New Delhi, Dec 25 (IANS): Encouraged by the popularity of its stores that serve not only pizzas but also wine and beer, restaurant chain Pizza Hut plans to open 25 more such joints across the country next year, a senior company official said.

"We are planning to open 25 stores in this particular format. We have received tremendous response to this new format of our business," Sunay Bhasin, marketing head, Pizza Hut India, told IANS.

The company currently operates 10 such stores in Delhi, and Bangalore.

"We have seen a growth of nearly 20-to-25 percent in this format. The expansion will also help us in diversifying our offering and adding a more value-added service," said Bhasin.

The company, which is celebrating 15 years of operation in India, also plans to take its casual dinning restaurant presence from 131 to 250 stores by 2015.

"Our plan is to have a presence of about 250 stores by 2015 from the current 131 stores that we have in 34 cities."

Bhasin added that the major thrust areas for expansion would be big cities with the standard franchise model.

About its menu offerings, the company said it would introduce 15 new pan pizzas which would incorporate Indian ingredients. The pizzas include sev puri, chettinadu paneer, chatpata veg masala, nimbu mirchi, and mushroom corn masala, among others.

All the pizzas would be priced from Rs.95 onwards at all Pizza Hut dine-ins.