Franchisees plan New York City debut for Captain D's

Multi-brand franchisees Kelly Moughal and Muhammad Saleem, who first introduced the Checkers & Rally’s brand to Manhattan, will do the same for Captain D’s.

The pair reside in New York and own multiple Subway and Little Caesars locations throughout the state. They’ve also agreed to open three Captain D’s in the greater New York City area. It will be the seafood chain’s first foray into the Big Apple.

Sites are currently being considered throughout Manhattan and Long Island with the first location expected to open in late 2024. The design of the New York City-area Captain D’s will be customized for each site’s considerations and will cater to the demands of an urban market with limited space and increased foot traffic.

“With its unique proposition in seafood, Captain D’s is the perfect complement to our current portfolio,” Moughal said. “Muhammad and I were also attracted to the brand’s strong unit economics and the fact that this company team has skin in the game with more than half of their restaurants company-owned.”

Saleem immigrated from Pakistan in 1981 and began franchising in 1989. After their marriage in 2001, Moughal joined him in the franchising business and brought with her over a decade of business operations experience with 7-Eleven Inc. The two have won multiple sales awards with their restaurant brands, building some of the highest-achieving locations in those systems.

“Captain D’s is thrilled to enter the greater New York City market, and we could not have found a better franchising team to do that with,” said Brad Reed, chief development officer of Captain D’s. “Kelly and Muhammad have built an impressive portfolio of businesses and real estate throughout New York. Experts at growing high-volume restaurants, they already pioneered one brand’s entrance into Manhattan. Their in-depth knowledge of the market and connections to real estate developers will serve them and Captain D's very well.”