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

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: "one-year supply" means 52 food certificates, and you must be at least 18 years old with identification to be eligible for the handout.

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

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

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 part of a 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.

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.”

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.