Jollibee opens Vancouver branch

MANILA, Philippines — Jollibee Foods Corp.’s first Jollibee branch in Vancouver, Canada saw close to 5,000 customers queuing on opening day.

“Jollibee’s entry into the Vancouver market is a milestone for the Jollibee Group as we continue to expand in North America in line with our vision of becoming one of the top five restaurant companies in the world,” said Jollibee Group president Ernesto Tanmantiong.

“We are extremely delighted by the enthusiastic reception to our first Jollibee store, and we look forward to serving our great-tasting food to more Vancouverites,” he said.

JFC’s flagship store in Vancouver B.C. is the first location in the province of British Columbia and its 23rd store in Canada.

In a statement, JFC said customers started lining up on Thursday evening, where they camped out over 12 hours to be among the first in line for the Friday morning opening.

Among them was Vancouver resident and long-time Jollibee fan Kei Kondo who secured the coveted spot of being the store’s first official customer.

By lunchtime, the line was wrapped around the corner of Robson and Howe Streets, and it grew even longer, spanning more than three blocks by the afternoon, JFC said.

“By the time the doors closed at 10 p.m., Jollibee had served up thousands of its signature menu items to hungry fans that came in droves – with the hands-down favorites being its famous fried chicken known as Jolly Crispy Chicken in North America, its uniquely delicious, sweet style Jolly Spaghetti, and its best-selling dessert Peach Mango Pie,” JFC said.

Maribeth dela Cruz, Business Group head of Jollibee North America, said Jollibee would open two more locations in the metro area by the end of the year.