Franchise Facts Report → brands → Mystic Lobster
Mystic Lobster franchise — is it worth it?
Medium risk Item 19 disclosed
Mystic Lobster Franchise, LLC offers a food and beverage franchise opportunity with a relatively low initial investment.
Everything below is free, read straight off Mystic Lobster's registered filing, with where the numbers land against food & beverage peers. Weighing Mystic Lobster against other options? Get a free shortlist of franchises that fit your budget.
Figures above are as disclosed in Mystic Lobster's most recent FDD (registered 2024). Source: California Dept. of Financial Protection and Innovation — Franchise Registration · filing app-29527 — check it yourself. See every other California-registered franchise.
Considering Mystic Lobster? See what else fits your budget
Tell us your budget and the industries you're open to. We'll match you with 5–10 franchises whose own FDDs fit — ranked by earnings disclosure, growth and closure rate — and email you the list. Mystic Lobster will be on it if it fits.
How much does a Mystic Lobster franchise make?
Mystic Lobster is one of the franchisors that answers this on the record: its most recent FDD makes an Item 19 financial performance representation — actual unit earnings figures, disclosed by the franchisor itself. The headline figure did not machine-read cleanly from this filing, so we don't print one; Item 19 of the source FDD has the tables. See every food & beverage brand that discloses earnings in the Food & beverage franchises with disclosed Item 19 earnings ranking.
Mystic Lobster franchise profit vs. revenue
Revenue is not profit. An Item 19 almost always reports sales — what a location takes in — not what an owner keeps. Out of that number come Mystic Lobster's 5.75% royalty, the ad fund, rent, payroll, supplies and debt service. No FDD tells you a Mystic Lobster franchise's profit, because profit depends on your site, your rent and how you run it — so treat any "Mystic Lobster franchise profit" figure quoted elsewhere as someone's estimate, not a disclosure.
Mystic Lobster lawsuits & legal history (FDD Item 3)
Mystic Lobster's most recently filed Franchise Disclosure Document (2024) does disclose legal proceedings in Item 3 . Item 3 is the item where a franchisor must put its material legal history on the record. Two things it is not: it covers the franchisor and its predecessors, parents and affiliates, so a disclosed case is not necessarily a suit against Mystic Lobster itself; and a disclosure is a fact, not a finding of wrongdoing — most entries are contract disputes with former franchisees, which every large system accumulates. Item 3 of the source FDD describes each case.
Mystic Lobster closures & failure rate
Before you sign, Mystic Lobster will hand you a list of current owners to call as references — and they choose who's on that list. It won't include the owners who quit, got bought out, or were forced out last year. The FDD does report that number, even though the reference list leaves those people off. Below is what Mystic Lobster's most recent filing shows, and whether it's normal for a food & beverage of this kind.
The closest thing an FDD has to a failure rate is Item 20 — outlet openings, closures, terminations and non-renewals, reported by the franchisor. Mystic Lobster's outlet tables did not machine-read cleanly; Item 20 of the source FDD has them.
Who owns Mystic Lobster?
Mystic Lobster's franchise is offered by Mystic Lobster Franchise, LLC — the franchisor named on the cover of its most recently filed Franchise Disclosure Document (2024), and the entity a franchisee actually signs with. That name comes straight off the filing at CA DFPI; it identifies the franchisor, not necessarily the ultimate parent company behind it.
Food & beverage franchises at a similar investment level
Anyone weighing Mystic Lobster is really weighing it against the other brands their money could go into. These are the closest by total initial investment (FDD Item 7), each with its own FDD-based page.
Mystic Lobster franchise — frequently asked
Who owns Mystic Lobster — who is the franchisor?
Mystic Lobster's most recently filed FDD (2024) names Mystic Lobster Franchise, LLC as the franchisor — the entity you would actually sign the franchise agreement with, as stated on the disclosure document itself. A registry filing names the franchisor, not necessarily its ultimate parent company.
How much does a Mystic Lobster franchise cost?
Mystic Lobster's most recently filed FDD (Item 7) puts the total estimated initial investment at $101,500 – $140,025 and a 5.75% royalty. That price is the franchisor's own estimate of what it takes to open, not a quote. Against food & beverage peers it sits in the top quartile (median $379,725).
How much profit does a Mystic Lobster franchise make?
Mystic Lobster discloses unit earnings in Item 19, but that figure is revenue — sales — not profit. Royalties (5.75% of gross for Mystic Lobster), the ad fund, rent, payroll and supplies all come out of it, and no FDD discloses what an owner nets. Any Mystic Lobster franchise profit number quoted elsewhere is an estimate.
Does Mystic Lobster disclose financial performance (Item 19)?
Yes — Mystic Lobster reports unit-level earnings in Item 19. The headline figure did not machine-read cleanly, so check Item 19 of the source FDD for the numbers.
Are there lawsuits against Mystic Lobster?
Mystic Lobster's most recently filed FDD (2024) discloses legal proceedings in Item 3. Item 3 covers the franchisor, its predecessors, parents and affiliates — so a disclosed case is not necessarily a suit against Mystic Lobster itself, and a disclosure is not a finding of wrongdoing.
Is Mystic Lobster a good franchise to buy?
Nobody can answer that from Mystic Lobster's numbers alone — it comes down to how its investment, earnings, litigation and franchisee churn stack up against food & beverage peers and against your own budget. Our read on this filing is medium risk. Every figure behind that read is on this page for free. If you're comparing options, the free shortlist on this page matches you with 5–10 franchises that fit your budget and industry.
Get a free email when something changes on Mystic Lobster or food & beverage: a new FDD registration, a new lawsuit, an outlet count that shifts, or Item 19 earnings going from undisclosed to disclosed. Pulled straight from the same state registries this page is built on.