Buca will open 17 restaurants next year

Buca Inc., the Minneapolis-Based family-style Italian restaurant chain, says it will open 17 restaurant snext year. The company recently opened its 50th restaurant, which is located in Santa Monica, Calif., and next month will open its 17th and final new restaurant this year in Irvine, Calif.

Restaurant Business named Buca #3 in their list of top 50 growth chains, ranked by the percentage increase in units, in the July 15 issue. Joseph P. Micatrotto,chairman, CEO and president, says new restaurants have averaged $56,000 per week in sales this year, 25 percent higher than the company’s projection.

Buca has restaurants in Arizona, California, Colorado, Florida,Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Michigan, Minnesota, Nevada, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Texas, Washington, Wisconsin, and the District ofColumbia.