The Original Pickleball "Eatertainment" Complex Acing the Competition with Seven More Restaurants Scheduled for Completion by Early 2025. This is Chicken N Pickle's fastest period of growth to date with the entertainment destination smashing its way in to sports dining with 15 locations in eight states.
KANSAS CITY, Mo., Aug. 21, 2023 /PRNewswire-PRWeb/ -- Chicken N Pickle – the original indoor/outdoor "eatertainment" complex with a casual, chef-driven restaurant, sports bar, pickleball courts and a variety of yard games – announces national expansion plans to nearly double in size by first quarter 2025. The first-to-market concept has opened eight locations since 2017, with seven more Chicken N Pickle restaurants scheduled for completion by early 2025. This is the company's fastest period of growth to date. The new properties will almost double the number of Chicken N Pickle locations from eight to 15, making it the fastest growing pickleball entertainment concept in the country.
"At Chicken N Pickle, we invented the idea of combining high-quality food, craft cocktails and the ever-growing sport of pickleball," said Brad Clarke, CEO. "And now, we're scaling the concept so we can bring our fun, unique experience to more people across the country – which can be enjoyed whether or not they play pickleball."
First to Market / Best in Class
The first Chicken N Pickle opened in Kansas City, Missouri, in 2017, before there were any other establishments with both a restaurant and pickleball courts. The other seven locations can be found in Wichita, Kansas; San Antonio, Texas; Oklahoma City, Oklahoma; Overland Park, Kansas; and in both Grand Prairie, Grapevine, Texas; and Glendale, Arizona, which opened last week.
Seven more complexes have been announced or are under development. Expanding both east and west, Chicken N Pickle will serve up one new complex in 2023 in St. Charles, Missouri; and four new properties in 2024 in Allen, Texas; Fishers, Indiana; Henderson, Nevada; and Webster, Texas. The remaining two locations are slated to open in early 2025 in Thornton, Colorado; and Parker, Colorado.
"Chicken N Pickle is committed to remaining the best-in-class pickleball entertainment destination as we expand nationally, without sacrificing our personal touch and local connection in each market," said Garrett Stutz, director of real estate and expansion. "Each of our best-in-class facilities creates approximately 180 local jobs and attracts over 650,000 annual visitors, so we become a go-to attraction in every community we serve."
The average Chicken N Pickle facility comprises approximately 1.5 acres (3.5 acres with parking) and 32,000 square feet. Chicken N Pickle's main dining area is spacious enough for corporate and social events, from lunch meetings to large rehearsal dinners and team-building exercises. Chicken N Pickle features bars, multiple dining areas on the main floor and rooftop dining with outdoor tables for guests. The venues offer numerous indoor and outdoor pickleball courts and a variety of lawn games, such as cornhole, ping pong, battleship and Jenga.
Chef-Driven Restaurant
Using responsibly raised, antibiotic- and hormone-free chicken, the menu includes delicious, rotisserie dishes available in four different seasonings, pork and beef sandwiches, as well as signature hand-cut fries and tots. Other items include classic choices and guest favorites like BBQ Mac N Cheese and the Green Goddess Veggie Bowl.
"The approach for our food is pretty simple," said Alex Staab, director of culinary. "We focus on sourcing quality ingredients, handling them with care, and extracting as much flavor as we can. Our flavor combinations are usually riffs on classics that we try to lighten up. We look for a healthy, balanced and delicious finish."
Rotating seasonal menu items, a sports bar and elevated cocktails round out Chicken N Pickle offerings, which also boast temporary "experiences within an experience." Two pop-up bars make annual on-property appearances – one with a Tiki theme from May through September, and another known as "Snowbound" in November and December.
Focus on Local Communities
Chicken N Pickle is committed to giving back to the communities it serves through philanthropic and service-oriented efforts that strengthen its neighborhood. Since its founding in 2017, Chicken N Pickle has helped over 5,000 local charities and given back more than $2.5 million dollars to local non-profits. Last year alone, in 2022, Chicken N Pickle supported over 2,000 charitable organizations, hosted more than 730 fundraisers and put more than $325,000 back into local communities through in-kind and general donations as well as property give-backs.
The Chicken N Pickle Foundation, formed in 2020, works in partnership with local health, wellness and relationship-building charities to create long-lasting solutions addressing community needs. Each year, the Foundation provides $6,000 to each store for employees to support local non-profits of their choice.
In addition, Chicken N Pickle supports local breweries and non-profits, as well as pickleball athletes and teams. Every location employs a full-time community impact coordinator whose job is to "find a way every day to make a positive impact in the community" through service-oriented endeavors.
"We say 'our hearts are local' because we support our Chicken N Pickle communities through charitable activities and business practices," said Kelli Alldredge, president. "We are thrilled to become part of new local communities and begin rallying around neighborhoods that surround them."
"Our hearts are local" also means Chicken N Pickle supports its internal community. To assist employees, Chicken N Pickle established an Employee Hardship Fund, which is available for employee financial support when faced with an unforeseen life disruption, as well as scholarship opportunities so our employees can grow and learn with us. "We wholeheartedly want to do everything we can to support our entire Chicken N Pickle family," adds Alldredge.
Leadership and Awards
Many of the company's leadership team have been with Chicken N Pickle since its 2016 inception, which has been a key driver in the company's unified culture and success. In addition, half the team are women and Alldredge, who has served as president since February 2023, was recently honored with a professional accolade from the leading business publication in Kansas City when she won the Kansas City Business Journal's "Women Who Mean Business 2023" Award. Chicken N Pickle has three times been named by the Business Journal a "Champions of Business" winner and earned recognition as the "2022 Small Business of the Year" from the Kansas City Chamber of Commerce.
About Chicken N Pickle
Chicken N Pickle is a unique, indoor/outdoor entertainment complex and first-to-market concept that includes a casual, chef-driven restaurant, sports bar, pickleball courts and games for all ages. Our mission is to provide an atmosphere that fosters fun, friendship and community. A key tenet of Chicken N Pickle is demonstrated through the Our Hearts Are Local program, which focuses on creating philanthropic partnerships to strengthen our neighborhoods and beyond. Chicken N Pickle holds dozens of charitable events annually and donates proceeds back to the communities we serve. We're known for: Good Food. Good Friends. Great Fun. To learn more, please visit http://www.chickennpickle.com
Media Contact
Carrie Bartlow, Chicken N Pickle, (816) 848-8429, [email protected], https://chickennpickle.com
SOURCE Chicken N Pickle
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