3 SBA loans have financed Original Mels locations since 1991, written by 3 different lenders across 2 states. Half were approved for $416K or less, the mix is 504-heavy, and 67% went to owners whose business was under two years old.
A lender that has already underwritten this brand knows the unit economics, the build-out costs, and the franchisor. That is worth more to you than a bigger bank starting from scratch.