While some restaurants continue to close — others are finding a way to expand. Such is the case for Chook Charcoal Chicken. Co-founded by James Beard award-winning chef Alex Seidel, Snooze’s Adam Schlegel and industry vet Randy Layman, the fast-casual rotisserie chicken joint has become a popular go-to since it opened in Wash Park in December 2018. The Aussie-inspired concept has grown quickly since adding a second location in the Hale neighborhood exactly a year after opening. Today they announced they’re ready for their third with a location inside the Stanley Marketplace. Keeping in line with their past opening schedules, it’s set to debut this winter.
“Chook has long admired the now Central Park neighborhood, and let’s just say talks with Stanley have been going on for a while. We love the sense of community, the fellow restaurants and entrepreneurs and the thoughtful approach to creating a sense of place, gardens and growers, bike paths, open parks, lots to love,” said Schlegel.
However, this isn’t the only news from the Chook kitchen. The team announced it officially received its B-Corporation status. For those unaware, becoming a B Corp means it’s met “standards of verified social and environmental performance, public transparency, and legal accountability to balance profit and purpose.” According to Chook, its the first restaurant helmed by a James Beard award-winning chef that has achieved said status.
“Chook Chicken is all about building good quality food systems and making good food accessible to feed and nourish all people and our communities, which encompasses B Corp’s philosophy and ideas,” said Seidel. “Being a Certified B Corp is important because it signifies change in an industry that has been antiquated in its thoughts and policies for far too long and it sets a true model for our restaurants.”
This is particularly meaningful for a chicken restaurant since its main ingredient is often the focus of environmental and animal rights issues. But Chook, which lists their food practices on their site, can now add another layer of assurances for ethical consumers.
Chook Charcoal Chicken is set to open in Stanley Marketplace in winter 2020. For more info on Chook and its current locations, go here.