Operations
Big Dave's Cheesesteaks thrives on culture, customer service, training
Derrick Hayes has three pillars for his cheesesteak brand: customer service, tight training and strict adherence to the brand's culture. Big Dave's Cheesesteaks recently inked a deal for 10 units in Florida, the brand's first franchising contract.
January 23, 2024 by Mandy Wolf Detwiler — Editor, Networld Media Group
Derrick Hayes is a man on a mission. That mission? To bring traditional cheesesteaks to the South, a feat he believes no one has done correctly.
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Derrick Hayes started Big Dave's Cheesteaks. Photo: Big Dave's Cheesesteaks |
Hayes, CEO and founder of Big Dave's Cheesesteaks, moved to Atlanta from West Philadelphia in 2014. He launched his brand in a Shell gas station location that weighed in at a little over 700 square feet. "Big Dave" was Hayes' father and to whom he dedicated his brand.
"I wanted to be the person to bring the real deal to the South," Hayes said in a phone interview with QSRweb. "Before my father died, I told him I would stay out of trouble and I would break my generational curses. I was looking for that next thing to do."
He started out selling Italian ice, what's called "water ice" in Philadelphia. He learned to cook from his grandfather, who would make Hayes finish cooking Sunday dinner when he didn't want to go to church.
"I have a really special gift with seasonings," Hayes said. "I know how food is going to taste before it's cooked because my grandfather gave me that gift. He was always working with spices with me in the kitchen. I was able to create this spice for Big Dave's that the world loves today. Out of all of our items, it goes on almost everything."
Hayes was able to grow the concept "by bringing all things cheesesteak to the South, which had never been done in the right way," he said, adding great cheesesteaks are made with the right bread — protecting the culture of the sandwich.
It was after moving to Atlanta, when he couldn't find a traditional cheesesteak anywhere, that he decided to create his own.
Eventually, with up to 200 people in line for a cheesesteak, the brand grew out of its gas station location and into its own store. Today, Big Dave's has four brick-and-mortar restaurants in Atlanta, one under construction in Charlotte, North Carolina, a food truck and three spots in the Mercedes Benz Stadium. Two locations were built in the past year alone.
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Photo: Big Dave's Cheesesteaks |
On the menu
What sets Big Dave's apart from the competition? Hayes said it's the seasoning and the marinade of the meat, including beef, chicken and even salmon.
"What we do is we really stay true to the West Philly style of cheesesteak," Jessie Bray, president of Big Dave's Cheesesteaks, said in the phone interview. "There are a lot of different styles of cheesesteaks out there, and with us, it's about the quality of the ingredients that we have, it's about the chop (of the meats) … and it's about having the Amoroso roll, which is the authentic, traditional cheesesteak roll.
"Having all of those things stay true to the real nature of what Derrick grew up with is what's made us different as a whole on top of the seasoning."
Even today, when they work on menu ideation, they ask "is this authentic?" For instance, a recent discussion centered around bell peppers and if they go on cheesesteaks — they don't in Philadelphia but do elsewhere.
Cheesesteaks are the restaurants' top sellers and come in 6-inch or 10-inch sizes. Hayes is adamant the sandwiches be called "cheesesteaks" and not "Phillys."
The cheesesteak eggrolls, which come in chicken, beef, buffalo chicken and salmon, also sell well. And loaded fries are also a hit. The seasoned fries are topped with cheesesteak toppings.
Cheesesteak eggrolls sell well because "you're taking something that's a bite-sized item, and if you were on the go or in your vehicle, it's less messy than the actual cheesesteak. I think that's why it because such a hot item," Hayes said.
The brand offers two seasonal desserts like water ice and Hayes' mother's banana pudding.
Bray said combo meals sell well, which include a cheesesteak, fries and a soda.
The menu is kept small for ease of execution but also to stay authentic to Philadelphia, Bray said. "There's a lot of things that you could put on the menu but they really don't, from a brand DNA perspective, meet the concept that is 'A taste of Philly."
A tight, concise menu helps customers make quick and easy decisions when ordering.
Hayes said just as you'd go to Chicago looking for a deep-dish pizza, you'd expect a cheesesteak place to stay authentic to the sandwich.
