AURORA, Ill. (Sept. 16, 2010) – The Chick-fil-A® restaurant chain will bring stellar customer service and southern hospitality to the Chicagoland area with the opening of its first restaurant in Aurora on Sept. 16. In celebration, Chick-fil-A will continue its tradition of awarding the first 100 customers with a free year’s supply of Chick-fil-A food.
The Chick-fil-A Aurora restaurant at 4435 Fox Valley Center Dr. will continue the restaurant chain’s tradition of creating special experiences for its customers by awarding a one-year supply of free Chick-fil-A® Meals (52 certificates) to each of the first 100 adults (age 18 and older with identification) in line. The line officially opens at 6 a.m., Wednesday, Sept. 15, with the free meal cards being awarded Thursday, Sept. 16, sometime between 6 a.m. and 6:10 a.m. The restaurant will open for business immediately thereafter. If there are more than 100 people by 6 a.m. on Wednesday, all 100 spots will be determined by a raffle. See www.chick-fil-a.com/#insidersfirst100 for complete rules.
Started more than six years ago as an idea for the grand opening of its first stand-alone restaurant in Arizona, Chick-fil-A’s First 100 Celebration has become the signature event of each grand opening around the country. The chain’s loyal customers often arrive 24 hours in advance of the opening — no matter the location or weather conditions. It is expected a large crowd will be on hand for the Aurora opening as it marks the chain’s first location in the metro area.
With its unique customer service model, Chick-fil-A is sure to become a Chicagoland mainstay. The Atlanta-based chain is known for its passion for going the extra mile with customer service. Restaurant team members provide “second mile service” from refreshing customers’ beverages in the dining room to saying “my pleasure” at the end of each transaction to decorating each table with fresh flowers.
The new stand-alone Chick-fil-A restaurant in Aurora is one of 78 new locations the chain plans to open this year, including two more Chicagoland locations with openings scheduled in Orland Park in October and Wheaton in November. The three restaurants will bring upward of 200 new jobs to the area, and nationally, the company will create nearly 4,500 new jobs this year. Chick-fil-A also plans to increase its Midwest presence with planned 2011 expansion in St. Louis.
The three restaurants come as Chick-fil-A’s loyal followers in metro Chicago have intensified their requests
using websites, on-line petitions, and social media to influence the chain to open locations in the region. In 2011, the company plans to intensify its expansion into Chicago with an additional three plus restaurants and several additional sites under active negotiation. There is a bit of good news for those true Chicagoans – two urban locations are slated for 2011. In the next three to five years, the anticipated growth for Chicagoland will include an additional 12 to 14 locations.
The closest Chick-fil-A restaurant is currently located more than 60 miles from downtown Chicago in the Regency Mall in Racine, Wisc. The only other Chick-fil-A locations in Illinois are in shopping malls in Moline and Fairview Heights, along with six licensed locations on business and college campuses in Charleston, Edwardsville, Bloomington, Carbondale and Urbana; all more than 140 miles away from the Chicagoland area.
“Thanks to our family of Operators and restaurant team members who provide freshly prepared food and going-the-extra-mile customer service, Chick-fil-A is fortunate to be able to continue to grow and we’re excited to finally be a part of the Chicagoland area,” said Dan T. Cathy, President and COO, Chick-fil-A, Inc. “We are very fortunate to be blessed with not only committed Operators and team members but also with a tremendous following of loyal customers, including the thousands who have been asking us to come to Chicago for years. They are the reason we do what we do every day.”
The First 100 event at each restaurant opening is one way Chick-fil-A both thanks and celebrates its customers, many of whom travel hundreds of miles to participate. Extreme weather conditions or distant locations do not dampen the enthusiasm of those who bring tents, electronics, swimming pools and other gear to pass the time overnight until the restaurant opens.
Chick-fil-A has awarded nearly $11.2 million in free food at restaurant grand openings, with nearly another
$1.8 million to be given away in 2010. Once Cathy saw customers willing to camp out in Chick-fil-A parking lots, he decided to join in the fun with his own tent and sleeping bag. December 2009 marked Cathy’s 100th overnight campout with customers at Chick-fil-A grand openings
Doug Lockwood has been selected as the franchise Operator of the Aurora location. Having been involved with Chick-fil-A as an Operator for more than five years, Lockwood will be bringing his passion for community involvement to the Aurora community. His philanthropic attitude for community and involvement with more than 20 local schools and 40 organizations at his previous Chick-fil-A restaurant will bode well as he embraces the community and school districts in Aurora.
“Truett Cathy started Chick-fil-A more than 43 years ago with the aim of providing the best in freshly prepared food and customer service,” said Lockwood. “The goal remains the same for my team as we open Chicagoland’s first Chick-fil-A restaurant.”
The new Chick-fil-A features a 4,230-square-foot interior that seats 120 and has warm colors and wood accents and a convenient, award-winning drive-thru. Children will enjoy an indoor play area featuring an interactive section for toddlers. The new restaurant is open Monday through Saturday from 6:30 a.m. to 10 p.m., serving a full breakfast menu until 10:30 a.m. including its popular, made-from-scratch Chick-fil-A® Chicken Biscuit.
The award-winning lunch and dinner menu includes the original Chick-fil-A® Chicken Sandwich, which Chick-fil-A is credited with inventing, and the newly added Chick-fil-A® Spicy Sandwich – the first new sandwich addition to the menu since 1981. Chick-fil-A uses the freshest ingredients possible while preparing its menu onsite including freshly-squeezed lemonade, variety of salads and wraps, and chicken sandwiches that are hand-filleted and battered before being pressure cooked in peanut oil.
Aware of rising health concerns among the population, especially for children, Chick-fil-A has eliminated artificial trans fat from its entire menu and was among the first national quick-service restaurant chains to offer a complete menu – from entrées to condiments – with zero grams of trans fat. All of Chick-fil-A’s entrees are under 500 calories.
Chick-fil-A’s award-winning drive-thru service is a convenient way for Chick-fil-A customers on the go to get their favorite Chick-fil-A menu items. After being included seven years ago, Chick-fil-A again ranked number one for the sixth time in 2009 for QSR magazine’s annual Drive-Thru Performance Study. Following a three-month industry study of 20 quick-service restaurant chains, Chick-fil-A was selected the overall winner in the annual survey which measures order accuracy, speed of service, menu board appearance and speaker clarity.
About Chick-fil-A, Inc.
Truett Cathy developed the original Chick-fil-A boneless breast of chicken sandwich in his 24-hour Dwarf House® diner near Atlanta in the early 1960s, and he opened his first Chick-fil-A® restaurant in Atlanta’s Greenbriar Mall in 1967. Since then, the chain has grown to include more than 1,500 locations in 38 states and Washington, D.C. In December 2009, Chick-fil-A, Inc. reached $3 billion in sales for the first time – marking its 42nd consecutive year of sales growth. The chain plans to add 78 locations this year, including 66 stand-alone restaurants, two mall/retail outlets, and 10 licensed outlets in non-traditional locations such as college campuses. This year, the chain also will spend millions in reinvestment dollars on existing business markets to remodel and re-design 171 stand-alone and shopping mall outlets across the country. More information about Chick-fil-A is available on the chain’s websites, located at www.chick-fil-a.com, www.facebook.com/chick-fil-a, www.chick-fil-a.com/pressroom or www.truettcathy.com.
