Delaware
Delaware’s newest Chick-fil-A has set an opening date
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Yes, Delaware, you’re getting another Chick-fil-A.
On Thursday, Oct. 3, the newest location of the cultishly popular fried chicken spot will open at 4008 N. Dupont Highway, just south of Wilmington near Minquadale.
The opening date underscores Chick-Fil-A’s ever-increasing speed at plunking down new locations. It was just four months ago that construction fencing first came up on North Dupont Highway, in front of a self-storage facility.
The new location will be 5,400 square feet, according to plans submitted with the county, with two drive-thru lanes – a feature that’s become commonplace at fast food restaurants across the country to accommodate advance orders from phone apps and delivery websites. Chick-fil-A’s dedicated phone-app lane is called Mobile Thru.
A nearby Chick-fil-A location at Governor’s Square in Bear has also submitted plans with the county to demolish and rebuild with a double-drive thru.
Even before opening, the location has been busy.
The North Dupont Chick-fil-A has been busy delivering 50 Chick-fil-A sandwiches a day to nearby businesses, after a Facebook contest designed to test out potential delivery sites.
The first winner was apparently the staff of Wilmington Airport, who called it their “clucky day” in an Instagram post last week, while posing for a picture alongside North Dupont franchisee Angelo Santos.
When it opens, the North Dupont location will be Delaware’s 16th location and also the closest Chick-fil-A to the city limits of Wilmington, which remains Chickless.
The new restaurant will bring 130 new jobs, according to a company press release, and plans to participate in a Chick-fil-A Shared Table program donating surplus food to shelters, food banks, soup kitchens and other nonprofits.
North Dupont’s franchisee, Angelo Santos, grew up in the Delaware County town of Ridley and held down his first job at Chick-fil-A at the age of 16.
A decade later, he wrote, he’s a franchise owner in Delaware.
“I am most looking forward to being a beacon of hope in the New Castle community,” Santos wrote in a statement. “I want to bring real change by providing career opportunities and leadership growth to my team members.”
In celebration of the North Dupont opening, parent Chick-fil-A, Inc. has donated $25,000 to nonprofit Feeding America, which partners with the Food Bank of Delaware. The restaurant will also award a prize of free Chick-fil-A entrees for a year to 100 “local heroes” making an impact in the New Castle area.
Chick-Fil-A will open on Oct. 3 at 4008 N. Dupont Highway. Hours are 6:30 a.m. to 9 p.m. Monday to Saturday. Drive-thru open until 10 p.m. Details at chick-fil-a.com.