Taffer’s Tavern Franchise Cost, Revenue & Review 2026
- Investment
- $812K – $1.4M
- Disclosed sales
- partial, no system average
- SBA charge-off
- Not SBA-matched
Data from FDD filing
Analysis by FranchiseVerdict Research · Methodology
Taffer's Tavern is a casual-dining franchise, from Jon Taffer, serving elevated pub food and cocktails in a modern tavern. Franchisees run the restaurants, managing the kitchen, bar, and dining service.
FranchiseVerdict summary · 2026
A Taffer’s Tavern franchise requires a total initial investment of $812K – $1.4M, including a $50K franchise fee and an ongoing 6.0% royalty[2]. The 2025 FDD on file does not yield a unit-revenue figure we can publish. FranchiseVerdict grade: D (Below average), an editorial assessment, not investment advice. Run a live ROI scan →
Sources, dates and evidence
FDD issued: · Data extracted: · Last cited check: · Staleness risk: medium - issued 12 to 24 months ago; a newer filing is likely on file
Evidence: partial✓ Investment (Item 7)✓ Item 19 status✓ Units and owners (Item 20)✗ SBA loan coverage✓ Litigation (Item 3)✓ Financial statements (Item 21)✓ Franchisor identityhow this is scored6 of 6 headline figures on this page cite a page of the filing.
Overview
- Investment
- $812K – $1.4M
- 31st pct Service Resta…
- Avg gross sales
- N/A
- n=1
- Royalty
- 6.0%
- 25th pct Service Resta…
- Units
- 1
- 1st pct Service Resta…
- SBA charge-off
- N/A
Quick verdict · Full-Service Restaurants · color = vs category peers
Green = favorable by >10% vs Full-Service Restaurants median · No shading = within ±10% · Red = unfavorable by >10% · Source: FDD filings + SBA 7(a)
Data from public FDD filings and SBA records. Not financial advice. Methodology
Bottom line
- COSTTotal investment $812K – $1.4M including a $50K franchise fee, 6.0% ongoing royalty.
- RETURNSItem 19 covers a single outlet — the Alpharetta, Georgia restaurant, June 2024 to May 2025 (printed p.50) — and is not an average of anything. Item 20 (printed p.51) shows the franchised system went 1 to 2 to 4 and back to 1 across FY2023-FY2025, so the one reported unit is what remained after three closures.
- RISKVerdict D (Below average), verdict score 34/100 (higher is better).
- GROWTHNegative, pipeline stalled: 2 agreements signed but not yet open against 1 open outlets (Item 20).
- DATAItem 19 reports outlet revenue, but not in a form that yields a per-outlet average we can compare across brands. Ask franchisees directly for full unit-level revenue.
Item 1 · who you're contracting with
The Franchisor
Corporate structure & franchisor financials
- Legal entity
- Premier Taverns LLC
- Parent company
- Craveworthy LLC
- FDD Item 1, page 7 of the 2025 FDD
- Incorporated in
- Nevada
- HQ
- 755 Schneider Drive, South Elgin, Illinois 60177
- Auditor
- DNJ Consulting Inc. dba DNJ & ASSOCIATES
- Audited financials
- Franchisor revenue
- $410K
- vs $983K prior year
Affiliated brands
- Jon Taffer
- Craveworthy
Other brands the franchisor or its parent operates (Item 1).
Same owner · FDD Item 1, page 7
6 other brands on this site name Craveworthy LLC as parent or ultimate parent in their own FDD.
- DIRTY DOUGH® COOKIESC
- Genghis GrillC
- Sigri Indian BBQC
- Taim Mediterranean KitchenD
- The Budlong Southern ChickenD
- Wing It On!C
Grouped by the owner's name as each filing prints it (this page: the 2025 FDD). Spelling variants of the same group may be listed apart; a brand is never grouped with an owner its filing does not name.
Overview
About
- CEO
- Jon Taffer
- Headquarters
- IL
- Founded
- 2019
- FDD year
- 2025
- States available
- 1
Can you afford it, and what does the money buy?
