Saudi Arabia Welcomes its First Taste of zpizza
February 24, 2009 // Franchising.com // Newport Beach, CA, — zpizza opened its second international location in early February. With an open location in Mexico, the new store in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia marks the beginning of zpizza's journey into the Middle East, where they have several locations planned in the near future. Since it opened, the Riyadh store has seen sales double the system-wide average for zpizza. zpizza currently has 90 open stores and continues its impressive expansion with 400 more locations in development across the U.S., the Middle East and Mexico. The Southern California-based gourmet pizza chain was recently awarded the prestigious title of 2008 Pizza Chain of the Year from Pizza Market Quarterly Magazine.
The brand new zpizza is located on Tahliya Street, a trendy and very busy area in Riyadh. Positioned next door to a Saudi Arabian British Bank (SABB), this will be zpizza's flagship location in Riyadh. zpizza plans to open their second Riyadh location within the next month, which will be located in the food court of the Riyadh Galleria.
"Our early acceptance of our zpizza in Riyadh is very exciting," says zpizza CEO, Chris Bright. "We've borrowed so many ingredients and elements from the Middle East and other parts of the Mediterranean that we're extremely pleased to see such a positive response. I'm glad to see that our first unit is up and running and doing well. We have a second unit coming within the next month and I'm looking forward to seeing two fully functioning well established restaurants when I visit Riyadh in April. This is our first Middle East effort and there is more to come!"
zpizza was recently named Pizza Market Quarterly's 2008 PIE Award winner, dubbing zpizza the Pizza Chain of the Year! zpizza also made Entrepreneur Magazine's exclusive 2008 Franchise 500 list for the third time. zpizza has accrued customer choice awards such as AOL City Guide's "Best Pizza" in Orange County, CA and Washingtonian Magazine's "Best Pizza Restaurant" for four years running. PMQ placed zpizza in the top 50 of the 2008 Pizza Power Report, which lists the top pizza chains in America. 2008 was a big year for zpizza as it continues to impress a nationwide customer base and confirm its status as the leading gourmet pizza restaurant in the industry.
About zpizza:
Featured on Good Morning America as a healthy dining option, zpizza takes a unique approach to the crowded pizza segment by appealing to traditional pizza lovers, health conscious consumers and gourmet palates alike. zpizza's menu offers 22 tasty and adventurous pizzas as well as sandwiches, salads, calzones and the opportunity to create your own pizza with a selection of premium ingredients —including 100% certified organic wheat crust and sauce, award-winning mozzarella part-skim cheese, veggies and other creative toppings.
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