Business & Tech

Northlake Chick-fil-A to Open Doors, Give Away Year's Supply of Fast Food

The new chicken sandwich restaurant will open May 26, and the store is offering the first 100 customers in line free food for a year.

Local chicken sandwich enthusiasts, mark this date on your calendar: May 26, also known as next Thursday.

The first reason: Chick-fil-A is opening a new restaurant on Lavista Road in the Northlake community.

The second–and most important–reason: If you're among the first 100 camped out in line when the store opens, you get a year's supply of fast food. A little bit of fine print though. A "one-year supply" means 52 food certificates, and you must be 18 years old with identification to be eligible for the handout.

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The restaurant chain is anticipating so much interest in the new store, it plans to open the line on Wednesday, May 25, at 6am, 24 hours before the store will open. But if more than 100 people have showed up by 6am Wednesday, the first 100 will be determined by a raffle.

Another note of interest: the restaurant is franchised and operated by a local guy, Brad Spratte, a "life-long" Northlake resident and graduate.

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The store will also be collecting new teddy bears and non-perishable food items for victims of the recent spate of tornadoes that tore across the Southeast.

Here's the full statement from the company designed to obliterate any doubt you might have about Chick-fil-A's status as the most mind-blowing fast food chain in the country:

A quarter century after Chick-fil-A® grew from its shopping mall locations to open its first stand-alone restaurant, the Chick-fil-A restaurant chain will continue to make its award-winning drive-thru service and freshly prepared menu items more convenient when it opens its newest metro Atlanta location on May 26, and will award a free year’s supply of Chick-fil-A to the first 100 adults in line that morning.

Seven years after it debuted at an Arizona grand opening, Chick-fil-A’s First 100 celebration ushers in each grand opening around the country. The parking lot party draws from miles around Chick-fil-A’s loyal customers who come equipped with couches, TVs, computers, tents and other gear as they count down to the newest restaurant opening. Extreme weather conditions don’t dampen the enthusiasm of the participants who often arrive more than 24 hours in advance.

A similar scene is expected at Northlake Festival where Chick-fil-A will award a one-year supply of free Chick-fil-A® Meals (52 certificates) to each of the first 100 adults in line, age 18 and older with identification, at the restaurant located at 3967 Lavista Rd. The line officially opens at 6 a.m., Wednesday, May 25, with the free meal cards being awarded Thursday, May 26, 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, May 25, all 100 spots will be determined by a raffle. See http://www.chick-fil-a.com/Locations/First-100 for complete rules.

Working with Volunteers of America Southeast, the Northlake Festival Chick-fil-A restaurant will collect new teddy bears and non-perishable food items to benefit tornado victims. Items may be brought to the new restaurant between 11 a.m. and 7 p.m. on Thursday, May 26. Donors will receive a free brownie or Chick-fil-A® Ice Dream for their generosity.

The opening of the first stand-alone Chick-fil-A in Northlake comes 25 years after the chain first moved from the malls, where it helped to pioneer the in-mall food concept, to the street with the opening of its first stand-alone restaurant in its hometown of Atlanta in 1986. With 90 restaurant openings planned in 2011, Chick-fil-A will reach 1,000 stand-alone locations in addition to the restaurants it operates in shopping malls and at licensed locations such as universities and airport.

Continuing to expand despite the country’s economic challenges, Chick-fil-A in 2010 opened 80 new restaurants, creating nearly 4,500 new jobs, and expanded into metro Chicago where restaurants opened to record-breaking sales. The chain anticipates creating another 5,000 new jobs in 2011.

After reaching $3 billion in sales for the first time in 2009, Chick-fil-A continued the positive trend in 2010 reporting that sales topped $3.58 billion. Marking Chick-fil-A’s 43rd year of consecutive growth, last year’s sales represented an 11.37 percent overall and 5.92 percent same-store performance over the chain’s sales performance the previous year.

“We are thrilled to continue expanding and responding to the requests of our loyal customers to bring Chick-fil-A closer to where they live,” said Dan T. Cathy, President and COO, Chick-fil-A, Inc. “As we enter new regions and grow in established markets, we are grateful for our outstanding franchised Operators and their team members who provide the freshly prepared food and excellent service on both sides of the counter. Their efforts keep our customers coming back again and again."

The First 100 event rewards and celebrates that loyalty with a 24-hour campout in the restaurant parking lot that includes music, contests, games, entertainment and, of course, plenty of Chick-fil-A. Since the event began in 2003, Chick-fil-A has given away more than $13 million in free food at its restaurant grand openings, with nearly $2.3 million slated to be awarded to First 100 participants in 2011.

This year marks 65 years since founder Truett Cathy opened his first restaurant, the Dwarf Grill, in Hapeville, Ga., in 1946.

It was there that Cathy, who will celebrate his 90th birthday in March, perfected his recipe for a boneless-breast-of-chicken sandwich which became the signature menu item when he opened his first Chick-fil-A restaurant in Atlanta in 1967. From the very beginning, Cathy’s focus on freshly prepared menu items and superior customer service have been hallmarks of the chain as it has grown to more than 1,550 restaurants in 39 states and Washington D.C.

Brad Spratte will continue to extend that legacy as franchised Operator of the new Chick-fil-A at Northlake Festival. A graduate of DeKalb County’s Lakeside High School and Auburn University, Brad is a life-long Northlake resident where he and his wife, Deone, have raised their children Lauren and David. Having relocated from the Chick-fil-A restaurant at Tucker Station a few miles away, Brad and his family look forward to continuing to serve the community at the new Northlake restaurant.

“Chick-fil-A may have grown to be the second-largest chicken restaurant chain in the country, but our ideals today are no different than those Truett Cathy exemplified when he started Chick-fil-A 43 years ago,” said Spratte. “We want our customers to enjoy our freshly prepared food in the same friendly neighborhood environment he created.”

With the 1986 opening of its first stand-alone restaurant came Chick-fil-A’s drive-thru service which has become an industry leader, topping studies for six years running. In the most recent QSR magazine Drive-Thru Performance Study, Chick-fil-A ranked number one overall in the survey which measured order accuracy, speed of service, menu board appearance and speaker clarity.

The new Northlake Festival Chick-fil-A features a 4,275 square-foot interior that seats 144 with additional outdoor seating and has warm colors and wood accents and a convenient, award-winning drive-thru while 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.

Sensitive to rising health concerns, especially among children, Chick-fil-A offers a completely trans fat-free menu and was among the first national quick-service restaurant chains to do so. At no extra charge, parents may substitute a small fruit cup for Waffle Potato Fries® included in Chick-fil-A Kid’s Meals®.

In the December 2010 issue of Men’s Health, the publication discussed America’s Best and Worst Restaurants. It named Chick-fil-A as the best chicken chain. While touting Chick-fil-A’s healthier menu, the magazine stated, “Bottom line: You won't find a better meal at any fast food joint in the country.”


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