Oak Lawn Hooters shows off new look

LIQUIDATION SALE: Grant's Appliances is holding a liquidation sale at its Orland Park location.

By Bob Bong
Southland Savvy

Hooters, a restaurant famous for its wings and waitresses who wear tight T-shirts and short shorts, opened its new-look restaurant last week at 9159 S. Cicero Ave. in Oak Lawn.

The new Hooters will act as a flagship for Chicago-area locations, according to the Florida-based chain. It was built next to an existing location, which will be torn down and turned into a parking lot for the new building.

The new Hooters has updated furnishings, video gaming and high-definition television, and a new menu with more wing choices, burgers and salads, all part of a revitalization effort for the restaurant that opened 15 years ago and is one of the busiest in the area for the chain.

Car wash reopens

Tornado Car Wash, which closed a couple of years ago, reopened last week at 5735 S. Archer Road in Summit. It has new owners.

Countryside lands Chick-fil-A restaurant

A couple of years ago, fans of Chick-fil-A chicken sandwiches had to head south to get their fill.

Now, there are 12 of the restaurants in the Chicago area.

Another new one is slated to open by the end of next year in Countryside's City Center, in the final parcel of the city-sponsored development at Joliet and LaGrange roads.

"Construction is scheduled to begin in late spring or early summer with an opening in the fall," said Countryside City Administrator Gail Paul.

"It's supposed to be a unique location, a prototype," said Paul. The 3/4 acre parcel is smaller than most, she added.

"It's also supposed to be the first with some kind of queuing system in front of the counter," she said. "Right now, you kind of stand there until an order taker is ready."

Paul said the city signed off on redevelopment plans last month, though she does not know if it's a new franchise owner or a second location for one of the locations that has opened in the nearby suburbs over the years.

 

Nearby Chick-fil-A locations are in Chicago Ridge and North Riverside. The first Chick-fil-A in the Chicago-area opened a few years ago in Orland Park.

If you see a new business in town or wonder what happened to an old favorite, drop me a line at bobbong@hotmail.com.

You can also catch up on Comings & Goings in other parts of the Southland at www.southlandbusinessnews.com.