Original ChopShop is set to open its first West Valley restaurant inside Lake Pleasant Towne Center in Peoria, marking the health-focused chain's 12th Arizona location. The new restaurant will serve bowls, salads, sandwiches, all-day breakfast, juices, and protein shakes, with customizable options built around different dietary needs and lifestyles.
The Peoria opening was detailed by RestaurantNews.com, which reported that doors will open at 10 a.m. on opening day, with the first 50 guests in line receiving an Original ChopShop tote bag with purchase of a breakfast entrée, bowl, salad, or sandwich. New customers who download the brand's app will also be able to unlock 30 days of $3-off rewards after spending $7 or more within 20 days of registering, according to the same report. After opening day, the Peoria location will settle into regular hours of 7 a.m. to 9 p.m. Monday through Saturday and 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. on Sunday.
A Decade-Old Scottsdale Brand Heads West
Original ChopShop traces its roots to Old Town Scottsdale, where it was founded in 2013 by Ryan Jocque, Caitlin Jocque, Chad Landau, and Brooks Holcomb to offer a health-conscious alternative to typical fast food, according to Private Equity Wire. The young company won Emerging Restaurant of the Year from the Arizona Restaurant Association in 2014, the outlet noted. The brand now operates 30 locations spanning Phoenix, Dallas-Fort Worth, Houston, College Station, Tucson, and Atlanta, per RestaurantNews.com's report.
Behind that growth sits Houston-based investment firm Mac Haik Enterprises, which serves as Original ChopShop's parent owner after acquiring full interest in the chain following private equity firm Hargett Hunter Capital Partners' initial majority stake purchase in 2016, according to Nation's Restaurant News. Hargett Hunter originally invested when Original ChopShop operated just three Phoenix-area locations, the outlet reported. Protein bowls built on customizable bases of greens, vegetables, or rice now account for roughly 35% of the chain's total sales across its four daily service periods of breakfast, lunch, dinner, and afternoon snacks.
The Peoria debut also arrives alongside a leadership change at the top of the company. Kyle Frederick, a 10-year veteran who joined the brand in 2016 from Zoës Kitchen, was promoted from chief operating officer to chief executive officer in late September, succeeding Jason Morgan, who had served as CEO for a decade, Nation's Restaurant News reported. Morgan oversaw the chain's expansion from three locations to 30 during his tenure.
Executive Ties the Opening to Community Demand
In comments tied to the Peoria store announcement, Frederick said Peoria guests had asked the brand to join their community and that the company listened. He added that Original ChopShop looks forward to becoming part of the community and serving food suited to everyday life, according to RestaurantNews.com's report. The menu reflects that promise, with the Peoria location offering gluten-free, dairy-free, lactose-free, soy-free, vegetarian, and vegan options for adults and children alike.
North Peoria's Retail Boom Sets the Stage
The new restaurant lands inside a shopping hub built for growth. Lake Pleasant Towne Center is a 620,000-square-foot power center developed on 65 acres by Vestar at the northwest corner of Lake Pleasant Parkway and Happy Valley Road, according to a Phoenix Commercial Advisors report, with Vestar opening the development in 2007 as a major regional retail hub. Demand in the area has only intensified since: in June 2023, Vestar broke ground on The Shops at Lake Pleasant, a $50 million, 16-acre, 90,000-square-foot retail expansion directly adjacent to the existing center, according to Vestar.
That expansion is feeding off serious residential momentum. The Happy Valley Road and Lake Pleasant Parkway corridor serves as the primary retail artery for 17 master-planned communities containing more than 62,000 planned residential units, including developments like Vistancia, White Peak Ranch, and Westwing Mountain, per Phoenix Commercial Advisors. Citywide, Peoria's population is nearly 200,000, following a 19% population increase and 23% housing growth, according to municipal development records cited in prior Hoodline reporting on the area; SmartAsset ranked Peoria 17th among top U.S. boomtowns in 2022 for its strong economic and residential metrics.
Original ChopShop isn't the only fast-casual name chasing that growth. Peoria's Happy Valley corridor has already attracted other chain debuts, including Potbelly Sandwich Works, which permitted a 1,430-square-foot location at Lake Pleasant Towne Center earlier this year, Hoodline reported in January. The chain marked its 30th-location milestone at a Richardson, Texas, market.
