Wendy’s to Open First of 15 Locations in Costa Rica

POPULAR U.S.-based fast-food chain Wendy s will soon be serving up its characteristic square-patty hamburgers in Costa Rica. The chain recently announced plans to open the first of 15 restaurants nationwide on San José s Avenida Central in May, according to the daily La Nación.

Through a $15-million investment, Wendy s will open three restaurants per year in Costa Rica for five years, each of which will hire 40-50 local workers. The chain is already in the process of hiring general managers, who will be sent to the United States for three to four months of training.

Though Costa Rican Wendy s restaurants will import most of their supplies, negotiations are under way to hire local businesses for the preparation of beef and chicken, Luis Alfaro, owner of the Costa Rican Wendy s franchise, told La Nación.

Alfaro, a Costa Rican who has worked for Wendy s in the United States for 22 years and manages ten restaurants in Iowa and Illinois, said bringing the chain to Costa Rica has been years in coming. Honduras, El Salvador, Mexico, the Bahamas and Guatemala have Wendy s operations.

Wendy s International, which includes Wendy s Old Fashioned Hamburgers, Tim Horton s, Baja Fresh Mexican Grill, Café Express and Pasta Pomodoro, has a total of 9,700 restaurants with $11.6 billion in sales, according to the company s Web site.