John Mihalos wants area residents to know fast food doesn?t have to be greasy or deep-fried.
With his new restaurant Chicken Wild, which opened in Tinley Park this month, he hopes to prove fast food can be tasty and healthy, but still come at a quick pace and affordable price.
?We want them to know there is an alternative to burgers. That there is an alternative to fried food,? he said. ?It?s like a home-cooked meal, but at a fast food pace.?
Mihalos?said he has been conceptualizing Chicken Wild for more than 15 years. Based on cooking styles he learned as a boy in Greece, all meat served at Chicken Wild is cooked on a rotisserie with fresh spices and olive oil, and all side dishes are cooked each day with fresh ingredients.
?It?s a Mediterranean style of cooking that uses nothing but the finest ingredients,? he said.
Still, customers can dine in, carry out or have their food delivered, with individual meals ranging from $4.99 to $7.99.
?The type of food that we serve here, it?s normally served in four- and five-star restaurants, we just brought it into a level where economically it can make sense in the fast food industry,? he said.
Mihalos? history in the restaurant business started as a child in Greece where his grandmother operated an eatery below their family home. On the wall of Chicken Wild are traces of his beginnings with photographs of his family and of himself sitting next to a rotisserie as a young boy.
He moved from Greece to Oak Lawn when he was 13 and carried on the family tradition by working in the restaurant industry himself. He previously ran two family dining restaurants in Oak Park as well as beef and hot dog stands, yogurt shops and more in and around Chicago. For the past 10 years, he has worked mostly as a consultant but after some serious research and planning, he stepped back into the ownership role.
The Orland Park resident said he picked his new location in the former Starbucks storefront at the corner of 159th Street and Harlem Avenue to test the Chicken Wild concept. If all goes well, he has big plans for expansion.
?We have a vision of taking this to the next level and having many, many stores, first in the Chicago area, and then everywhere else we can,? he said.
Still, he plans to take the business slow. He said he will likely have a ribbon cutting event and increase his advertising in a month or so, for now he wants to the time to train his employees and work out the kinks before attracting too much attention.
?It?s a matter of wanting to do the right thing at the right speed,? he said. ?We?re looking for the long term gain, not the short term momentum.?
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