Baba SajFranchise Cost, Revenue & Review 2026
Data from FDD filing
FranchiseVerdict summary · 2026
A Baba Saj franchise requires a total initial investment of $352K – $556K, including a $55K franchise fee and an ongoing 5.0% royalty[2]. The 2025 FDD does not disclose unit-level revenue (no Item 19). Verdict grade: B. Run a live ROI scan →
Data last verified June 18, 2026 · figures per the 2025 FDD issuance
Overview
- Investment
- $352K – $556K
- 24th pct Service Resta…
- Avg gross sales
- N/A
- 28th pct Service Resta…
- Royalty
- 5.0%
- 7th pct Service Resta…
- Units
- 2
- 6th pct Service Resta…
- SBA default
- N/A
Quick verdict · Full-Service Restaurants · color = vs category peers
Green = >15% above Full-Service Restaurants avg · No shading = within ±15% · Red = >15% below avg · Source: FDD filings + SBA 7(a)
Data from public FDD filings and SBA records. Not financial advice. Methodology
Started franchising in 2024. Newer systems carry more uncertainty but may offer better territories.
Bottom line
- Total investment $352K – $556K including a $55K franchise fee, 5.0% ongoing royalty.
- No Item 19 financial performance data disclosed. The franchisor chose not to publish revenue figures.
- Verdict B (Above Average) with a risk score of 62/100.
- No Item 19 financial performance representation. Without franchisor-disclosed revenue data, you'll need to gather unit economics directly from existing franchisees.
Item 1 · who you're contracting with
The Franchisor
- Legal entity
- Baba Saj Restaurant Group LLC
- Predecessor
- companies
- Prior franchisor entity
- CEO title
- CEO
- Ahmad Ali Alzoubi
- CEO experience
- 6 yrs
- Years in role or industry
- Founder active
- Yes
- Original founder still leading the business
- Incorporated in
- IL
- HQ
- 11026 South Cicero Avenue, Oak Lawn, Illinois, 60453
- Auditor
- Kezos & Dunlavy
- Audited financials
- Franchisor revenue
- $0
- vs $0 prior year
Overview
About
Baba Saj operates fast-casual Middle Eastern/Mediterranean restaurants featuring customizable saj (griddle-cooked wraps) and bowls. Franchisees manage daily kitchen operations, customer service, inventory control, and local marketing while adhering to standardized recipes and operational procedures. The model emphasizes quick-service throughput with limited seating, comparable to fast-casual concepts like Cava or Sweetgreen.
- CEO
- Ahmad Ali Alzoubi
- Founded
- 2023
- FDD year
- 2025
- States available
- 1
FDD Item 7 · 2025 filing · 19 line items
Initial investment breakdown
| Line item | Low | High | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Initial Franchise Fee | $55K | $55K | |
| Your Training Expenses | $10K | $20K | |
| On-Site Trainer's Travel Expenses | $10K | $12K | |
| Premises Lease and Utility Deposits | $6K | $13K | |
| Design and Architectural Fees | $10K | $15K | |
| Leasehold Improvements, Construction and/or Remodeling | $100K | $150K | |
| Furniture, Fixtures and Equipment | $100K | $150K | |
| Signage | $5K | $15K | |
| Business Licenses and Permits | $1K | $2K | |
| Computer Systems / POS | $2K | $4K | |
| Security System | $500 | $1K | |
| Initial Inventory | $20K | $30K | |
| Initial Inventory - Proprietary Items | $20K | $30K | |
| Office Equipment and Supplies | $1K | $2K | |
| Professional Fees | $2K | $3K | |
| Grand Opening Advertising | $2K | $3K | |
| Insurance | $500 | $1K | |
| Additional Funds - 3 months | $7K | $50K | |
| Development Fee (Multi-Unit Development Agreement, minimum two outlets) | $96K | $96K | |
| Total initial investment | $448K | $652K |
Line items extracted from FDD Item 7. Ranges reflect the franchisor's stated low and high per line. Total is the sum of line-item lows / highs — actual costs may fall outside this range depending on market and build-out scope.
Item 7 · what it costs to open + operate
The Vitals
- Total investment
- $352K – $556K
- Better than avg vs category
- Liquid capital req'd
- $7K – $50K
- Better than avg vs category
- Franchise fee
- $55K – $55K
- Near category avg vs category
- Royalty
- 5.0%
- percentage_of_gross · typical 6–8%
- Ad fund
- Currently 2% of weekly Gross Revenue
- Total fee load
- 7.0%
- vs 9–13% typical
Ongoing fees · Item 6
| Fee | Amount |
|---|---|
| Royalty | 5.0% of gross sales |
| Technology fee | $50 |
| Transfer fee | $50 |
| Renewal fee | $50 |
| Inventory (initial) | $40K – $60K |
| Total fee load | 7.0% of rev |
Financial Performance
This franchisor did not disclose financial performance representations in Item 19, or our extractor could not parse them.
vs Full-Service Restaurants averages
How Baba Saj Compares
Unit growth
Item 20 · unit dynamics
The Growth Chart
- Total units
- 2
- Opened
- 0
- Last reporting year
- Closed
- 0
- Terminated
- 0
- Franchisor ended the franchise (per Item 20)
- Non-renewed
- 0
- Term expired, not renewed (per Item 20)
- Turnover rate
- 0.0%
- Company-owned
- 2
- Corporate units in the system
- % franchised
- 0%
- vs corporate-owned
3-year detail · Item 20
- Transfers (3yr)
- 0
- Projected new
- 0
- Franchisor's next-year forecast
Year-over-year franchised unit counts and net change. Source: FDD Item 20.
