UFood Grill, the award-winning fast-casual restaurant franchise where “delicious meets nutritious,” has named Bob DiBartolomeo as the vice president of franchise development and announced plans to open up to 100 new locations over the next four years in an aggressive domestic expansion program.
DiBartolomeo will focus on the launch of a new traditional restaurant prototype, building on the existing non-traditional locations in the UFood Grill network and giving new and existing franchisees more options to meet the growing consumer demand for fast-casual healthy dining.
“Bob is one of the best franchise restaurant development executives in America with an incredible track record for growing restaurant brands and turning them into household names,” said Salvatore Rincione, CEO of UFood Grill. “With aggressive plans to expand UFood Grill to more traditional franchise locations across the U.S., Bob will play a key leadership role to help make that happen.”
DiBartolomeo brings more than 30 years of franchising and brand development to the UFood Grill executive team. Most recently he helped Red Mango expand to a national and international franchise network where he was personally responsible for awarding more than 250 franchise locations over 6 years. His career highlights have also included growing franchise brands such as 7-Eleven, Dunkin’ Donuts, Quiznos, RedBrick Pizza and Smoothie Factory.
In his new role for UFood Grill, DiBartolomeo will target experienced restaurant operators and multi-unit franchise investors looking to add a growing brand to their portfolios. He calls the healthy quotient of UFood Grill’s menu a game-changer for the restaurant industry.
“After eating at UFood Grill, I became an instant fan and I knew I wanted to play a role in expanding this franchise,” DiBartolomeo said. “This concept has all the elements of a national player with a great menu, strong operations, a healthy business model, and one of the best executive teams in the business.”
The UFood Grill menu includes chicken, beef, turkey and veggie burgers, unfries, steak tips, wraps, bowls, salads and paninis prepared fresh using natural and organic ingredients, whole grains, light cheeses, and freshly-made dressings. Meals are low in calories, fat and sodium and are made to order. Nothing is ever fried. Beverages include real fruit smoothies and specialty teas. Created in a better-for-you way, UFood Grill is transforming the industry one healthy meal at a time.
