Americana Restaurants International has struck a 75-year exclusive licensing agreement to develop and operate Lebanon’s Malak Al Tawouk across 13 markets, while also buying 100% of the brand’s existing franchise operators in the UAE and Saudi Arabia for $20.8 million. The move is a clear bet on Arabic quick-service brands—and a rare moment where a Beirut-born concept becomes a regional platform play.
Americana Restaurants International, the Abu Dhabi–based quick-service restaurant operator chaired by Mohamed Alabbar, is bringing Lebanon’s Malak Al Tawouk into its portfolio through two linked transactions: a long-term regional license and the acquisition of existing Gulf operations.
What was announced
In a disclosure published on the Saudi Exchange, Americana said it signed a 75-year exclusive licensing agreement that makes it the exclusive developer and operator of the Malak Al Tawouk brand across 13 markets spanning the GCC, the Levant, North Africa, and Central Asia (CIS/Central Asia region).
In parallel, Americana entered a share purchase agreement to acquire 100% of the existing Malak Al Tawouk franchisees in:
the UAE (seven stores), and
Saudi Arabia (three stores).
Americana said the acquisition is expected to complete by the end of February 2026, subject to customary closing conditions and approvals.
The deal economics
Americana disclosed the purchase price for the UAE and Saudi franchise operations at $20.8 million, funded through internal cash reserves.
Those acquired entities generate approximately:
$21.1 million in annualized revenue, and
$2.3 million in pre-IFRS EBITDA,
with net income referenced at about $1.7 million in earnings-call details carried by Investing.com.
Why Americana is doing this now
Americana has historically been associated with international power brands—KFC, Pizza Hut, Hardee’s, and others—built on a high-scale operating platform. This transaction is different in one essential way: it is a move into an Arabic QSR concept positioned as culturally resonant and operationally “small-box” scalable, according to management commentary on the company’s earnings call.
The company explicitly framed Malak Al Tawouk as its entry into the Arabic segment, which it described as one of the region’s fastest-growing categories.
The Lebanon angle: a brand export, not just a franchise deal
For Lebanon, the significance isn’t only that a Lebanese chain is expanding. It’s how it is expanding: through one of the region’s largest restaurant platforms, with the capital, supply chain, and real estate execution to scale.
Malak Al Tawouk is described in the disclosure as a family-owned Lebanese QSR brand founded in Beirut in 1996, built around its signature tawouk sandwich. The company said the brand operates 45+ restaurants in Lebanon and 19 across the Middle East, with additional international presence in France and Canada.
That “platform scale-up” matters because it’s a repeatable model for Lebanese consumer brands:
prove product-market fit at home,
establish a footprint in the GCC, then
plug into a regional operator for accelerated rollouts.
Context: Americana is expanding its footprint
The timing also aligns with Americana’s broader expansion cycle. The company reported FY2025 revenue of about $2.51 billion (up 14.2%) and net profit of $219.1 million (up 38%), while opening 216 gross new restaurants and ending 2025 with 2,749 restaurants across 12 markets.
What to watch next
Three questions will determine whether this becomes a template deal for more Lebanon-linked brands:
Unit economics post-integration: whether margins improve under Americana’s procurement and operating discipline.
Pace of rollout across the 13 markets: new openings will show whether the “small-box, low capex” thesis translates into speed.
Category strategy: whether Americana repeats this move with other homegrown Arabic concepts.
Malak Al Tawouk
