Poke Restaurants are Coming to Walmart Locations Nationwide Soon
For several years now, Walmart has been slowly making changes to its in-store restaurant partnerships, officially scrapping nearly all of the existing McDonald’s restaurants by mid-2021. In addition to McDonald’s, Walmart had also experimented over the years with restaurants such as Charley’s Philly Steaks, Domino’s and Taco Bell. However, a new partnership has emerged, and fans of poke bowls and other traditional Hawaiian cuisine alike are going to be the first to praise the retail giant's latest fast-food alterations.
Uncle Sharkii, a fast-food chain that specializes in an authentic poke bar experience, recently announced a partnership with Walmart in which the restaurant chain will open its doors inside multiple Walmart locations. The collaboration will begin with stores located in California and eventually expand throughout the rest of the United States.
As of now, Uncle Sharkii has officially opened three Walmart locations in Galt, Roseville and Vacaville, California. Stand-alone Uncle Sharkii restaurants can also be found in Hawaii, Texas and Utah, with plans on the table to open more poke bars in Arizona and Nevada as well.
Uncle Sharkii
In an official press release announced by Uncle Sharkii, the co-founder and COO of the poke bar chain, Raymond Reyes, announced their hope to “reach America at its core and to bring the ‘Spirit of Aloha’ to everybody across this great country!”
Reyes states that, “Growing up in Hawaii, Walmart has always become a gathering point for locals, tourists, and families alike. There is the sense of community and a creation of nostalgia for everyone that visits its stores. I never in my wildest dreams ever thought that partnering up with Walmart would be ever possible in my lifetime, and look forward to a fruitful partnership together.”
As of last fall, the first official Uncle Sharkii opened inside of Walmart and customers were met with a grand opening weekend that saw the likes of BOGO poke bowls, BOGO boba teas and merch giveaways. The first customers of the weekend also received $5 in Uncle Sharkii credit along with their purchases.
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Walmart's partnership with Uncle Sharkii is certainly a strategic move that will likely stir up a ton of excitement within the industry. The retail giant’s dedication to offering its customers more diverse and high-quality food options comes at a time when the average customer is potentially craving a healthier alternative to the fast-food options they have been so used to seeing.
Walmart’s senior manager of retail services, Angelica Teague, mentioned in an interview with QSR Magazine that “At Walmart, we are committed to providing our customers with a wide variety of products and services that they want and making those things available to them at affordable prices.” Teague goes on to praise the company’s latest partnership, saying that “We love partnering with local businesses across the country to offer our customers new and healthy dining options, and we are excited about this partnership with Uncle Sharkii Poke Bar.”
All in all, the new partnership is a long awaited change that is necessary in our modern world. Fast-food is still a viable option for anyone who needs a quick meal while on-the-go, but one can only hope that we will continue to move away from the unhealthy, processed foods we are inundated with in this country. It’s nice to see big companies like Walmart moving forward with these necessary changes.
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