Dubai
Popular Californian restaurant chain In-N-Out Burger have said that they do not have any immediate plans to open a branch in Dubai, despite holding a surprise pop up in the city on Tuesday.
In a statement to Gulf News, the chain, famous for its simple, fresh burgers, said that there were no “immediate plans to open a permanent restaurant in Dubai.”
They hinted, however, that there may be an In-N-Out coming to UAE at some point in the future.
A spokesperson for the company said that “this special event will help us make future decisions.”
In-N-Out, which has never opened an international branch, has run a number of pop-up shops around the world, in what some see as a test of demand, foretelling a global expansion.
The restaurant offered a different explanation: “We have done events like this before in other countries and they are just one part of our efforts to promote and expand our brand.”
According to the spokesperson, the events also help the brand, which does not franchise, to “determine the best way to continue reaching out to customers around the world.”
On their website, In-N-Out clearly states that they remain privately owned, and “the Snyder family has no plans to take the company public or franchise any units.”
A major obstacle to expansion would be the brand’s insistence on serving its food fresh, meaning all locations must be within 300 miles of the company’s distribution facilities.
This would therefore create a supply chain issue if they were to open in the UAE.
Until now, the restaurant operator has refused to even open on the West Coast of the United States.
Pure Arabia, a destination management company, told Gulf News that they were approached by In-N-Out and asked to organise the pop-up shop, which took place over four hours at Ibn Battuta Mall.
