The blaring heavy-metal music and bold burger combinations at Kuma’s Corner once attracted a niche group of visitors.
Now, the restaurant plans to franchise and expand across the U.S. and world.
The burger bar currently has two locations in Illinois — the original joint in Avondale and another in Schaumburg — and a third in Indianapolis. Founder Ron Cain said he hopes to open more locations in the Midwest, but is also entertaining offers to open internationally.
“I feel like we have the best burger on the planet,” founder Ron Cain told the Sun-Times. “We bring people together. People of all types are acceptable, so I definitely feel like it’s a concept that would do well in multiple markets.”
In February, food star and critic Guy Fieri named Kuma’s Corner a top five restaurant in the U.S.
Kuma’s menu includes a variety of burgers, each named after a different heavy-metal artist. Since opening in 2005, the restaurant has offered unique food combinations, such as jalapeno bacon jam to Belgian waffle strips.
Cain said new storefronts will maintain the heavy-metal Kuma’s aesthetic, but some changes will likely be made depending on the location. The menus may change slightly based on demand.
“We may tweak the menu,” Cain said. “I would say probably 80% of the menu will be Kuma’s, the identical menu that we have in Chicago. But we’re open to different regions and trying different products.”
The infamous loud music will continue to blast at the original location, but newer locations may lower their speakers a bit.
“We want to be mindful of local passion when it comes to both food and music,” Cain said. “We’re not totally going to just shove metal down people’s throats. That’s why we’ll play it maybe a little bit more softly.”
Kuma’s is not only focused on accommodating Midwesterners. The new franchise has had substantive conversations with partners in India who want to bring the burger brand to big cities like Bangalore and Mumbai.
Catering to India’s food trends, Kuma’s may replace beef with chicken and lamb. Cain said India holds a large market of Gen Zers and millennials who want eclectic food options.
“When they eat out, they like experiential type restaurants, which obviously I believe Kuma’s is,” Cain said.
Kuma’s also has a collaboration lined up with Hamerica’s, a popular burger spot across Italy, for the month of June.
Self-starters who want to open their own Kuma’s can go to the company’s website and request a franchise information brochure.
“The first franchisee we want to make sure is a strong candidate that has hospitality experience and understands the culture and the vibe and is going to carry the standard of Kuma’s, so that we maintain the integrity of our food and our customer experience,” Cain said.
No official plans are in place yet for when or where the next Kuma’s will open.
“This is an opportunity for operators who want more than ‘another location,’” Kuma’s Corner wrote on its website. “This is about building a destination restaurant.”