AS far as first days go, it was a good one for fast food franchise Oporto.
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Locals warmly welcomed the franchise when its doors opened at 9am on Monday and there were cars lined up in the drive-through before it had even reached lunchtime.
Oporto is the third business to open in the Gateway development at Kelso.
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"We just put it [the opening] on the Bathurst [Facebook] page today and we've already had 200 comments and so many likes, so hopefully we'll have a good turnout," Oporto regional manager Maria Schifilliti said.
"We had a lot of people on Oporto's social media requesting we come here.
"We had an opportunity to team up with the Metro [service station] and secure this spot, so we thought we'd answer the locals and join everyone in Bathurst."
As well as bringing a new fast food restaurant to the region, Oporto has created a number of job opportunities.
"The more, the merrier. Since we were training from Thursday last week, we've had a lot of people inquire, so we're looking forward to employing more staff," Ms Schifilliti said.
"If anyone's looking to secure a job, Oporto will welcome you. We're a big family at Oporto and we've just employed 50 people to our family."
Having enjoyed visiting Bathurst on many occasions, local franchise owner Nilesh Patel is confident about bringing Oporto to the city and even hopes to expand.
"It's a good region, a big region. We can go in Bathurst or a bit away from it as well because the next store from here is Dubbo," he said.
"I love the town, love the people ... I love the race [Bathurst 1000], love the small vineyards.
"We will be successful. Of course, everybody wants good food."