LOUISVILLE, Ky. – Papa John’s International Inc. announced the opening of a restaurant in Almaty, Kazakhstan, on Aug. 27. PJ Western, the company’s largest international franchisee, plans to open 16 restaurants in Kazakhstan. The second one will be open in Almaty in October. Almaty is the most populated city in Kazakhstan.

“We are excited about establishing and expanding the Papa John's pizza brand in Kazakhstan," said Christopher Wynne, co-owner and CEO of PJ Western. "We believe that our passion for better ingredients will transfer well to Almaty and beyond and our new customers will love our quality pizza."

PJ Western operates 181 Papa John’s franchises in Russia, Belarus, Kyrgyzstan and Poland.

Papa John’s is also looking into potential franchisees in Paris, along with Belgium and Denmark.