From Northern California to North Texas, the metroplex is welcoming the headquarters of a new fast-casual restaurant to the city.
Diner-style restaurant Nation’s, known for its giant hamburgers, all-day breakfast, and pies, has relocated from the Golden State to Garland, according to owner and chairman Grant Power. Not only that, the chain’s first Texas location is officially open in Frisco at 3311 Preston Rd., in The Centre at Preston Ridge. This location is the company’s first outside California and the first to operate as a franchise.
“Nation’s is something we grew up on and it’s always been a place families to go to be together,” said Tommy Coker, the company’s first franchisee, reported CultureMap Dallas. “When this opportunity came up, this is where we decided to invest because of the passion we have for the brand.”
Coker relocated with this family to Texas for the opportunity.
Nation’s story began in 1952 in San Pablo, California, when a gentleman named Russ Harvey took a gamble and sold his 1948 Buick to start a hot dog stand. Over the following years, the menu expanded to include a variety of items, most notably, their signature giant hamburgers and an extensive selection of pies.
“Everyone knows the Dallas/Fort Worth area is the hottest metro area for growth, but we found a home here. Our leadership team has moved here with their families, and we are committed to this community and the exciting growth of our company,” Power said, per CultureMap Dallas.
At Nation’s, you can choose from more than 20 flavors of pies, all baked from scratch daily. The pies are so popular that they account for a quarter of the chain’s total sales.
Between 1978 and 2000, a Nation’s location was opened every year. Over approximately the next five years, Nation’s hopes to open 30 franchise locations in the Dallas-Fort Worth area alone. Arlington will get the next location at 4180 S Cooper St. by the end of May. Three more franchise locations are slated for Sachse, Denton, and Mesquite, according to CultureMap Dallas.
Nation’s is just one of many companies leaving the West Coast for Texas, primarily because the business climate in the Lone Star State is more appealing, as previously reported by The Dallas Express.
YTexas, using its Relo tracker, reported that Texas broke records with the number of corporate relocations from 2020 to 2022, which included Frontier Communications (Connecticut), Cacique Foods (California), Inbenta (California), Hanyang (South Korea), Fisher Investments (Washington), MSS International (South Korea), Landsea Homes (California), Ruiz Foods (California), Thermomix (California) and Kelly-Moore Paints (California).