Restaurant to open in February or March because of time, space issues

The Chick-fil-A "Eat more Chikin" cow will have to wait a few more months to be seen in the Mountainlair.

Chick-fil-A was expected to open this January, but the opening is delayed until late February or early March due to time and space constraints.

Michael Ellington, assistant vice president for student affairs, said fitting a large operation into a small space caused the opening to be delayed.

Ellington said the biggest obstacle that Chick-fil-A has faced throughout the construction was fitting the amount of equipment required for such a large project into a small area.

Ellington said Dining Services is focusing on getting the job done correctly, and that it is trying to maximize square footage.

"It would be nice if we had twice as much space," Ellington said. "Working with architecture, and tearing things down and needing a quality product out of that is the biggest hold up."

Ellington said by the time Chick-fil-A will be done with construction, startup costs and equipment will cost approximately $400,000 to $500,000.

Larry Koay, assistant director of Dining Services, said despite the delayed opening and price of the

construction, it will be worth it once the business is running.

"We have had more inquiries about people wanting to know when it opens and what it has than we ever have had," Ellington said. "It is going to be a hit."

Ellington said after looking over a survey that was conducted a few years ago, students had Chick-fil-A as one of their top three food options.

"We had a place called McCoy's there," he said. "No one could relate to it, our intent was to have a national name and a recognizable one."

Ellington said Chick-fil-A customers will not create more crowding in the Mountainlair food court.

"It is going to be just as chaotic and hectic as it is today," Ellington said.

Koay said the restaurant will have all the standard Chick-fil-A menu items, such as the classic chicken sandwich, chicken deluxe sandwich with options like salad and chicken nuggets.

The prices will be similar, as well.