Krystal returning to Bay County

PANAMA CITY, FL - After an extended hiatus from the Panama City market, it looks like Krystal will be returning to Bay County. The Chattanooga, Tenn.-based chain has carved out a niche in the Southeast during the past six decades as one of the region's most popular fast food restaurants.

A Krystal spokesman confirmed recently the company plans to open one or more restaurants in the Panama City area. In an e-mail, Krystal spokesman Brian Cooley said the company had not chosen a specific site for the restaurant and was still in the due diligence phase of selecting a possible location.

"This will be a corporate-owned Krystal , not a franchise, and part of Krystal's expansion," Cooley said.
 
Cooley said he could not confirm if the new location, or locations, would be built from the ground up or move into an existing building.
   
Founded in 1932, Krystal is the oldest quick service restaurant chain in the Southeast and the second oldest in the
U.S.
   
The closest Krystal locations to Panama City are located in Dothan, Ala. and Mary Esther, according to the company's Web site.
   
The company has been absent from the Panama City market since 2003.
   
In September 2003, Krystal closed its Tyndall Parkway and Front Beach Road locations.
   
Those locations were franchises, and closed after Krystal terminated its franchise agreement with a local franchisee, according to a News Herald story There also used to be a Krystal on West 23rd Street, at the site occupied by Chick-fil-A since 1998.
   
Cooley said the company's reemergence in the Panama City area was part of Krystal's plans to grow through the addition of more company-owned stores in existing and new Southeast markets.
   
He said by the end of 2009, Krystal will have opened 20 new company-owned
stores since 2007 and created 800 jobs in
11 states.
   
The company, which has 387 restaurants in 12 states, opened its newest location in March in the Birmingham, Ala., metropolitan area.
   
When it opens in Bay County, Krystal's new location will feature the company's longstanding menu items such as the famous Krystal hamburger and chicken sandwiches, as well as new offerings such as MilkQuakes, Cooley said.