Item 20 · 16 states with active franchisees
The Territory Map
Derived from franchisee contact records. Shows states with at least one current operator. Not where the franchisor is registered to sell new units (that data is re-extracting in a future refresh).
States derived from franchisee contact records (FDD Item 20). Shows states with at least one current operator on file. Full state registration data (Item 12) will appear on a future FDD refresh.
SBA loan performance
Government records
SBA Loan Data
Aggregated from SBA 7(a) and 504 loan disclosures, public data unique to FranchiseVerdict.
No SBA loan data available for this brand.
Risk analysis
FranchiseVerdict rating + FDD Items 3, 5, 6, 12, 17
Risk & Legal
Pre-revenue stage franchisor with only 2 units, no financial disclosure, and going concern issues presents acute risk of franchisor failure and franchisee capital loss.
Litigation (Item 3)
No litigation required to be disclosed
Bankruptcy (Item 4)
None disclosed
Audited financials (Item 21)
Yes · Kezos & Dunlavy
Franchisor revenue (Item 21)
Franchisor entity revenue (not unit-level)
Supplier relationship · Items 8 & 16
- Franchisor sells you products: No
- Kickbacks from required suppliers: No
- Must buy proprietary products: Yes
- Restricted to system-approved products: Yes
- Can negotiate own supplier terms: No
Score breakdown · what drove the 62 / 100 rating
- 01MINOROnly 2 units in system with unknown growth trajectory suggests nascent or stalled expansion
- 02MINORNo Item 19 (average revenue/net income) disclosure prevents ROI validation and raises transparency concerns
- 03HIGHGoing concern status = False indicates potential financial instability at franchisor level
- 04MINORHigh initial investment ($351.5K-$555.5K) relative to system size creates liquidity risk if franchise fails
- 05MEDExtremely limited franchisee reference pool (only 2 units) makes due diligence validation nearly impossible
- 06MINOR5% royalty on gross revenue (not net) means fees paid even during unprofitable periods
Severity inferred from the FDD text · not a regulatory classification
FDD Items 5, 6, 12, 17 · continued from Risk & Legal
Contract & Territory Detail
| Initial term | 10 years |
|---|---|
| Renewal term | 5 years |
| Allowed renewalsℹ | 2 |
| Territory type | Radius |
| Protected territory | Yes |
| Exclusive territoryℹ | No |
| Territory radius | 5 mi |
| Online sales rights | Restricted |
| Franchisor can compete | Yes |
| Hire a manager? | Allowed |
| Owner-operator | Optional |
| Non-compete (years)ℹ | 2 years |
| Non-compete (miles)ℹ | 10 mi |
| Right of first refusalℹ | Yes |
| RoFR response window | 30 days |
| Transfer requires consent | Yes |
| Termination notice | 5 days |
| Mandatory arbitration | Yes |
| Governing law | Illinois |
| Litigation count | 0 |
View Item 3 litigation summary
No litigation required to be disclosed
Items 10, 11
Training & Operations
- Classroom training
- 19 hrs
- On-the-job training
- 301 hrs
- Training location
- On-site and off-site
- Ongoing training
- Required
- Time to open
- 5 mo
- From signing to launch
- POS system
- CLOVER POS
- Operating tech stack
Items 5 & 11
Franchisor Support
Technology: CLOVER POS
Item 20 · call current owners
Franchisee Contacts
16 owners to call
Name · phone · city · state. Extracted from FDD Item 20
FDD download
Baba Saj · FDD (2025) PDF
Frequently asked questions
Frequently Asked Questions
How much does it cost to open a Baba Saj franchise?
The total investment to open a Baba Saj franchise ranges from $352K – $556K, with an initial franchise fee of $55K. This includes real estate, equipment, inventory, and working capital as disclosed in their Franchise Disclosure Document (FDD).
What do Baba Saj franchise owners earn?
Baba Saj does not disclose average franchise owner earnings in their FDD Item 19. Not all franchisors are required to make financial performance representations. We recommend asking existing franchisees directly about their financial experience.
What is Baba Saj's franchise failure rate?
SBA 7(a) loan charge-off data is not available for Baba Saj (fewer than 10 loans on file). Charge-off rates are one way to gauge franchise risk, but not all franchise loans go through the SBA program. We recommend reviewing turnover and closure data in the FDD and speaking with current franchisees.
How many Baba Saj franchise locations are there?
As of their most recent FDD filing, Baba Saj has 2 total units in the United States, including 0 franchised units and 2 company-owned units.
Is Baba Saj a good franchise to buy?
FranchiseVerdict rates Baba Saj as a B-grade franchise with a risk score of 62 out of 100, based on our analysis of investment costs, revenue data, SBA loan performance, and growth trends. Our rating is based solely on publicly available FDD and government data; we recommend speaking with current franchisees before making any investment decision. This is not investment advice.
Data sourced from public FDD filings and SBA 7(a) FOIA records. Not financial advice.
For franchisors
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Data extracted from public FDD filings and SBA 7(a) loan disclosures (FOIA). This information is provided for research purposes only and does not constitute financial, legal, or investment advice. Verify all figures with the franchisor's current Franchise Disclosure Document before making any investment decision.