Dive Brief:
- Krystal is opening its first travel center in Tyler, Texas at an EZ Travel Center, the company said in an emailed press release. The restaurant will be open 24/7. This is the first Krystal location in Texas in over a decade.
- This is the first Krystal location operated by Highway 31 Foodservice, a seasoned franchise operator with multiple QSR concepts in Texas and Oklahoma. The franchisee plans to open additional Krystal restaurants.
- The travel center opening is part of Krystal’s strategy to expand into non-tranditional, high-traffic, convenient locations, like travel centers and airports.
Dive Insight:
Kystal is one of many QSRs expanding through c-stores and travel plazas. Capriotti’s Sandwich Shop, Mr. Gatti’s Pizza, Naf Naf and Whataburger are all looking at c-stores as growth vectors. These non-traditional locations offer a captive audience and help introduce the brand to new consumers.
Diners are also increasingly turning to c-stores as meal options, and 24% of diners said they visited c-stores and grocery chains more frequently than they did 12 months ago, according to Tillster’s 2025 Phygital Index Report. Comparatively, 18% of diners visited QSR/fast food chains more frequently.
Krystal said this strategy is designed to meet consumer demand for fast and flexible dining spaces.
“We’ll continue to grow with traditional freestanding restaurants, but formats like travel centers and other high-traffic hubs allow us to complement that approach with more flexibility, greater efficiency and better alignment with how today’s consumers live and move,” Josh Kern, CEO of parent company SPB Hospitality, said in a statement.
The Tyler, Texas, Krystal is located in a full-service travel plaza that has eight diesel fueling lanes. It will offer the chain’s full menu, including sliders, chili cheese pups, fries and shakes.
Krystal is also investing in “innovative buildouts” and is working to make operations more efficient while creating lower-cost franchising models that provide operators with greater flexibility and stronger unit economics, according to the press release. Krystal, which has nearly 300 restaurants across 11 states, has a goal of reaching 500 units and began refranchising company-owned locations in 2023 to attract more franchisees into its system.
Correction: A previous version of this article incorrectly described Krystal’s travel center presence. The Tyler, Texas, location is its first restaurant in a travel center in the Lone Star state. It has locations in other travel centers nationwide.
