Ascent Hospitality Management

What Ascent Hospitality Management does

Ascent Hospitality Management is a privately held, multi-brand family dining platform headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia, founded in 2019 to acquire and revitalize legacy restaurant brands. The company wholly owns and operates two iconic North American brands: Perkins Restaurant & Bakery (founded 1958), a family dining concept known for its four-day-part menu, all-day breakfast, and proprietary in-store bakery; and Huddle House (founded 1964), a neighborhood diner offering homestyle meals "any meal, any time." Together, the brands operate 598 locations across the United States and Canada, supported by an in-house Ascent Distribution Center that supplies food, smallwares, and supplies to the network.

The business model is primarily franchise-led, with Ascent monetizing through upfront franchise fees, ongoing royalties, and the operation of approximately 86 company-owned Perkins units. Franchise incentive programs—including a $0 franchise fee and first-year royalty waivers for on-time openings—are used to accelerate multi-unit operator development. Distribution and supply-chain services provide an additional revenue stream, and the company is expanding off-premise channels through perkinstogo.com, DoorDash, and Uber Eats, including a bakery-only delivery concept that taps the $11 billion bakery segment.

The platform serves two primary customer segments: individual restaurant guests seeking family-friendly homestyle dining across breakfast, lunch, and dinner; and proven multi-unit franchise operators who gain access to established brand formulas, supply chain infrastructure, and unit economics (Perkins AUV $1.7M+). Recent leadership additions—including a new CEO in October 2025 and dedicated brand presidents for both Perkins and Huddle House in late 2025/early 2026—signal a renewed focus on national franchise expansion, brand modernization, and potential additional brand acquisitions.

Name

Ascent Hospitality Management

Legal name

Ascent Hospitality Management

Website

https://ascenthm.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2019

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

5,001–10,000 employees

Short description

Ascent Hospitality Management is a privately held multi-brand family dining platform that owns and franchises Perkins Restaurant & Bakery and Huddle House across 598 locations in the U.S. and Canada, serving consumers and multi-unit franchise operators.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Family Dining Restaurants

NAICS

Full-Service Restaurants (722511), Restaurants and Other Eating Places (72251), Caterers (722320), Food Service Contractors (722310)

SIC

Retail-Eating Places (5812), Services-Facilities Support Management Services (8744), Services-Membership Organizations (8600)

akta.pro primary industry

Ski Areas & Lift Operations (Independent Mountains) (THAAAJAB)

akta.pro secondary industries

Hotel & Resort Banqueting (In-House Catering) (THAHAKAC), Catering Coordination & Bar Service Management (Non-restaurant) (HSACAAAH)

Keywords

• Restaurant franchising
• Family dining brands
• Multi-unit franchise development
• Breakfast restaurant chains
• Restaurant supply chain distribution

Headquarters

HQ city

Atlanta

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B and B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Supply Chain, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Franchise Royalties and Fees: Revenue generated from franchise fees and ongoing royalty payments from franchise operators across Perkins and Huddle House brands. Franchise incentive programs offered including $0 franchise fee and waived first-year royalties for locations opening on time.
2. Company-Owned Restaurant Operations: Revenue from company-owned and operated Perkins and Huddle House restaurant locations. Approximately 86 company-owned Perkins locations generate direct restaurant sales.
3. Distribution Center Operations: Supply chain and distribution services through the Ascent Distribution Center providing food, supply and smallware distribution to restaurant network.

Pricing tiers

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

Ascent Hospitality Management is a multi-brand hospitality company that acquires and operates family dining restaurant brands, currently owning Perkins American Food Co. and Huddle House. It operates approximately 86 company-owned Perkins restaurants, supports a franchised network totaling 598 locations across the U.S. and Canada, and runs an in-house distribution center that supplies food, supplies, and smallwares to the brand network.

Product overview

Ascent Hospitality Management operates as a hospitality management company that acquires and manages restaurant brands. The company currently owns two core family dining brands: Perkins American Food Co. and Huddle House. Perkins is a large family dining concept known for its all-day breakfast and in-store bakery with fresh-baked pies, while Huddle House is a neighborhood diner offering homestyle cuisine at any time. Both brands feature 4-day-part menus and are available through franchising opportunities, with flexible build formats supporting both dine-in and off-premise dining.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Perkins American Food Co. One of the largest family dining brands in North America, serving breakfast, lunch, and dinner with an in-store bakery
• Huddle House

Products and services

• Perkins American Food Co. (Perkins Restaurant & Bakery) One of the largest family dining brands in North America, Perkins serves breakfast, lunch, and dinner with an all-day breakfast menu and an in-store bakery featuring fresh-baked fruit pies, cream pies, muffins, and cinnamon rolls. Operates through company-owned and franchised locations across 32 states and Canada with an average unit volume of $1.7M+.
• Huddle House A neighborhood diner serving homestyle food 'Any Meal, Any Time' for more than 50 years. Features a 4-day-part menu and flexible restaurant formats (inline, endcap, retrofit, ground-up) supporting dine-in, takeout, and delivery. Operates 300+ locations open or in development across the U.S.
• Perkins and Huddle House Franchise Program Franchise development program offering multi-unit franchise agreements for qualified restaurant operators to open Perkins and Huddle House locations. Includes flexible build formats, marketing and operational support, and access to the Ascent Distribution Center for supply chain needs.
• Ascent Distribution Center Supply chain and distribution services that procure and deliver food, supplies, and smallwares to company-owned and franchised restaurant locations across the brand network, supporting consistent operations and unit-level procurement.

