El Jannah is taking its charcoal chicken from Western Sydney to the world, after a major private equity investment into the famous family-founded business.
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US firm General Atlantic on Friday confirmed its investment in the 27-year-old El Jannah restaurant chain, and its intentions to grow the business from 50 Australian locations to more than 200 in the coming years.
The investor now holds a controlling stake that permanently changes the trajectory of the beloved quick-service restaurant success story.
Neither El Jannah nor General Atlantic publicly disclosed the deal’s value, but the Australian Financial Review reported the sale price was nearly $1 billion.
Here are some of the key moments in El Jannah’s story, leading to the major investment and what promises to be a full-circle moment for the brand.
1998: First location in Granville, Sydney
Lebanese migrants Andre and Carole Estephan opened their first charcoal chicken shop in the Sydney suburb of Granville, elevating charcoal chicken with traditional flavours and garlicky toum sauce.
2009: Second location in Punchbowl
A decade of graft and word-of-mouth marketing allowed the Estephans to open a second location, in Punchbowl, serving local diners and chicken connoisseurs willing to travel across Sydney.
The city’s emerging food blogger scene spread the word even further, and by 2012, El Jannah’s smoky aroma and packed tables earned a mention in the Sydney Morning Herald’s Good Food.
2019: Brett Houldin comes aboard
With more than a decade of trade, El Jannah cemented its reputation as a Sydney institution.
The growth of Sydney’s charcoal chicken business Frango, a Portuguese-inspired take on hot roasted bird, provided some competition to the business.
To stake out El Jannah’s expansion, the Estephans appointed Brett Houldin, former head of Red Rooster and Oporto franchisor Craveable Brands, as CEO.
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Under Houldin’s guidance, El Jannah set to work building its franchise network.
The business reworked its backend systems, POS technology, and training platform, while updating everything from uniforms to website navigation.
2020: First drive-thru location
El Jannah counted seven stores across Sydney by mid-2020, a year beset by a pandemic that forced Australians to change their dining habits.
The business launched its first drive-through restaurant in the suburb of Smithfield in September that year — kick-starting a chain of similar launches, helping El Jannah expand through car-dominated suburbs, and capitalising on commuters as public health restrictions lifted.
2022: Melbourne launch in Preston
The business crossed state lines for the first time, launching a dine-in, drive-thru combo in the Melbourne suburb of Preston.
It confirmed El Jannah’s ambition to compete not just against businesses like Frangos, but national chicken players like Nando’s.
A year later, El Jannah established its first Australian Capital Territory outpost in the Canberra suburb of Gungahlin.
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2025: Private equity hungry for charcoal chicken
The business offered its Lebanese-style charcoal chicken at the Australian Open, exposing a broader crowd — and international tourists — to its cuisine.
El Jannah later opened a storefront in the heart of Melbourne’s central business district, giving office lunchers and hungry shoppers easier access to their charcoal chicken fix.
In late November, the business announced plans to grow from 50 restaurants to 200, with the assistance of Zimmermann-backer General Atlantic.
“We built El Jannah with our family for Australian families,” said Andre Estephan, in a statement formally announcing the investment.
“We now want to carry that dream into its next generation, while keeping our culture, values and identity exactly where they belong — at the heart of the business.”
Houldin, who will stay at the helm as CEO, said the investment will broaden El Jannah’s international horizons.
“Our partnership with GA means we can explore selective international expansion for the first time, including the possibility of exporting our unique Australian-Middle Eastern flavour profile back to the Middle East, and into other high-potential markets,” he said.