Globally Local, one of the world’s first vegan fast food chains is coming to Uptown Waterloo this summer.
The restaurant will be located on 75 King Street South at the corner of Willis Way and Caroline Street.
“We aim to bring the community an experience that is superior to old-school animal-based fast food in every way, from taste to nutrition to efficiency,” said Globally Local co-founder and CEO James McInnes in a news release.
After attending events and seeing the region’s huge demand for affordable, healthy and environmentally friendly fast food, McInnes said he considers Waterloo to be the perfect location.
McInnes believes that being close to the university would allow them to have easy access to a large population of their target market—youth and students.
Some of the most popular menu items include their Famous Burger, Maple Crunch Breakfast Sandwich and Wingalings. Additionally, it is anticipated that the new Waterloo location will create between 10 and 15 jobs.
In recent years, UW has tried to keep up with students’ growing appetite for plant-based food options through launching their own vegan/vegetarian restaurant called FRSH, located on campus.
With meat processing centres shutting down and the general public becoming more health conscious than ever before, COVID-19 has further boosted the demand for meat-free and vegan food options.
Globally Local Technologies Inc., the parent company of Globally Local, announced that it will be opening five new restaurant locations this summer in Waterloo, Hamilton, Vaughan, Toronto and London — bringing them to a total of seven restaurants in Ontario alone.
The company plans to open 20 locations across North America within the next 12 months.