RETAIL : Fast-Food Chains Open More Eateries in Mexico; Tijuana Has Carl’s de Baja

Free-trade deal or not, Southern California fast-food chains continue to open restaurants in Mexico.

Carl Karcher Enterprises Inc., which has licensed Carl’s Jr. restaurants in Monterrey, Mexico City and other Mexican metropolitan areas, opened its first restaurant Wednesday in Tijuana. The licensee, Carl’s de Baja, plans to open additional Carl’s Jr. restaurants in Baja California during the next five years.

“The combination of the restaurant’s striking design and generous capacity promises to make it very popular with local residents and tourists alike,” said Steve Kishi, vice president for international development in the Anaheim-based chain.

Wienerschnitzel, the hot dog chain operated by Galardi Group Inc. in Newport Beach, plans to open its first restaurants in Mexico City by year’s end. The company’s Mexican licensee has plans to open 100 Wienerschnitzel units in 28 southern Mexican states in the next few years.

“A few years ago, there was virtually no market for hot dogs among Hispanic consumers. That had changed dramatically in recent years,” Wienerschnitzel President Dennis Tase said.

Irvine-based Taco Bell Inc. and Foodmaker Inc., the San Diego-based operator of Jack-in-the-Box restaurants, also have plunged into the Mexican market.