Photo | Eric Casey
Over 70 items were up for bid on Thursday, including this artwork.
May 12, 2025
After state seizure and equipment auction, operator of Boston Market in Worcester vows to re-open
Photo | Eric Casey
Ronak Pandya (right), son of Boston Market CEO Jay Pandya, looks on as Ed Smith of E.F. Smith and Son auctions off resturaunt equipment and other items at Boston Market on Thursday.
The operator of a Boston Market location in Worcester, the last New England location of the once-ubiquitous rotisserie chicken franchise, has vowed to reopen the store under a new concept after an auction where he successfully bid for much of the equipment seized by Massachusetts state officials in March.
Ronak Pandya, son of Boston Market CEO Jay Pandya, attended the auction held at the restaurant located at 14 Park Ave. on Thursday, which included more than 70 items at the currently shuttered restaurant, ranging from rotisserie ovens to furniture. The auction was held by Quincy-based E.F. Smith and Son.
The auction saw Ronak Pandya successfully bid on much of the kitchen equipment and other items in the restaurant. Other participants successfully bid for items including televisions and kitchen supplies, with winning bids for smaller items sometimes going as low as a few dollars.
Ronak Pandya said he was representing Boston Rotisserre LLC, a different entity than Boston Market Corp., whose property was seized in March due to the more than $1.37 million the Massachusetts Department of Revenue says the company owes. He told DoR officials at the auction the restaurant is on a month-to-month lease with Richard Carr, the property’s owner.
Pandya told WBJ he plans on reopening the restaurant with a grand opening on Wednesday. He acknowledged the issues at both the Worcester location and with Boston Market in general over the past few years.
“I've given my plea to the landlord. He knows where I stand. I completely understand [Carr’s] frustrations for the last 5 years, 10 years, however long it's been Boston Market Corp., and all the issues that have gone on.” Pandya said. “But I think he would probably agree that in the last eight months to a year since we've been on more frequent communication, everything has been done as promised to him. We are fully up to date and current on rent.”
It’s unclear if Carr is willing to reconsider his original plan to rent the site to a different restaurant; he declined to discuss the long-term status of Boston Market’s lease on Monday.
Carr previously told WBJ he was looking to lease the location to a number of large restaurant chains who he said had expressed interest in the property. Carr had outlined a number of issues occurring at the site over the years, including missed rent payments and issues with overflowing garbage.
It’s unclear if Thursday’s auction will be the end of the location’s trouble with the Department of Revenue.The agency did not return a voicemail left on Friday by WBJ.
Photo | Eric Casey
Ed Smith of E.F. Smith and Son outlines the rules at the beginning of Thursday's auction.
Pandya paid just over $16,000 for the items he won, which included a rotisserie oven and other kitchen equipment.
A 2022 graduate of Babson College in Wellesley with a degree in entrepreneurial studies, Pandya said he plans on opening a revamped concept, which takes a spin on Boston Market’s usual offerings, including new menu items such rotisserie-cooked boneless chicken thighs available in a number of different flavors.
“While I was in college, I was trying to help out with the company, because obviously the company has been downsizing for the last 20 years,” he said of his history with the company. “So I've been helping out in a lot of different ways, learning the brand, kind of growing with it, and trying to understand it, and just trying to assist as much as I can. In about the last year and a half is when I started taking over little bits and pieces.”
Pandya said he hopes to differentiate the restaurant from others with competitive pricing and the launching of a subscription plan for customers. He said the new restaurant will take on new branding and a new name, while keeping some elements of the existing Boston Market branding.
Boston Market, founded in Newton in 1985, was already struggling in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic, according to reporting from Restaurant Business Online, but its financial struggles have escalated under the ownership of CEO Jay Pandya.
Photo | Eric Casey
A worker wheels away a piece of equipment after Thursday's auction.
More than 200 lawsuits have been filed against Boston Market and fellow Rohan-owned restaurant chain Corner Bakery since the firm acquired the two brands, with Illinois-based US Foods winning a $15-million default judgement against Boston Market in January 2024. Multiple creditors owed money by Boston Market have fought for access to its bank accounts.
Jay Pandya has tried to file for bankruptcy on behalf of the company twice, only to be rejected by the courts, according to Restaurant Dive. Despite the numerous financial and legal difficulties, the franchise has opened a new location in Buffalo, New York, according to The Street.
Eric Casey is the managing editor at Worcester Business Journal, who primarily covers the manufacturing and real estate industries.
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