The operator of the Checkers fast-food restaurant chain wants to more than double their presence in South Florida.

The restaurants are primarily drive-thru operations, although some locations have outdoor seating under the “Crazy Good Food” slogan.

Their modular buildings and small footprint make the expansion financially feasible despite rising real estate costs in South Florida.

The restaurants use 850-square-foot buildings made at an Orlando-area plant and assembled onsite, said Robert Bhagwandat, director of franchise development for Checkers and Rally's restaurants in Atlanta. The total footprint for each restaurant, parking included, is about 18,000 square feet, well under half an acre.

That gives the Tampa-based Checkers Drive-In Restaurants Inc. a leg up.

“We can get into a lot of spaces that other places can't. When you start getting into the heart of Miami-Dade County looking at commercial real estate, it could become a little bit pricey, which then makes it not make sense on a profit-and-loss statement for a lot of other concepts,” he said. “For us, because we only need so much real estate, we can make it work … where we can still see profit for what we are trying to get out of a piece of real estate.”

In addition, the modular buildings allow the company to save money on construction, Bhagwandat said.

“Being able to reduce the cost of developing the restaurant … by almost 15 to 20 percent, that's a huge number when you are talking about franchisees trying to open something,” he said. It “then translates into them being able to afford more real estate” and open more locations.

The modular buildings have another benefit. If business subsides at one location and Checkers closes the site, it loses its investment on the land but can move its building someplace else, saving on new construction, Bhagwandat added.

Checkers wants to open at least 50 restaurants in Miami-Dade, Broward and Palm Beach counties in addition to its existing 47, Bhagwandat said. The first eight to 10 locations are set to open over the next two years, and the rest will come in eight to 10 years, he added.

“We are heavily underpenetrated here,” he said. “South Florida is just one of the areas that's growing faster, and you have the opportunity to touch more customers.”

The plan is already under way. A new Checkers opened Oct. 10 at 9160 NW 122nd St. in Hialeah Gardens. That location is owned and run by Checkers Drive-In Restaurants Inc. But as part of its expansion, the company also is working with franchisees.

The ideal sites for new restaurants are intersections with traffic signals, near schools and areas millennials frequent, Bhagwandat said. He declined to disclose specific neighborhoods being considered for new restaurants.