Entry cost runs 60% above the typical full-service restaurants franchise.
Source: FDD 2025 · Items 5–7
Full Item 7 breakdown19 line items
Initial investment breakdown
| Line item | Low | High | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Initial Franchise Feenot refundable | $50K | $50K | |
| Delayed Opening Feenot refundable | $0 | $5K | |
| Leasehold Improvements & Construction Costnot refundable | $210K | $415K | |
| Licenses and Permits (Not Including a Liquor License)not refundable | $10K | $15K | |
| Rent - 3 monthsnot refundable | $0 | $60K | |
| Security Deposits | $5K | $25K | |
| Blueprintsnot refundable | $15K | $30K | |
| Furnishings, Fixtures & Equipmentnot refundable | $330K | $425K | |
| Signage - Interior and Exteriornot refundable | $12K | $40K | |
| Computer Systemnot refundable | $9K | $12K | |
| Travel & Living Expenses While Trainingnot refundable | $0 | $15K | |
| Insurance - 3 Monthsnot refundable | $1K | $2K | |
| Professional Feesnot refundable | $3K | $5K | |
| Grand Opening Advertising Campaignnot refundable | $10K | $25K | |
| Opening Inventory & Suppliesnot refundable | $65K | $80K | |
| On-Site Location Evaluationnot refundable | $0 | $5K | |
| Audio/Visual Systemnot refundable | $25K | $50K | |
| Ancillary Real Estate Costsnot refundable | $3K | $8K | |
| Additional Funds - 3 Monthsnot refundable | $65K | $85K | |
| Total initial investment | $812K | $1.4M |
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
- $812K – $1.4M
- Top 40% of category vs category
- Liquid capital req'd
- $65K – $85K
- Top 40% of category vs category
- Franchise fee
- $50K – $50K
- Top 40% of category vs category
- Royalty
- 6.0%
- typical 6–8%
- Ad fund
- 2.0%
- typical 3–5%
- Total fee load
- 8.0%
- vs 9–13% typical
Ongoing fees · Item 6
| Fee | Amount |
|---|---|
| Royalty | 6.0% of gross sales |
| Marketing / ad fund | 2.0% of gross sales |
| Technology fee | $200 |
| Transfer fee | $15K |
| Renewal fee | $5K |
| Inventory (initial) | $65K – $80K |
| Total fee load | 8.0% of rev |
What do units actually make?
Source: FDD 2025 · Item 19
ROI & LBO modelsSingle-unit · 25-unit portfolio · editable
No Item 19 revenue figure for Taffer’s Tavern is on file. The return models need a revenue figure to start from, and the operating costs that turn gross sales into a profit are in no FDD. Enter your own and the calculator runs on your assumptions — nothing here is modelled until you do.
Returns model · single-unit ROIC
What would one Taffer’s Tavern unit return on the cash you put in?
Illustrative category typicals — not sourced to any filing, survey or sample. Replace them with figures from franchisee validation calls before you rely on the output.
Unlevered ROIC · per unit
Your modelled return on total invested capital, before any debt financing.
—
An FDD discloses gross sales, not profit. We hold no sourced figure for annual revenue, COGS, labour, rent / occupancy and other operating costs, and will not substitute an assumed one. Enter your own and the model runs on your assumptions.
These models are for research and scenario planning only. Not investment advice. Actual results depend on your specific location, management, and market conditions. Consult a franchise attorney and accountant before signing any franchise agreement.
Item 19 · Source: 2025 FDD
Financial Performance
Item 19 covers a single outlet — the Alpharetta, Georgia restaurant, June 2024 to May 2025 (printed p.50) — and is not an average of anything. Item 20 (printed p.51) shows the franchised system went 1 to 2 to 4 and back to 1 across FY2023-FY2025, so the one reported unit is what remained after three closures.
Based on a single reporting unit - not a system average
- Item 19 type
- Actual
- Sample size
- 1
- vs category median 18 · small
- Reported figure
- $3.0MCited, not corroborated — printed on page 56 of the 2025 FDD. Nothing else in our record independently restates or re-derives it.
