Chicago Pizza & Brewery Inc. Plans to Open 7,400 sq. ft. Restaurant and Brewery in Arcadia, Calif
MISSION VIEJO, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Sept. 8, 1998--
Company Also Wins Brewing Awards and Experiences Strong Same
Store Sales Increases
Chicago Pizza & Brewery Inc. (Nasdaq:CHGO) (Nasdaq:CHGOW) Tuesday announced that the company has signed an agreement for a 7,400 square foot facility to be operated as a BJ's Pizza, Grill & Brewery restaurant.
The site is located at 400 E. Huntington Dr., in a "restaurant row" area of Arcadia, Calif. The grand opening is scheduled for late in 1998.
"We are really excited about this site," commented Paul Motenko, CEO. "It is in a very active restaurant area of an upscale community. The Arcadia location, along with our previously identified sites in Woodland Hills and Valencia, Calif., will provide a strong foundation for achieving our growth objectives for 1999." The 11,000 square foot Woodland Hills restaurant is scheduled to open at the end of 1998, while the 7,000 square foot Valencia restaurant is expected to open in the summer of 1999.
The company's renewed expansion in Southern California is coming on the heels of a very successful summer season in that region. "Six of our eight restaurants in Southern California set single month revenue records during either July or August of this year," announced Jerry Hennessy, COO. "That includes our flagship restaurant and brewery in Brea, California, which in August topped the $400,000 revenue mark for the second time since its opening in April 1996."
Comparable store sales increases continued to be strong at the company's BJ's restaurants, averaging 11.9% for July and August 1998, relative to the comparable period in 1997. According to Motenko, "It is very apparent that our guests are enjoying their experience at BJ's and the high quality of our food and handcrafted beers. We are particularly proud that our beer is not only appreciated by our guests, but by beer judges as well." Recently at the 1998 World Beer Cup, the company won a silver medal for its German-style "Weizenator" in the Weizenbock category. At the 1998 California State Fair, the company's "Piranha Pale Ale" won a first place award and its "BJ's Blond" won a third place award. These same beers also won silver medals at the 1998 Colorado State Fair, along with "Back Draft IPA," which won a bronze medal.
Chicago Pizza & Brewery currently owns restaurants in Southern California, Boulder, Colo. and Lahaina, Hawaii, which operate under either the names "BJ's Pizza & Grill" or "BJ's Pizza, Grill & Brewery." The company also owns Pietro's Pizza locations in Oregon and Washington, several of which have been converted to the popular, upgraded BJ's Pizza restaurant format, while the others await renovation and/or conversion within the next year. BJ's restaurants offer customers moderate prices and tremendous value on an incredible menu that includes deep-dish, Chicago style pizza, as well as sandwiches, salads, fabulous desserts, critically acclaimed hand-crafted beers and more. Visit Chicago Pizza & Brewery on the Web at bjsbrewhouse.com.
The information presented herein contains certain forward-looking statements within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, which are intended to be covered by the safe harbors created thereby. The company's results may differ significantly from the results indicated by such forward-looking statements. Factors that might cause such differences include, but are not limited to: 1) the company's ability to finance or fund its business plan, 2) the company's ability to manage growth and conversions, 3) construction delays, 4) restaurant and brewery industry competition and other such industry considerations, 5) marketing and other limitations based on the company's historic concentration in Southern California and current concentration in the Northwest, 6) consumer trends, 7) increased food costs and wages, including without limitation, the recent increase in the minimum wage, and 8) other general economic and regulatory conditions.
--30--LES/la* TJM/la
CONTACT:
Chicago Pizza & Brewery Inc.
Paul Motenko, 949/367-8616 ext. 107
or
Investor Relations:
Brenda Eames, 310/796-0229
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