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Franchised Restaurant Giant Becomes Largest Moe’s Southwest Grill® Franchisee

Quality Fresca, a wholly owned subsidiary of Quality Restaurant Group, to acquire and evolve 67 Moe’s Southwest Grill locations across four separate acquisitions

March 10, 2020

ATLANTA, GA – (March 10, 2020) – Moe’s Southwest Grill^®, an innovative fast-casual restaurant franchise that serves high quality burritos, quesadillas, famous queso and more, announced today the transfer of 67 franchised locations in Florida, South Carolina, Virginia, Maryland and District of Columbia to Quality Fresca, a new division of Quality Restaurant Group formed to own and operate a best in class Moe’s Southwest Grill franchisee group.

In partnership with Matt Ailey, Founder of GenRock Capital Management, Matt Slaine, CEO of Quality Restaurant Group and Chris Grooms, Vice President of Quality Fresca, the restaurant group plans to roll out the updated brand design for the restaurants in the next 12-18 months. The series of transactions will make Quality Fresca the largest franchisee in the Moe’s Southwest Grill portfolio.

“We believe there is extraordinary growth ahead for the Moe’s Southwest Grill brand and know that our company will be a significant partner as the brand continues to innovate and secure share in a competitive segment,” said Matt Slaine, CEO of Quality Restaurant Group and GenRock Operating Partner. “Matt and I have been fans of Moe’s for a long time and were attracted to the unique brand personality, culture, leadership, vision for the future and unit-level economics.”

Backed by GenRock Capital Management, Quality Restaurant Group is based in North Carolina, employs more than 7,500 people and is the parent company for Quality Huts and Quality Meats. Quality Huts is one of the largest Pizza Hut operators with nearly 200 units across Illinois, Indiana, Maryland and Pennsylvania. Quality Meats is an Arby’s operator which recently acquired 27 Arby’s locations in Nebraska, Wyoming, Colorado, Montana and South Dakota. Quality Fresca is the newest division for Quality Restaurant Group that will operate the Moe’s Southwest Grill locations added to their portfolio of restaurant brands.

“The Moe’s Southwest Grill brand has been a beloved restaurant brand in the fast casual segment for 20 years and the brand is accelerating our journey to modernize both the in-restaurant and off-premise customer experiences,” said Erik Hess, President, Moe’s Southwest Grill^®. “Working together with the passionate and dedicated group of Moe’s franchisees has enhanced the brand strength and adding new franchisees like Quality Restaurant Group will serve as another advantage for the brand in several of our largest markets.”

Moe’s Southwest Grill currently has more than 700 restaurants in 40 states and is part of the FOCUS Brands family of brands, which includes Auntie Anne’s^®, Carvel^®, Cinnabon^®, Jamba^®, McAlister’s Deli^® and Schlotzsky’s^®. Quality Restaurant Group and all franchisees within the Moe’s Southwest Grill system have the ability to use shared services at FOCUS Brands, including marketing, real estate, technology and more, to help them successfully launch and operate their restaurants.

In addition to Quality Restaurant Group, Moe’s Southwest Grill is continuing with its aggressive expansion and is seeking single- and multi-unit operators to join its successful franchise network. Moe’s Southwest Grill is currently targeting new markets across the U.S. For more information about franchise opportunities, call 800-227-8353 or email [email protected].

About Moe’s Southwest Grill^®
Welcome to Moe's!^® Founded in 2000 and based in Atlanta, GA, Moe's Southwest Grill^® is a fast-casual restaurant franchise that serves high quality and fresh southwestern food. Moe's has an extensive variety of menu items to please the entire family – from burritos to specialty items like quesadillas, nachos and stacks. Whether you visit one of our 700 franchised locations or have us cater your next event, free chips and salsa come with every order, and each restaurant has a salsa bar and serves our famous queso. Moe's Southwest Grill^® has been recognized as the Brand of the Year in the Fast Casual Mexican Restaurant category for two years in a row based on the 2016 and 2017 Harris Poll EquiTrend^® Studies. Check us out online at www.moes.com to find a store near you, and then connect with us on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook.

Quality Restaurant Group
Quality Restaurant Group, LLC is based in North Carolina and was founded in 2017 with a strong focus on developing a world-class multi-branded quick service and fast casual franchising business. The founding leaders have a vision of becoming QUALITY franchisee entrepreneurs that believe in a QUALITY PEOPLE-FIRST culture that drives an unparalleled spirit of customer service for our guests in our restaurants. The company owns and operates 67 Moe’s Southwest Grill restaurants in Florida, South Carolina, Virginia, Maryland and District of Columbia, nearly 200 Pizza Hut restaurants in Illinois, Indiana, Maryland and Pennsylvania and 27 Arby’s locations in Colorado, Montana, Nebraska, Wyoming and South Dakota. Check out www.qualityrestaurantgroup.com for more information.