Benihana Inc. to Open Three New Franchised Restaurants

By: Benihana | 0 Shares 101 Reads

MIAMI (August 16, 2002) - Benihana Inc., operator of one of the nation's largest chains of Asian restaurants, announced today plans to open a new company-owned Benihana teppanyaki restaurant in Carlsbad, in southern California, plus three new franchised restaurants.

The new company-owned Carlsbad restaurant will bring to 64 the number of restaurants the Company currently operates or has under development, including 57 teppanyaki restaurants. New company-owned Benihana teppanyaki restaurants are now in development in Westbury, Long Island, New York, and Scottsdale, Arizona.

"With the addition of the new Carlsbad restaurant, slated for completion in fiscal 2004, Benihana will have a total of 16 teppanyaki restaurants in the state of California, a market that has been very good for our Company," said Joel Schwartz, President of Benihana. "It also underscores the steady, disciplined expansion in which Benihana is engaged, and the fact that there remains substantial opportunity for us to continue to grow."

The franchised Benihana restaurants will be located in Broomfield, Colorado, a suburb of Boulder, as well as one in the island of Trinidad, in the West Indies, and one in Santiago, Chile. The last is being built by the group that owns the franchise in Peru, where they currently operate two Benihana restaurants. Currently, there are 18 franchised Benihana teppanyaki restaurants, with one, in Edison, N.J., under construction. A total of 22 franchised Benihana teppanyaki restaurants will now be open or under development.

"Franchised restaurants, which must adhere to the same high standards as our company-owned units, have proven highly cost-effective in enabling Benihana to extend its brand franchise," said Mr. Schwartz. "A number of our franchisees own and operate multiple Benihana teppanyaki restaurants, and the relationships have been rewarding to everyone involved."

Benihana, now in its 38th year since its founding, and one of the nation's largest chains of Asian restaurants, currently operates 61 restaurants nationwide, including 54 Benihana teppanyaki restaurants, five Haru sushi restaurants and two Doraku restaurants. Three Benihana teppanyaki restaurants are currently under construction. In addition, Benihana has 18 franchised teppanyaki restaurants in the U.S. and Latin America.

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