Is Jollibee coming to Winnipeg? Rumour has Filipino community buzzing
Jollibee, the 'McDonald's of the Philippines' may have its sights set on Winnipeg
The 'McDonald's of the Philippines' may have its sights set on Winnipeg for expansion into the Canadian market, but even the thought of it has the local Filipino community excited.
Cantiveros, who grew up in Winnipeg, but has travelled to the Philippines many times, says Jollibee has always been considered the McDonald's of the Philippines and that a stop at the fast food joint is one of the first things to do for many Filipino people visiting home.
He also says the local Filipino community has grown to almost 70,000 people and that having a taste of home here, would mean a lot.
"Some of them might be homesick. Some of them might not have family and if they know that Jollibee is coming, there is that sense of home that they can look forward to," said Cantiveros.
Cantiveros isn't alone. Roddy Seradilla, who owns the Pimp My Rice food truck and the Filipino restaurant Bisita on Corydon says the fast food chain is a part of Filipino culture.
"Jollibee coming to Winnipeg would be so great because I know for my parents and aunts and uncles, [and other] immigrants to Winnipeg, it would definitely be another part of home that's now coming to Winnipeg," said Seradilla.
Seradilla recalls the first time ordering a 'Chickenjoy' meal and being pleasantly surprised when he got a side of rice and instead of standard french fries.
"The whole idea that we do have a restaurant that we can call our own. And it was very exclusive to the Philippines for the longest time," said Seradilla.
While there is yet to be an official announcement from Jollibee, the company's CFO said in an interview last March that they could soon be opening its first Canadian location and they hoped to be in Canada within the year.
The Philippine online news site, the Standard, later reported last year, that the company was having issues finding ideal locations for expansion and was postponing expansion to Canada until 2017.
With thousands of stores around the world and a large Filipino population here in Winnipeg, it might just be a matter of time before a newly constructed storefront in Winnipeg is a Jollibee, and for the many fans here it couldn't be soon enough.
"They could open up a Jollibee in Brandon and there would still be lineups for months," said Cantiveros.