Walk-On's Sports Bistreaux is offering a closer look at how its streamlined restaurant prototype will work. The company first announced the concept in August and has now shared additional detail on how the smaller format will operate. The first store built in the new design is set to open early next year at 8150 Perkins Road in Baton Rouge, Louisiana.
Walk-On's calls the design a "next-generation sports bar model." It was created by Livit, a Madrid-based restaurant design firm, and is intended for smaller locations of 3,500 to 4,500 square feet. According to the company, the goals are to help operators maximize space, improve operations and create a more engaging guest experience. A traditional Walk-On's, by contrast, spans 7,000 to 8,000-plus square feet. The Baton Rouge prototype is approximately 3,688 square feet and will seat 125 guests. Livit provided renderings of the concept.
Back of house and front of house
In the back of house, new clamshell griddles are among the equipment additions the company highlighted. According to the release, the additions are intended to simplify training, improve consistency and reduce ticket times without giving up the ability to serve the full Walk-On's menu. Out front, the bar remains at the center of the restaurant, using a peninsula-style configuration that can adapt to different layouts. Pickup cubbies near the hostess stand are designed to fill off-premise orders without disrupting the flow of the dining room, the company says.
Instead of a single fixed layout, the new design is built as a flexible "kit of parts." That approach lets franchisees select or add key elements based on their market, site and personal preference, the company says.
Building on lessons from an existing smaller location
The prototype draws on lessons from Walk-On's existing restaurants, including its 3,700-square-foot location at The Battery in Atlanta. According to the release, that restaurant demonstrated the brand can deliver its full menu and sports-bar experience in a more compact, inline format. Walk-On's is applying those learnings to what it describes as a purpose-built prototype meant to give franchisees more options.
Brandon Landry, CEO and co-founder of Walk-On's Sports Bistreaux, said the aim was to rethink what the Walk-On's experience could look like without losing what makes the brand what it is. He added that the new design gives franchisees more flexibility in where and how they build, while keeping the energy, hospitality and community connection that guests know.
Founded in 2003 in Baton Rouge by LSU Basketball walk-ons Landry and Jack Warner, Walk-On's now operates more than 80 locations across the country.