"We wanted to make sure all items on the menu made sense and represented the Philly brand," he said.
Bray said the brand has made a conscious decision to be inclusive with the menu by not offering pork. That allows Big Dave's to serve under-represented communities and to go into more locations.
Employees working the grill have to make one of the brand's signature beef sandwiches and taste it with the manager at the beginning of each shift to make sure they're using the right amounts of seasoning and cheese and to ensure they're cooking it properly. "They get recertified at each shift," Bray explained. "It costs us a little bit of money obviously to do it, but it's better than having a complaint like 'My cheesesteak tastes different than it did someplace else."
Operations
Putting production in place came from bringing in a team headed by Bray.
"In the early days, we'd have 200 people in line and it'd take two to three hours to get them their sandwiches. Now, our production is a lot faster. We kill lines a lot faster than we used to," Hayes said.
Small dining rooms range in size from six to 15 tables depending on the size of the location. Bray said most of the business is carryout, however, which makes up 80% of Big Dave's business.
The culture of Big Dave's is instrumental in its consistency.
Hayes cites the company's Blue Apron program, which matches employees' skills with jobs. They don't look for employees who simply seek a paycheck, instead they look for team members who will take on and protect the culture of Big Dave's Cheesesteaks.
Employees "see growth at Big Dave's," Hayes added. "They see that they can get up to the highest level (of jobs). We have people that worked in the restaurants and now became managers. They see that they can move up … so that helps us with customer service. It helps us with culture, and that helps us with keeping the restaurants in good shape because they actually really care. We don't have people in the restaurants that are just here to work and get their paycheck."
Franchising
Big Dave's Cheesesteaks recently began franchising. Hayes said he had planned to franchise years ago, but now realizes he wasn't ready then. It wasn't until he hired the right team that franchising became a real possibility.
His executive team has more than 80 years of combined restaurant experience.
"I feel good about that because I'm not in this world alone trying to fight a battle that I'm not sure about," Hayes said. "I've got experts helping me get to that mountaintop."
Hayes' goal? One hundred stores sold by 2025.
His products are distributed by Sysco throughout the U.S., a feat that he couldn't do years ago.
The brand recently inked a 10-unit franchise deal in Florida with former PepsiCo President Derek Lewis.
"We're kicking off what's going to be an exciting and long-term partnership. When Derrick announced the franchising deal, I was genuinely intrigued. After meeting Derrick and visiting Big Dave's for the very first time, it just clicked for me — this place deserves to be everywhere in the U.S., and now it's happening," Lewis said in a press release announcing the deal.
Lewis is targeting locations in Lake, Brevard, Volusia, Orange, Osceola and Seminole counties.
Bray said the brand feels comfortable growing anywhere inside the U.S., but Big Dave's is targeting Florida, the Southeast, California, Michigan, Texas, Louisiana and Nevada. He added the team believes in high support as a franchisor. "Too many franchisors are hands off," Bray said, "and that's not a philosophy we want to take. We want to help them, and we want to help them grow in their business.
Hayes said with training, he believes a Big Dave's can go anywhere. The brand's team has worked hard on its systems and procedures to ensure consistency across the brand as it grows outside of Atlanta.
"Training and customer service is everything for us along with the culture because if you don't have those three elements, you're going to have a failing business," Hayes explained. "I don't care how popular the brand is. … We've been able to develop these things at a high level and we feel confident that anywhere we go that those three pillars are going to be in every single restaurant we put up."
About Mandy Wolf Detwiler
Mandy Wolf Detwiler is the managing editor at Networld Media Group and the site editor for PizzaMarketplace.com and QSRweb.com. She has more than 20 years’ experience covering food, people and places.
An award-winning print journalist, Mandy brings more than 20 years’ experience to Networld Media Group. She has spent nearly two decades covering the pizza industry, from independent pizzerias to multi-unit chains and every size business in between. Mandy has been featured on the Food Network and has won numerous awards for her coverage of the restaurant industry. She has an insatiable appetite for learning, and can tell you where to find the best slices in the country after spending 15 years traveling and eating pizza for a living.
