Burger King will start operations at Phnom Penh International Airport as early as November before moving into the capital, a representative from the local franchise holder AFC Company said yesterday.

The American burger chain would join the likes of KFC, Dairy Queen and several other international and domestically owned eateries.

Success in neighbouring countries such as Vietnam and Thailand prompted AFC to bring the fast food brand to the Kingdom, Somuch Sovary at the company’s human resources department said.

Like Dairy Queen, which is represented by RMA group in Cambodia, the franchise will start at the airport and then potentially open restaurants in the city.

“We have a plan to enter the city but first we must find a location. There are many burger and pizza places right now in Phnom Penh, so it’s difficult to find a good place,” she said.

She declined to give a dollar figure for the investment.

RMA will open a Dairy Queen branch in the capital’s Riverside district this week, according to an RMA employee.

Cambodia’s KFC franchise, which is represented by Kampuchea Food Corporation, saw losses in the first quarter of the year on high domestic food prices, the brand’s Malaysian parent company QSR Brands reported last month.

Kampuchea Food chief executive Benjamin Jerome said the market potential for fast food in Cambodia was “huge”, however he also noted the toll high food prices took on restaurants.

“The cost of food in Cambodia is quite high, but this depends … on the company’s business model and supply,” he said yesterday. KFC has 10 restaurants in Cambodia.

To contact the reporter on this story: Don Weinland at [email protected]