- A single outlet — not a range
- Reporting year
- 2025
- Fiscal year the figures cover
- Source filing
- FDD 2025
- The FDD edition these figures were read from
- Transparency
- 3 / 10
- vs category median 3 / 10 · typical
Compared against 801 Full-Service Restaurants brands
Operator outlook
What the numbers say
Data-driven interpretation of this brand's financial disclosures, fee structure, and system trajectory.
Fee burden
Total ongoing fee load of 8.0% (near the Full-Service Restaurants median).
Disclosure
Item 19 reports outlet revenue, but not in a form that yields a per-outlet average we can compare across brands.
Source: FDD Item 19 financial performance representations and publicly filed FDD data. Past performance is not indicative of future results. Verify all figures with the franchisor and current franchisees before making any investment decision.
vs Full-Service Restaurants medians
How Taffer’s Tavern Compares
Category median of published Full-Service Restaurants brands that report the figure; the middle half spans the 25th to 75th percentile and n counts the brands behind it. Medians are used because a few very large systems pull an average far from the typical brand. Revenue is disclosed gross sales, not profit.
Is the system healthy?
Source: FDD 2025 · Item 20
Unit growth
Item 20 · unit dynamics
The Growth Chart
- Total units
- 1
- Opened
- 0
- Last reporting year
- Closed
- 3
- Terminated
- 0
- Franchisor ended the franchise (per Item 20)
- Non-renewed
- 0
- Term expired, not renewed (per Item 20)
- Turnover rate
- 100.0%
- Company-owned
- 0
- Corporate units in the system
- % franchised
- 100%
- vs corporate-owned
Last fiscal year · Item 20 exits and transfers
- Terminated
- 0
- Not renewed
- 0
- Transferred
- 0
- Reacquired
- 0
- Franchisor bought back
- Signed, not yet open
- 2
- 2.00 per open outlet · Item 20 Table 5
- Projected new
- 3
- Franchisor's next-year forecast
- Continuity rate
- 25.0%
- Units that stayed open
Year-over-year franchised unit counts and net change. Source: FDD Item 20.
Item 12 · 1 state reported
The Territory Map
FDD Item 12 reports the state count, but the specific list isn't in our current data. The map will appear once we re-extract from the FDD or enough franchisee contacts are available.
1
states with franchisees (per FDD Item 12)
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.
What could kill this investment?
Source: SBA 7(a) FOIA · FDD Items 3, 21
Risk analysis
FranchiseVerdict rating + FDD Items 3, 4, 8, 16, 21
Risk & Legal
Financial distress flagged: net worth -$2.46M and net income -$759,813 on only $409,694 revenue in a single-unit system. Two pending suits (fraud/fraudulent inducement) against affiliated Craveworthy brands, not directly against Taffer's entity. Audited with Item 19 disclosed (avg gross $2.98M), but negative equity plus affiliate fraud litigation stack concerns.
Litigation (Item 3)
Subject: the franchisor is a named party (defendant).
Two pending cases against Craveworthy-affiliated brands (Big Chicken franchisee dispute over Development/License Agreement breach with counterclaims of fraud; Dirty Dough franchisee suit alleging fraudulent inducement seeking $465,000). No litigation disclosed against Premier Taverns LLC (Taffer's Tavern) itself.
Bankruptcy (Item 4)
None disclosed
Audited financials (Item 21)
Yes · DNJ Consulting Inc. dba DNJ & ASSOCIATES
Franchisor revenue (Item 21)
Franchisor entity revenue (not unit-level)
Supplier relationship · Items 8 & 16
- Franchisor sells you products: No
- Kickbacks from required suppliers: Yes
- Must buy proprietary products: Yes
- Restricted to system-approved products: No
- Can negotiate own supplier terms: No
Score breakdown · what drove the 34 / 100 verdict
- 01MINORNegative net worth -$2.46M, net income -$759,813
- 02MINOROnly 1 unit, revenue $409,694
- 03HIGHTwo pending affiliate suits alleging fraud/fraudulent inducement
- 04MEDNo going-concern note, Item 19 disclosed
Severity inferred from the FDD text · not a regulatory classification
What are you signing up for?
