South Florida's Pincho Factory makes way to Dr. Phillips

DR. PHILLIPS  Five years ago, Pincho Factory co-founders Nedal Ahmad and Otto Othman went into a family barbecue to celebrate the Fourth of July and came out of it with plans to create a restaurant.

“He (Nedal) was always known to make amazing burgers, and I had taken along some of my mom’s kebabs, the pinchos,” said Othman, Pincho Factory’s chief marketing officer. “A few drinks later, I looked at him and said ‘Dude, let’s open a restaurant. Your burgers and my mom’s kebabs.’ Two days later he called and said he was looking at sites and had already spoken with a few landlords.” 

Nedal had a background in commercial real estate, and Othman’s was in advertising and marketing, where he’d previously worked on campaigns for companies such as Mars and Fiat. The two agreed that Othman would take on the marketing and branding, while Nedal did the cooking.

Every day after work for four months, the two — along with Nedal’s younger brother, Nizar, the third co-founder and director of training — would meet and Nedal would cook. They would taste test and decide which combinations, blends and recipes were just right for their vision.

But although the restaurant was in the works, Nedal called Othman one day and told him they had to open it immediately one Saturday. They didn’t even have a trained staff or plates to serve the food on yet, but Nedal’s plea was a desperate one: He had only $6.27 left in his bank account.

“My birthday was on that Thursday and I said I would invite a few friends and had him bring some team members,” Othman said. “We trained them during my birthday party and opened on Saturday.”

The grand opening was a successful one, with 400 people in attendance. Soon after, Pincho Factory began receiving awards for its food and became a recognizable name throughout South Florida. 

“People started driving to get to our little hole in the wall, and today we are a Latin-influenced burger and kebab joint,” Othman said.

The menu includes a variety of burgers and pincho entrées, along with chicken sandwiches, hot dogs, salads, fries and tater tots. Additionally, there are craft beers and wine, including the special 627 ale, named after the $6.27 Nedal had in his bank account when the restaurant opened.

The brand has five locations in Miami and now the first Central Florida location in Dr. Phillips.

Nedal said the response in Dr. Phillips has been overwhelming.

“It’s been way beyond our expectations,” Nedal said. “Around 12:05 p.m. on opening day came, the line was out the door, and I almost had tears in my eyes. I couldn’t believe that we got the results we get in South Florida over here.”

Contact Danielle Hendrix at [email protected].