Newmarket native Regan Irvine said he has wanted to start his own sandwich shop chain for more than a decade.
But between starting up his own pub, catering services and a partnership with The George on Newmarket’s Main Street, he said it fell by the wayside.
But now the shop chain is becoming a reality, with the Speak Easy Sandwich Co. opened in Sutton March 14 and expected to open in Newmarket at 248 Main St. in June.
“It’s something in the last six, seven, eight months, my team and I really sat down and said we could really pull this off now,” he said. “Things are very, very expensive to go out and eat. We wanted to create something where somebody could come out, eat with the family get good value and a good meal.”
Irvine said it aims to be a fast, casual food experience, offering a range of different sandwiches up to the quality of his other food businesses.
The name hearkens to the Prohibition area, when illicit bars known as speakeasies sold alcohol in disguise when it was outlawed.
The original concept was for a bar with sandwiches in the back, but Irvine said they moved on from that. These restaurants will be alcohol-free. Still, Irvine said the concept stuck, with the first location also being tucked away.
“We found our first location in Sutton. It’s literally that hidden gem,” he said. “We just stuck with it, the branding’s been great.”
Irvine has worked in the restaurant sector with different partners for years. He started his own pub in 2014, named after his father Bob Irvine who passed away from ALS in 2013.
Since then, his food at The Irv has become a fixture as part of The George Brew House and Eatery on Main Street, with a partnership starting there in 2022.
Irvine hopes his new venture will become a chain, with six locations in two years. The Sutton launch went well, he added.
“The reception to the look and feel of the place has been absolutely amazing,” Irvine said. “We had a bunch of tastings. It went very, very well … They meant a lot because we’ve been working on this project for a little while.”
Irvine said he wanted to open in Newmarket next as someone born and raised in the town, as well as someone who believes in Main Street here.
“The street is very vibrant,” he said. “The Town of Newmarket has done a great job … Other than (Markham’s) Unionville, I don’t know a Main Street in York Region that is up to the level that ours is.”
The hope is for the Newmarket location to be open in the first or second week of June, but it should definitely be ready for Canada Day in any case, Irvine said.
“Our food speaks for itself, and this is going to be no different,” Irvine said. “We’re just happy to be part of Main Street, part of Newmarket, part of these small communities. We’re just getting started and we got a long way to go, but we’re very excited for the future.”