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Food, wine and fun – a recipe for success with Belles Hot Chicken

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The mind of a wine bar. The heart of a country kitchen. The soul of a block party – all served with some of the best fried chicken on the planet. If this sounds like a restaurant you’d love to own, this could be your lucky day.

Over the past six years, Belles Hot Chicken has built a national – and international – reputation for Nashville Hot Chicken, spicy fried chicken at its best. Ranked by the Australian Financial Review as the 79th best restaurant of any kind in Australia in 2015, in 2019 Belles made the long list for the World Restaurant Awards ‘House Special’ category for restaurants focusing on one thing and doing it outstandingly well.

Belles also broadens its appeal by pairing its delicious hot chicken with natural wines.

“These are made the old-fashioned way, before mass machinery and chemicals became part of the process,” says Belles founding chef Morgan McGlone. “Natural wines reflect the honesty and integrity of great people who do interesting things, and we love sharing the stories behind every bottle.”

The first chance to join the team

There are currently six Belles Hot Chicken restaurants in prime city locations – three each in Melbourne and Sydney. They’re known for attracting high-profile visitors such as Serena Williams, Wu-tan Clan, Kim Kardashian and Bruno Mars as well as an enthusiastic and loyal band of locals. And now McGlone and his founding partner Miranda Campbell are in the perfect position to expand.

“We’ve just launched an ownership program and we’re recruiting talented and committed owner-operators in Victoria, New South Wales, Queensland and Western Australia,” McGlone says. “This is the first time we’ve offered franchises – the first opportunity to be part of this exciting wave of growth and build your own business as part of our highly-successful brand.”

Learning from the best

During his years as a chef in Nashville, Tennessee, McGlone learned all the secrets of Southern spices. Back in Australia, he applied his talent and flair to traditional recipes to produce the signature crunch coatings ranging in spice from lightly seasoned ‘Southern’ all the way to the eye-watering ‘Sex Panther’. Sandwiches and sides also reflect the same delicious flavours.

Running six restaurants also honed both founders’ business skills.

“We’ve learned exactly what works and what doesn’t work in every aspect of the business, from the food and wines on offer to a robust business plan,” McGlone says. “Now we’re sharing all of that information and advice along with extensive training to ensure our franchisees have everything they need to have fun owning and managing a profitable restaurant.”

10 steps to success

Belles has developed a straightforward 10-stage process to take you from registering your interest to opening your own restaurant. To find out more, visit https://belleshotchicken.com/owner to arrange a chat with Belles’ Owner Recruitment Manager.

If you care about making people happy and feel right at home with the unique Belles vibe, get in touch. You might just have found your franchise tribe.