By Curtis D. Tucker, Enid Buzz | Thursday, July 7, 2016 | UPDATED: July 20, 2016
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ENID, Okla. - Rumors have been flying about a new fast casual restaurant called Slim Chickens coming to Enid. I recently reached out to the companies corporate office to get more details and they've gladly answered all of the questions I posed to them.
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Slim Chickens Co-Founder and CEO Tom Gordon answered these 10 questions I presented to him.
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1. Is there anything specific that is bringing Slim Chickens to the Enid market?
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We have a market presence in Oklahoma and as a regional hub we felt that Enid would be a good fit for our brand.
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2. We’ve heard the location will be on W. Garriott next to McAlister’s. Is this correct?
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No, we’re targeting a pad in front of Lowe’s further to the west, we want to be near the retail energy of town and like the growth of hoteliers and retailers we see in that area.
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3. Do you have a targeted time frame for an opening date or when you will break ground?
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We’ll break ground this year and are targeting an early 2017 opening.
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4. How large will the store be and will it provide a drive thru?
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We’ll be building a prototype building with a drive thru, it will have roughly 2900 square feet, heated and cooled and a patio on the front.
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5. How many people will you employ?
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We should settle in around 35 – 45 employees both full time and part time.
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6. I’ve read that Slim Chickens is fast casual, can you explain that concept?
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While we do have a drive thru, we focus on an elevated level of product, quality, and service. We bring your order out to you in the dining room and create a dining experience that is of higher value and quality than a typical fast food concept. Also, the products we offer are absolutely top notch, we’ve built our success on great food first.
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7. What are your most popular food specialties?
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Our specialty is fresh, cooked to order chicken tenders and buffalo wings accompanied with our handmade signature dipping sauces. We’re known for the five tender, fries, sauce, toast, and a drink “Slims Plate”, the "3 & 3" plate with three tenders and three wings, fries, toast, and a drink. We also have a great “Chicken & Waffles” option along with wraps, salads, and a new sandwich that will be on the menu.
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8. How soon will you be hiring?
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We’ll start the hiring process in the coming months. We’ve already started the search for a local “Operating Partner” to join our Slims family and own part of that business.
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9. Do you offer any type of senior or military discounts?
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We take a look at the community and see what programs will deliver the most value. We’ll be exploring these options as we get closer to our opening date.
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10. Do you cater?
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We do a lot of bulk orders that guests pick up at the store for events and activities and are embarking on a catering delivery program that should be operational by the time we open the store. We’re looking forward to being a part of the Enid community.
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Slim Chickens serves fresh, cooked to order chicken tenders, wings, sandwiches, salads and wraps with dipping sauces made from scratch in-house. They've had locations in Arkansas and Oklahoma since 2003 and have now expanded into 10 states.
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Current Oklahoma locations include Moore, Broken Arrow, Edmond, Norman, Oklahoma City, Stillwater and Warr Acres. Most of their new store openings are taking place in Texas.
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Chicken and Waffles seems to be a very popular item on their menu. Other items include mac and cheese, coleslaw, potato salad, fried pickles, fried okra, fried mushrooms, carrots and celery, and dessert.
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Slim Chickens supports charitable organizations throughout the year in the communities they serve with the goal of empowering them to continue changing people’s lives for the better. They offer a Life Changing Chicken program which annually supports a wide range of community organizations and charity events, with a special emphasis on feeding those in need and helping the children of local communities.
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Visit their website here.
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Slim Chickens Targeting A Pad By Lowe's
