end of the market, with a single smashed burger served with a side currently available for £9.20 at the group’s restaurants.
Speaking last year, Honest Burgers’ then-CEO Frank Hayes said: “[We] believe that our new restaurant format can challenge the big guys in the premium quick service burger market.
“We never dreamt Honest would get to where is it today, but we have big ambitions for our future.”
As well as supporting the growth of the new brand, the funds raised last year will be used to build Honest Burgers' presence in regional cities across the UK as well as in London.
Beyond that, Barton says that the group would also like to eventually explore the possibility of international expansion, with France singled out as a place of interest.
In its most recent financial filings for the year ended 29 January 2023, Honest Burgers reported that turnover had increased by 26% to £48.3m.
Delivery and strong dine-in sales during the year led to an increase in like-for-like sales of 11.3% compared to the year before.
