Haymaker, a family-owned comfort food restaurant with roots in Arizona’s West Valley, is moving into a new phase of growth by offering franchising opportunities to outside investors and operators. The company plans to award its first franchise agreements this year and has set an initial goal of signing two to three franchise partners within the coming 12 months. The move represents a strategic step for the brand, which has spent more than a decade building a regional presence on the strength of a homestyle menu and neighborhood-focused service.
Founded 13 years ago to serve classic comfort dishes — including barbeque, omelets, salads and meatloaf — Haymaker has grown to four locations across the West Valley. The chain currently operates restaurants in Goodyear and Buckeye and maintains two locations in Peoria. Those four restaurants form the immediate footprint that the company is leveraging as it prepares to transition from solely company-owned locations to a mixed model that includes franchise partners.
The business entity behind the restaurants, Westside Concepts, is leading the franchising effort. Company leadership says it will begin awarding franchise agreements this year, and it is actively soliciting candidates who can operate and represent the brand in markets across Arizona. The company’s stated objective is deliberately measured — two to three franchisees in the first year — suggesting a cautious, controlled rollout intended to preserve the culture and operational standards established by Haymaker’s original locations.
Haymaker’s franchising outreach targets owner-operators who share the brand’s family-centered values. The company has emphasized interest in applicants who fit that profile, naming military veterans and family entrepreneurs as particularly encouraged candidates. The company has also identified supporting veteran ownership as a priority; it plans to offer exclusive incentives to qualifying U.S. armed forces veterans, with eligibility dependent on verification of service, candidate qualifications and the terms contained in the franchise disclosure document.
Prospective franchisees will be able to find specific application details and franchise materials through the company’s franchising webpage. Those who move forward as partners can expect to receive direct support from Haymaker’s leadership team, which will provide mentorship and operational guidance as new units are launched and integrated into the brand. That support is positioned as part of the company’s effort to ensure continuity in food quality, service standards and the neighborhood-centric experience that Haymaker has cultivated at its existing locations.
While the initial outreach and recruitment are focused on Arizona, Haymaker’s leadership has left open the possibility of expanding beyond state lines at some point in the future. The company has not announced any concrete plans for out-of-state expansion or identified specific markets outside Arizona. For now, the immediate priority is identifying qualified franchise partners who can steward the brand’s West Valley identity and replicate its casual, comfort-food approach in other Arizona communities.
Haymaker’s menu and restaurant environment are central to the pitch to potential franchisees. The restaurants are built around hearty, familiar dishes — staples like barbecue and meatloaf alongside breakfast items such as omelets, as well as salads and other comfort offerings — served in settings that emphasize family and local ties. That positioning underpins Haymaker’s recruitment message: the brand seeks operators who understand and value community-minded dining and who are committed to maintaining the personal-service feel the restaurants have cultivated over the last 13 years.
A visual from the restaurant shows a plated steak entree accompanied by a Haymaker-branded mason jar drink on a table, underscoring the brand’s comfort-food focus and hospitality-driven presentation. A steak entree and a Haymaker‑branded mason jar drink on a restaurant table — The Haymaker is targeting 2–3 new franchisees this year.
Those interested in pursuing a franchise agreement are directed to the company’s franchise information online for application steps and additional qualifications. The recruitment materials reiterate the brand’s preference for owner-operators who will be hands-on and who align with Haymaker’s family-first ethos. As Haymaker begins to select franchise partners and execute agreements over the next year, the company intends to provide the kind of direct oversight and mentorship that it says will help new franchisees replicate the guest experience at the current Goodyear, Buckeye and Peoria locations.
Haymaker’s entry into franchising represents a notable turning point for the West Valley concept: after more than a decade of operating a small cluster of company-owned restaurants, the business is opening the door to external partners and a broader geographic footprint. The company has set modest near-term targets for partner recruitment and framed veteran ownership as a priority for incentives and outreach, while also promising mentor-led support for franchise partners as the brand grows within Arizona. For prospective franchisees, the next step is to review the company’s online materials and submit applications in line with the qualifications outlined by Haymaker and Westside Concepts.