Hawaiian Bros Island Grill is plotting a major push into Florida, with plans to develop 52 restaurants across Orlando, Tampa, Jacksonville and Gainesville over the next six years. The fast-casual chain, known for its Hawaiian plate lunches, has signed a development agreement with Southern Rock Restaurants and Southern Rock Hawaii to bring the brand into the state for the first time.
The deal calls for 24 restaurants to open across the four Florida markets within the first three years, according to WFTV Channel 9 Orlando. The company's announcement did not specify how many of those locations will land in Orlando specifically, and no addresses or opening dates have been identified yet for the market.
Who's Building the Florida Footprint
Leading the buildout is Max Piet, CEO of Southern Rock, who will oversee the Florida development. Southern Rock operates nearly 200 restaurants as a franchisee of McAlister's Deli and Dave's Hot Chicken across 13 states, per the company's announcement, though a separate 2025 industry report placed the operator's McAlister's count at more than 160 locations alongside its Dave's Hot Chicken outposts. Piet said he was especially excited to introduce Hawaiian Bros to areas he knows and loves.
That familiarity runs deep. Piet began his hospitality career at age 14 as a dishwasher in St. Augustine, and has since logged more than 35 years in the restaurant business, including executive stints at TooJay's Deli and Ruby Tuesday, according to Southern Rock. Southern Rock itself is headquartered in Franklin, Tennessee, and ranks among the country's largest multi-unit franchise groups.
What's on the Menu
Hawaiian Bros serves plate lunches built around chicken or pork with sauces, paired with white rice and a choice of macaroni salad or vegetables, with Dole soft serve rounding out the menu. The company has said its food is prepared without freezers, fryers or microwaves. That stripped-down approach extends to the back of house: the chain runs on fewer than 100 total stock-keeping units, including paper goods, letting stores operate peak shifts with just 6 to 8 employees compared to the 12 to 15 typical at other fast-casual chains, according to reporting by Nation's Restaurant News in January 2026.
The format itself traces back more than a century. As Hoodline previously reported on Indy expansion, the Hawaiian plate lunch — two scoops of rice, macaroni salad and a protein — originated on 1880s Hawaiian sugarcane and pineapple plantations, where immigrant laborers shared lunch pails before the format standardized by the 1930s.
A Chain Scaling Fast Nationwide
Hawaiian Bros launched in 2018 and has grown to more than 80 restaurants across 14 states, the company said. That trajectory tracks with figures reported by Nation's Restaurant News in January 2026, which put the chain at 74 operating locations across 14 states with signed development agreements for more than 250 future restaurants. The brand generates an average unit volume of roughly $2.5 million per location, with top performers exceeding $3.5 million, according to Nation's Restaurant News.
The Florida deal fits a broader shift at Hawaiian Bros away from corporate-led growth and toward large-scale multi-unit franchising. Prospective franchise operators must hold a minimum net worth of $5 million and liquid capital of $2.5 million, according to 2026 franchise disclosure listings on BizBuySell, with an initial franchise fee of $50,000 per store and a 6 percent royalty.
That strategy mirrors a wider industry trend. Multi-unit franchise operators managing 50 or more units grew 191 percent between 2010 and 2024, jumping from 162 to 472 operators nationwide, according to FRANdata statistics published by Franchising.com in 2025. Hawaiian Bros has also been pushing into other Southeastern markets, including a standalone Morrow, Georgia location set to replace a former Del Taco, following an initial ghost kitchen launch in metro Atlanta in late 2025.
For now, the Florida agreement marks Hawaiian Bros' planned entry into the state, with site selection and permitting details for Orlando and Tampa still to come.
