The wait for Joliet Chick-fil-A: ‘It’s worth it’

Chick-fil-A opened in Joliet to long lines and enthusiastic customers.

“It’s worth it,” Sarah Mogorovic of Joliet said while still waiting to get into the restaurant parking lot after being in her car for a half-hour.

The line at 2 p.m. stretched into the Joliet Commons parking lot and beyond the shopping center onto Hennepin Street as enthusiasts of the restaurant waited for their first taste of Chick-fil-A chicken cooked in Joliet.

It had been that busy ever since employee Savannah Keck came to work at 10 a.m.

“The lines have been long. Taking orders has been fun,” Keck said.

The lines had been so long that Keck was switched from taking customer orders inside the restaurant to directing traffic outside.

Asked why it was worth the long wait, Mogorovic’s answer was simple. “It’s the best chicken. It’s their opening day.”

Joliet has been waiting for this Chick-fil-A moment for nearly two years since news came out that the chain had submitted plans to the city for the restaurant at 2705 Plainfield Road.

But the project has had some stops and starts along the way dealing with wetland issues that slowed down redevelopment of the site and then the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic that pushed back the opening date.

It looked like the restaurant would open by September when demolition equipment arrived on site in spring 2020. But the equipment was later pulled out and a city official said it was a temporary halt due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

By July the demolition was on again.

A building that housed a Lone Star Steakhouse that closed in 2017 was torn down to make room for the 4,863-square-foot Chick-fil-A.

The new Chick-fil-A has 110 seats and an outdoor eating area with 24 seats.

Thursday was a carry-out day due to COVID-19 restrictions that have curbed the restaurant business in many ways bud did not appear to have much impact on the opening-day business for Chick-fil-A.

“I love it,” said Amanda Dragisic of Joliet who was in the car with Mogorovic. “It’s one of my three favorite chicken places.”

Mogorovic added that it was good to have one closer to home.