Ongoing fees run about 8.0% of sales (royalty + ad fund), before rent and labor.
Source: FDD 2025 · Items 11, 12, 17
FDD Items 12, 15, 17 · continued from Risk & Legal
Contract & Territory Detail
| Initial term | 10 years |
|---|---|
| Renewal term | 10 years |
| Allowed renewalsℹ | 1 |
| Territory type | No territory protection |
| Protected territory | No |
| Exclusive territoryℹ | No |
| Territory radius | 2 mi |
| Online sales rightsℹ | Restricted |
| Franchisor can compete | Yes |
| Hire a manager? | Allowed |
| Owner-operator | Required |
| Non-compete (years)ℹ | 2 years |
| Non-compete (miles)ℹ | 20 mi |
| Right of first refusalℹ | Yes |
| Transfer requires consent | Yes |
| Termination notice | 30 days |
| Termination groundsℹ | 2 |
| Curable defaultsℹ | 3 |
| Mandatory arbitration | Yes |
| Arbitration location | Clark County, Nevada |
| Jury trial waiver | Yes |
| Governing law | Nevada |
| Litigation count | 2 |
View Item 3 litigation summary
Two pending cases against Craveworthy-affiliated brands (Big Chicken franchisee dispute over Development/License Agreement breach with counterclaims of fraud; Dirty Dough franchisee suit alleging fraudulent inducement seeking $465,000). No litigation disclosed against Premier Taverns LLC (Taffer's Tavern) itself.
Items 10, 11
Training & Operations
- Classroom training
- 49 hrs
- On-the-job training
- 42 hrs
- Training location
- On-site and corporate
- Ongoing training
- Required
- Site selection
- franchisor
- Franchisor financing
- Offered
- Item 10
- POS system
- Shift4Payments & POS
- Operating tech stack
Items 5 & 11
Franchisor Support
Technology: Shift4Payments & POS
Frequently asked questions
Frequently Asked Questions
How much does it cost to open a Taffer’s Tavern franchise?
The total investment to open a Taffer’s Tavern franchise ranges from $812K – $1.4M, with an initial franchise fee of $50K. This includes real estate, equipment, inventory, and working capital as disclosed in their Franchise Disclosure Document (FDD).
What do Taffer’s Tavern franchise owners earn?
Item 19 of the Taffer’s Tavern FDD discloses outlet figures from $3.0M to $3.0M but no single average across all outlets. These are gross sales figures, not profit; the Revenue section shows what the filing reports and on what basis. Item 20 of the FDD lists current and former franchisees; asking them directly is the standard way to fill this gap.
Who owns Taffer’s Tavern?
Taffer’s Tavern is franchised by Premier Taverns LLC. Its parent company is Craveworthy LLC. Source: FDD Item 1, 2025 filing.
What is Item 19 in the Taffer’s Tavern FDD?
The FDD section where a franchisor may disclose financial performance of its outlets. Disclosure is optional and formats vary; figures are typically gross sales, which is revenue before expenses, not profit. FranchiseVerdict extracts these figures directly from the Taffer’s Tavern FDD and qualifies whose outlets they describe.
What is Taffer’s Tavern's franchise failure rate?
SBA 7(a) loan charge-off data is not available for Taffer’s Tavern (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 Taffer’s Tavern franchise locations are there?
As of their most recent FDD filing, Taffer’s Tavern has 1 total units in the United States, including 1 franchised units and 0 company-owned units.
Is Taffer’s Tavern a good franchise to buy?
FranchiseVerdict rates Taffer’s Tavern as a D-grade franchise with a verdict score of 34 out of 100 (higher is better). The grade is a deterministic score built from six weighted dimensions — financial health, unit economics, unit growth, scale, legal, and transparency — then calibrated against SBA loan charge-off rates and FDD age. Transparency is one of the six, so a filing that discloses less scores lower on that dimension than one that discloses more. 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.