A modern Kuala Lumpur and Petaling Jaya landmark, the A&W PJ drive-in restaurant near Taman Jaya will be closing down in December, after 49 illustrious years of service.
After the A&W franchise was brought into Malaysia in 1963 with the opening of the country’s first fast food restaurant in Jalan Tunku Abdul Rahman, the PJ drive-in was opened in 1965, making it the first drive-in restaurant in Malaysia. In 2001, A&W Malaysia was fully bought over by then-franchisee KUB Malaysia Sdn Bhd, making it a separate concern from the international A&W business, owned by YUM! Brands.
Despite an attempt in 2008 to rejuvenate the brand and its market share, A&W Malaysia has fallen on hard times. Outperformed by fast food giants McDonald’s, KFC, Pizza Hut and even brands fairly new to the Malaysian market such as Burger King, Ipoh Old Town White Coffee and Subway, KUB announced earlier this year that it would close 34 A&W outlets in Malaysia and Thailand. It is surprising that the highly popular PJ drive-in would be one of the outlets scheduled for closure.
Hype.my quotes KUB Malaysia group managing director Wan Mohd Nor Wan Ahmad as saying, “We will retain only outlets that have heavy traffic based on the increase in sales, and we are looking at ways to increase customers’ satisfaction. The comprehensive plan has been approved by the board and the restructuring will address issues such as strengthening core competencies, enhancing business fundamentals, nurturing in-house talent and strengthening capital position.”
That seems like a lot of doublespeak to distract from the fact that the PJ outlet, which takes up a lot of real estate, would be more profitable to sell off and tear down than to refurbish and kept operating. In fact, it’s already been announced that the plot of land the PJ drive-in currently sits on will be redeveloped into commercial/office blocks after December.
Facebook users have set up a Save A&W PJ community page for those who want to pool their resources and work to lobby for the iconic restaurant to stay in business. At the very least, it’s as good a place as any for people to share their fond PJ drive-in memories as closing time approaches.
