Big Smoke Burger to open a flagship location... in Manhattan

As Five Guys readies its expansion into downtown Toronto, Big Smoke Burger is getting set to open a Manhattan flagship store by the end of the year, according to a post on Grub Street. This mirror-image expansion sort of makes sense, given that both burger chains have turned to Fransmart, a franchise consulting company, for help. An expansion to Chicago is also on the horizon, bringing the total planned stateside locations of Big Smoke to a staggering 50. The last Toronto chain to move stateside was Rawlicious, which made a move to Soho earlier this year (early reports are cautiously optimistic). [Grub Street]