Quantifiable outcome

• $1.7 million+ average unit volume for Perkins franchise operators
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers2 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration2 records

Partnerships

Four partnerships are on record, tiered minor and core.

• Penn & Beech Candle Co.minorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2021Perkins collaborated with Penn & Beech Candle Co. to create custom pie-scented candles for Mother's Day promotion. Perkins lead bakers scent-tested each candle to match the aroma of popular pies including Chocolate French Silk, Homestyle Apple, and Lemon Meringue. The candles were distributed to influencers and fans as a promotional gift.
• Louis & PartnerscoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2021Perkins enlisted design firm Louis & Partners to modernize restaurant design and create new prototype innovations. The firm, with portfolio work for Hilton, IHOP and Chili's, is engineering a modernized look for Perkins and creating additional build-out options for multi-unit franchisees. The new prototype is designed to excel in serving take-out, delivery, and dine-in guests.
• DoorDash and Uber EatscoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ Distributor · 1 January 2020Perkins launched bakery-only delivery concept on DoorDash and Uber Eats platforms, enabling customers to order fresh bakery items for delivery. The partnership expands Perkins' off-premise dining capabilities and reaches customers who prefer digital ordering.
• Give Kids the World VillagecoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 1990Perkins has partnered with Give Kids the World Village nonprofit since 1990, raising over $25 million through the years to support critically ill children and their families. The partnership includes the annual Hugs for Hopes campaign where guests can sponsor cutouts displayed in restaurants, with all donations supporting the nonprofit resort in Kissimmee, Florida that provides all-expenses paid vacations to wish children.

Scale indicators11 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Biglari Holdings (Steak 'n Shake): Biglari Holdings owns Steak 'n Shake, a legacy family dining franchise chain undergoing brand revitalization under private ownership. Comparable as a privately held, single-sponsor-owned legacy family dining brand pursuing modernization and franchise growth.
• Waffle House: Waffle House is one of the most iconic family diner/breakfast franchises in the US, with a Southeastern concentration that mirrors Huddle House's geographic core. Both operate as breakfast-anytime, homestyle diner concepts with strong small-town and highway-adjacent real estate positioning.
• First Watch Restaurant Group: First Watch is a daytime-focused breakfast, brunch, and lunch franchise chain with a strong franchise growth model. Comparable AUVs, similar breakfast/lunch day-part emphasis, and overlapping franchisee target demographics with Huddle House and Perkins.
• Dine Brands Global: Dine Brands is a multi-brand restaurant franchisor and operator of IHOP and Applebee's, the closest direct analog to Ascent as a public multi-brand family dining franchise holding company. Comparable asset-light royalty model, similar multi-unit franchise growth strategy, and overlapping family/casual dining target customer.
• Denny's Corporation: Denny's is a direct competitor in the family breakfast/diner segment, with similar 24-hour and all-day breakfast positioning, predominantly franchise-operated footprint, and comparable AUV economics. Both brands target breakfast-occasion traffic and compete for the same franchisee pool in the Southeast and Midwest.
• Cracker Barrel Old Country Store: Cracker Barrel operates family dining restaurants with an integrated retail/gift shop concept similar in spirit to Perkins' in-store bakery. Both serve the traditional family diner customer with a homestyle menu, and the companies compete head-to-head in Southern and Midwestern markets for both guests and franchise/operating talent.
• Bob Evans Restaurants: Bob Evans operates a family dining chain centered on breakfast-all-day and homestyle meals, with a multi-unit franchise footprint comparable to Perkins. Both brands compete in the Midwest and Southeast for the same breakfast-occasion guest and franchisee profile.

Broad incumbents

• Inspire Brands: Inspire Brands is a Roark Capital-owned multi-brand restaurant platform (Arby's, Buffalo Wild Wings, Sonic, Jimmy John's, Dunkin', Baskin-Robbins). Comparable as a private-equity-backed multi-brand restaurant operator pursuing national franchise scale and integrated supply chain economics.
• Restaurant Brands International: RBI operates Burger King, Tim Hortons, Popeyes, and Firehouse Subs as a global multi-brand QSR/franchise platform. Comparable asset-light royalty model and brand acquisition strategy, though at materially larger scale and QSR rather than family dining focus.
• Bloomin' Brands: Bloomin' Brands operates Outback Steakhouse, Carrabba's, Bonefish Grill, and Fleming's as a multi-brand casual dining platform. Larger and more established than Ascent, but directly comparable as a multi-brand restaurant holding company pursuing franchise and operational efficiency across legacy brands.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks4 records

Key highlights2 records

Customer concentration

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles14 records

Subsidiaries2 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Ascent Hospitality Management