Burger chain plans 22 drive-thrus in Tucson in next 10 years

And over the next 10 years, the Tampa, Florida-based national chain hopes to have 22 restaurants operating in the Tucson area, mostly in middle- to lower-middle class neighborhoods, said Robert Bhagwandat, the company’s director of franchise development.

Bhagwandat said he is not sure if Tucson will get Rally’s or Checkers restaurants or both. Their menus are the same and both are drive-thru only, meaning there is no dining room and all food is basically served to-go.

Bhagwandat said Tucson is an ideal market for Checkers & Rally’s given its strong blue-collar, working-class population. He said it fits the company’s ideal demographic that is looking for value-driven dining options.

“Those are hard-working people who value each dollar they make, and that’s the consumer that really, really tends to gravitate towards Rally’s and Checkers,” he said.

Rally’s started in Louisville, Kentucky, in 1985. A year later, the first Checkers drive-thru burger stand opened in Mobile, Alabama. The two served nearly identical menus of burgers, seasoned fries and milkshakes, which led to their merger in 1999.

Both also emphasized lower prices, with expanded dollar menus and meal-deal specials including their current advertised $4 for four, which includes a burger, fries, drink and snack-sized milkshake.

“It’s that person who understands what it is to make a dollar; that’s who we are really going after, that middle-income, lower middle-income customer,” Bhagwandat explained.

He said the company, which has franchised restaurants in Yuma and the Phoenix area, is shooting for summer or fall 2017 to open the first Tucson restaurant. No location has been identified, nor has the company named a franchise operator, he said.

Rally’s had a foothold in Tucson until just a few years ago.