Portland burger chain eyes Olympia, plus new places for coffee and pot
Killer Burger, a Portland, Oregon-based burger chain, has its sights set on Olympia after three area residents expressed interest in operating a location here.
If the business sells a franchise for the Olympia market in the next three months, it could open before the end of the year, said Brian Hebb, the company’s director of development.
The business now operates 12 locations in the Portland area and expects to open five more this year, he said.
With its base of operations in Portland, adding new locations along the I-5 corridor makes a lot of sense for the business, Hebb said. Olympia also has the right demographic: a mix of students, government workers, working-class residents and higher income earners.
Killer Burger’s best-selling burger is the Classic Burger, made with bacon, American cheese, lettuce, tomato, house sauce, grilled onions and pickle. But they also get more creative, offering the Peanut Butter Pickle Bacon, which, like the name suggests, comes with peanut butter.
Once customers have tried the peanut butter burger, they “crave it thereafter,” Hebb said.
“We just do burgers and we do them really, really well,” he said.
Each Killer Burger location measures between 2,000 and 2,500 square feet and typically employs 15-25 people. The operating hours are 11 a.m. to 10 p.m.
Interested in running a Killer Burger? Learn more about the business at https://killerburger.com/.
Other business happenings
Top Shelf 420, a new marijuana retailer in Olympia, has opened at 3015 Pacific Ave. SE.
Cafe Elite, an espresso stand, has opened at 3200 Pacific Ave. SE, the same site as a recently opened convenience store with gas pumps.
The new Starbucks on Cleveland Avenue near the Tumwater Safeway has opened, while the location near the main entrance to Capital Mall has closed.
It appears the Subway sandwich business at 5955 Capitol Blvd. SW in Tumwater could be remodeled and re-designed to accommodate a drive-thru, according to city of Tumwater information.
Three Magnets Brewing Co. in downtown Olympia has opened an online store called Drink Self Care to sell its non-alcoholic beer, according to a news release.
“This realization led us to think about how NA beer is stigmatized, which is absolutely stupid,” said Three Magnets co-owner Nathan Reilly in a statement. “And sad. So it has kind of become our side-mission to not only provide a more healthful beer alternative, but to also de-stigmatize it along the way by offering a true craft beer experience, with all the buzz and excitement of regular craft beer, but, you know, without the actual buzz.”
A Tumwater business called Plastics Extrusion Machinery LLC says it is cutting 21 jobs because the business is relocating, according to the state Employment Security Department. Layoffs are set to begin April 30.
If you know of a retailer, restaurant, coffee shop or other business that is opening, closing, expanding, remodeling, or changing its focus, send an email to reporter Rolf Boone at rboone@theolympian.com.
