Vandalay Plans Mama Fu?s, Moe?s
by July 19, 2004 12:00 am 80 views
Joe Muha, president of Vandalay Enterprises LLC of Bella Vista, plans to open two restaurants in Rogers — a Mama Fu’s Noodle House and a Moe’s Southwestern Grill — in about a year. Both chains are franchised by Raving Brands of Atlanta. Vandalay is named after a fictional firm from the television show “Seinfeld.”
Currently, there are no Mama Fu’s or Moe’s in Arkansas. Mama Fu’s specializes in Pan-Asian cuisine. Moe’s would be classified as fresh-Mex.
Muha is vice president of Cardinal Enterprises LLC, which owns Copeland’s Famous New Orleans Restaurant in Rogers. Copeland’s opened in 2002 and last year was the state’s leading restaurant with $5.3 million in sales.
In addition, Muha is president of Laughing Cow LLC, which operates Pizza Pro restaurants in Bentonville and Bella Vista.
Jessica Riley, a spokesperson for Raving Brands, said Moe’s has 138 locations in operation and an additional 700 units slated for 38 states, including Arkansas (three in Little Rock, but those won’t be Vandalay franchises). Mama Fu’s has nine locations open and commitments for 225 additional locations. The company plans to have more than 50 open by the end of the year, Riley said.
“The company is actively scouting Arkansas real estate,” she said.