Whataburger is going to Las Vegas for the Super Bowl.
The San Antonio-based burger chain this week opened its first location in Las Vegas, the host city for Sunday’s Super Bowl.
But it also gives the chain its 15th state. Whataburger has been on something of a growth spurt of late, as the company opened 46 corporate locations in 2023 and franchisees another 32. That was the largest number of new locations in company history and gives the chain more than 1,000 locations.
In the process, the company has expanded into a wider selection of markets far beyond its Texas home, where the bulk of those 1,000 restaurants are located.
Whataburger was the fifth largest fast-food burger chain in the U.S. as of the end of 2022, according to data from Restaurant Business sister company Technomic.
It is part of a generation of swiftly moving quick-service burger chains—along with Culver’s and Freddy’s Frozen Custard and Steakburgers—that are rapidly moving beyond regional favorites to become forces on a more national scale.
The Las Vegas location is located on the Las Vegas Strip and will be open 24 hours a day for 365 days a year. The location adjoins the Waldorf Astoria in a two-story restaurant co-located with Parry’s Pizzeria & Taphouse and was done in partnership with the franchisee, Panda Restaurant Group.
“As the city that never sleeps, and a brand that is open 24/7, it only made sense to bring a Whataburger to the Strip,” Whataburger CEO Ed Nelson said in a statement.
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