When the founders of Pokeworks were preparing to open their first location in New York City, Lelin Kandel was there, helping to unpack and roll in new equipment.
He was doing so as the Hawaiian brand’s first employee, taking the position of the store’s general manager. Nearly 10 years later, Kandel is once again associating with the brand, this time as a franchisee.
Kandel signed a deal to expand the poke bowl concept’s footprint in the Boston market, with a plan to develop seven more units. To date, Pokeworks has five locations in Boston, and 72 overall in 20 states, as well as Canada and Taiwan. Of those, 65 are franchised.
In Kandel’s case, it’s not just the continuation of a business partnership, but a friendship that goes back to 2008. Originally from Nepal, Kandel came to the U.S. that year to attend college in Boston. While in the country, he also took a trip to California, where he met the co-founders of Pokeworks who were already in the restaurant industry at the time.
“They were actually some of the first people that I met while I was there for about a month,” Kandel said. “We were all on social media so even after I went back to Boston, we stayed in touch and were talking about restaurant ideas.”
Hawaiian brand Pokeworks is set to open four more locations by the end of 2024.
After finishing his business education at Cambridge College in 2015, Kandel learned his friends were starting Pokeworks in New York and decided to approach them about a management position, and was brought in.
“We were very hopeful that the poke concept was going to work, but we weren’t sure how long that was going to take us,” Kandel said. “Poke was still fairly new at the time, so, we had to educate people. We would stay outside, talk to people and hand out the menu. Once we got customers coming in to try our food, we got great feedback. “We were like, ‘OK, this is going to work.’”
Kandel worked his way up in the company, reaching the position of senior operations manager before leaving the role in 2020 to go back to Nepal during the pandemic. When he later returned to the U.S., Kandel said he was still drawn to the brand and decided to go back as an owner.
“It’s very close to me, it’s like a family,” Kandel said. “I wanted to get back into the system because I believed in the concept and the people behind it. The people on the corporate side are franchisors who care about the franchisees, the customers and the team members.”
Joining Kandel in the venture is an existing Pokeworks franchisee, Rong Cong, who brought a background in engineering and business to his ownership of four locations. Also included in the deal are entrepreneurs Nijjwol Lamsal and Roshan Gauchan, who have a background in technology and real estate.
Kandel said the group felt comfortable with the seven-unit plan for Boston, but noted there’s potential for more.
“I think seven is reasonable number to develop within four years,” Kandel said. “Pokeworks is a brand that promotes a healthy lifestyle, and I think Boston is one of those cities that this concept can do well in. I think in Boston and the suburbs around the city, we can probably open more. But we also wanted to be realistic with what we can achieve in that time span.”
Kandel said the advantage to getting the restaurants open is the brand’s simplicity. In addition to lower costs, as the brand’s menu doesn’t require an exhaust hood for cooking, the training for staff can be done quickly.
“You can get someone with basic kitchen skills and train that person for a day or two and they will be ready to be in the kitchen on their own,” Kandel said. “I think that’s the easiest part. It has simple operations and corporate has a very good training program.”
Pokeworks co-founder and Chief Development Officer Peter Yang said the leadership team has confidence in the franchisees’ ability to develop the brand as well, noting Kandel’s skills.
Poke bowls and other fare from Pokeworks will be more available in Boston after franchisees there open additional stores.
“He’s seen everything first hand and knows the systems that are in place,” Yang said. “You need to be good to your staff and your guests. That’s first and foremost. We serve food, but it’s still hospitality. He has that in his core, and he does it all with great attention to detail.”
To Kandel, embracing that hospitality is the main part of his previous Pokeworks experience he’s going to rely on moving forward.
“Knowing the food costs, labor needs and marketing are all things that come into play,” Kandel said. “But going back to 2015 and 2016, when we were new, we had lines out the door. Even then, we were providing the best quality and great hospitality. That’s something I’m taking with as a franchisee.”
The initial investment to open a Pokeworks is between $308,455 and $602,878.