Extreme Pita is a Canadian-based

fast-casual A fast casual restaurant, found primarily in the United States and Canada, does not offer full table service, but advertises higher quality food than fast food restaurants, with fewer frozen or processed ingredients. It is an intermediate conc ...

chain, owned by

MTY Group MTY Food Group is a Canadian franchisor and operator of numerous casual dining, fast casual, and quick service restaurants operating under more than 70 brand names, some of them through wholly owned subsidiaries. Headquartered in the Montreal boro ...

. Headquartered in

Richmond Hill, Ontario Richmond Hill ( 2021 population: 202,022) is a city in south-central York Region, Ontario, Canada. Part of the Greater Toronto Area, it is the York Region's third most populous municipality and the 27th most populous municipality in Canada. Ric ...

, the company has more than 175 units throughout Canada and the United States. Extreme Pita serves

pita Pita ( or ) or pitta (British English), is a family of yeast-leavened round flatbreads baked from wheat flour, common in the Mediterranean, Middle East, and neighboring areas. It includes the widely known version with an interior pocket, als ...

sandwiches,

salad A salad is a dish consisting of mixed, mostly natural ingredients with at least one raw ingredient. They are typically served at room temperature or chilled, though some can be served warm. Condiments and salad dressings, which exist in a v ...

s, and pizza-style "flat-baked" pitas. Available ingredients include fresh vegetables, cheeses, meats and vegetarian options such as

falafel Falafel (; ar, فلافل, ) is a deep-fried ball or patty-shaped fritter in Middle Eastern cuisine (especially in Levantine and Egyptian cuisines) made from ground chickpeas, broad beans, or both. Nowadays, falafel is often served in ...

and

hummus Hummus (, ; ar, حُمُّص, 'chickpeas'; full Arabic name: ''ḥummuṣ bi-ṭ-ṭaḥīna'' ar, حمص بالطحينة, 'chickpeas with tahini'), also spelled hommus or houmous, is a Middle Eastern dip, spread, or savory dish made f ...

History

Extreme Pita was founded in 1997 by brothers Alex and Mark Rechichi. The first Extreme Pita opened near

Wilfrid Laurier University Wilfrid Laurier University (commonly referred to as WLU or simply Laurier) is a public university in Ontario, Canada, with campuses in Waterloo, Brantford and Milton. The newer Brantford and Milton campuses are not considered satellite campus ...

Waterloo, Ontario Waterloo is a city in the Canadian province of Ontario. It is one of three cities in the Regional Municipality of Waterloo (formerly Waterloo County). Waterloo is situated about west-southwest of Toronto. Due to the close proximity of the c ...

in 1997, but the original location is no longer operating. The company continued to expand and grow over the years, expanding into new locations in Canada, from 1997 (the year when the first Extreme Pita was opened) to 2003 (when Extreme Pita began to expand into the United States). The expansion challenged already-established fast food companies like

Subway Subway, Subways, The Subway, or The Subways may refer to: Transportation * Subway, a term for underground rapid transit rail systems * Subway (underpass), a type of walkway that passes underneath an obstacle * Subway (George Bush Intercontin ...

and

McDonald's McDonald's Corporation is an American multinational fast food Fast food is a type of mass-produced food designed for commercial resale, with a strong priority placed on speed of service. It is a commercial term, limited to food sold ...

. By 2007, there were about 200 stores in Canada. Extreme Pita claims they are a healthy low fat snack, and is also well known for its vegetarian options. The Canadian-based Extreme Pita began to expand to include stores in the United States in 2003, beginning with Arizona. The company has continued to add locations throughout the United States, mainly through

franchising Franchising is based on a marketing concept which can be adopted by an organization as a strategy for business expansion. Where implemented, a franchisor licenses some or all of its know-how, procedures, intellectual property, use of its busine ...

. Since 2003, Extreme Pita has expanded into locations in California, New York, Texas, and other parts of the Western, Mideastern, and Northeastern United States. In May 2013, Extreme Pita was acquired by MTY Food Group when MTY purchased Extreme Pita's then parent Extreme Brandz from the Rechichi brothers for $45-million.

Extreme Brandz

Extreme Brandz was formed as a holding company for Extreme Pita in 2006 when the owners of Extreme Pita decided to expand into the Mexican fast food business through the launching of

Mucho Burrito MTY Food Group is a Canadian franchisor and operator of numerous casual dining, fast casual, and quick service restaurants operating under more than 70 brand names, some of them through wholly owned subsidiaries. Headquartered in the Montreal boro ...

. PurBlendz was launched in 2008 as smoothie co-brand for existing Extreme Pita operators.

Products

Extreme Pita sells a variety of pita wraps, including cheese steak, falafel and chicken Caesar selections, wrapped in "Lebanese-style" pita bread. These pitas are available in 6 inch and 9 inch sizes. The company also offers soups, salads, and a variety of flat-bread pizza pitas, baked on location. Its products are portrayed as a "healthy alternative to fast food." For example, the cheese and meat used to make their products are unprocessed.

References

External links

* {{MTY Food Group Companies based in Richmond Hill, Ontario Fast-food franchises Fast-food chains of the United States Fast-food chains of Canada Restaurants established in 1997 1997 establishments in Ontario