Burger King Corp. Opens First Whopper Bar in Asia
Second Whopper Bar in Singapore to Open in the Next Few Months
-- Foodservice Equipment & Supplies, 10/20/2009 7:39:00 AM
MIAMI--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Burger King Corp. (NYSE:BKC - News) today announced the opening of its first WHOPPER™ Bar restaurant in the company’s Asia-Pacific region. The opening is part of Burger King Corp.’s plan to introduce its innovative WHOPPER™ Bar concept on a global scale.
“We are committed to diversifying our global restaurant portfolio and driving strategic net restaurant growth across the BURGER KING® system,” said John Chidsey, chairman and chief executive officer, Burger King Corp. “WHOPPER™ Bar is a ground-breaking restaurant concept for our brand, which supports our growth strategy by allowing us to tap into different non-traditional locations, such as stadiums, cruise ships, college campuses and casinos.”
“The official opening of our first WHOPPER™ Bar in Singapore is yet another example of our efforts to propel the BURGER KING® brand forward profitably in the Asia-Pacific region. In fact, we opened more restaurants in the region this calendar year than during the last four years combined,” said Peter Tan, president, Burger King Asia-Pacific. “The WHOPPER™ Bar also leverages our flame-broiled cooking platform to deliver the ultimate HAVE IT YOUR WAY® experience to our restaurant guests.”
WHOPPER™ Bar: Global Locations
The first WHOPPER™ Bar restaurant in Singapore opened earlier this month and is located in the popular lifestyle precinct, Clarke Quay. A center of commerce during the late 19th century, Clarke Quay today plays host to a colorful kaleidoscope of dining, entertainment and retail establishments. At the WHOPPERTM Bar at Clarke Quay, guests can customize their WHOPPER® sandwich with innovative toppings such as chilli rings and nacho chips or unique sauces like Sweet Salsa, Fiery Hot and Rendang. The WHOPPER™ Bar also offers familiar favorites like the ANGRY WHOPPER™, which features a flame-broiled beef patty topped with sizzling chili rings, tomatoes, lettuce and mayonnaise finished with a special Fiery Hot Sauce on a sesame seed bun.
In addition, the WHOPPERTM Bar at Clarke Quay features a weekly “Favorite” menu item to showcase the various condiments and customization platform that guests expect from the BURGER KING® brand. Alongside the variety of condiments being offered, guests can enjoy an array of delectable desserts and espresso coffees.
“Asia’s first WHOPPER™ Bar elevates our HAVE IT YOUR WAY® brand promise and embodies the power of personal choice by offering guests a customizable, flame-fresh and indulgent menu dedicated to the iconic WHOPPER® sandwich,” Tan said. “We are excited to further extend the brand in the region when we open a second WHOPPER™ Bar location in Singapore within the next few months.”
In Spring 2009, Burger King Corp. introduced the world’s first WHOPPER™ Bar at Universal CityWalk in Orlando, Fla., Universal Orlando Resort’s 30-acre restaurant, shopping and nighttime entertainment complex. The company-owned and operated location boasts a smaller footprint, a modern design and a WHOPPER® Topper area to encourage guests to customize their orders.
The first WHOPPER™ Bar in Europe opened in June 2009 at the shopping center “das Einstein” in Munich, Germany. The menu features new innovative sandwiches, such as the California WHOPPER® and the Cheddar Salsa WHOPPER® - both sandwiches are first-time additions to the menu board in Europe.
Burger King Corp. is also targeting additional locations worldwide, such as Miami Beach, Las Vegas, New York City, as well as Spain and Venezuela, among others.
WHOPPER™ Bar: Restaurant of the Future
Capitalizing on America’s favorite burger, the WHOPPER™ Bar is a completely new, enhanced spin-off concept of the traditional BURGER KING® restaurant with a crisp, modern, bar-like look and feel that utilizes the WHOPPER® sandwich’s flame-broiling as inspiration. Crew uniforms have been transformed, emphasizing the red, black and gray color scheme of the bar setting, and boast a more contemporary cut that matches the look and feel of this bold new approach. Even the product packaging is all new. The sandwich is served in premium clamshell packaging – a necessity when it comes to holding as many additional toppings as guests wish to add.
WHOPPER™ Bar: How it Works
Burger-lovers select from a WHOPPER®, Double WHOPPER® or Triple WHOPPER® sandwich and then choose from more than 20 different WHOPPER® sandwich toppings “fit for a King.” Sandwiches are built to order by an expert “WHOPPER®-ista” from the WHOPPER® Topper, a visible toppings theater that allows guests to choose from favorites like chipotle ranch sauce, pepperjack cheese, a chili con carne patty, angry onions or guacamole. In addition, guests looking for a little guidance can opt for “WHOPPER® Specials,” as well as other BURGER KING® sandwiches.
Forward-Looking Statements
Certain statements made in this press release that reflect management's expectations regarding future events are forward-looking in nature, including statements regarding the Company's expectations regarding the WHOPPER™ Bar supporting our growth strategy and propelling the BURGER KING® brand forward in the Asia-Pacific region and the Company’s ability to open WHOPPER™ Bar restaurants in additional locations around the world. These forward-looking statements are only predictions based on our current expectations and projections about future events. Important factors could cause our actual results to differ materially from those expressed or implied by these forward-looking statements, including those risk factors set forth in our annual and quarterly reports filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission and the following: (i) our ability to compete internationally in an intensely competitive industry; (ii) our ability to successfully implement our international growth strategy; and (iii) risks related to our international operations.
Although we believe the expectations reflected in the forward-looking statements are reasonable, we cannot guarantee future results. Moreover, neither we nor any other person assumes responsibility for the accuracy or completeness of any of these forward-looking statements. You should not rely upon forward-looking statements as predictions of future events. We do not undertake any responsibility to update any of these forward-looking statements to conform our prior statements to actual results or revised expectations.
ABOUT BURGER KING CORPORATION
The BURGER KING® system operates more than 11,900 restaurants in all 50 states and in 73 countries and U.S. territories worldwide. Approximately 90 percent of BURGER KING® restaurants are owned and operated by independent franchisees, many of them family-owned operations that have been in business for decades. In 2008, Fortune magazine ranked Burger King Corp. among America’s 1,000 largest corporations and Ad Week named it one of the top three industry-changing advertisers within the last three decades. To learn more about Burger King Corp., please visit the company’s Web site at www.bk.com.
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