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Area's first Chili's opens its doors

Barbara Rivera Holmes

LEESBURG — The area’s first Chili’s Grill & Bar opened early Monday after a celebration of the franchise’s 13th store.

“Let’s get these doors open in about 10 minutes. We’re going up early,” said Brett Summers, vice president of Bonnaroo Restaurant Chain, about 15 minutes shy of the store’s 11 a.m. official opening.

Franchise owner Bonnaroo has opened 13 of the 33 Chili’s it plans to set up. Summers said that the Albany area is a great fit for Bonnaroo’s business model because of of the market’s size.

“We’ve got a development agreement with Brinker (International) to develop smaller markets,” he said. Brinker is the parent company of Chili’s, Romano’s Macaroni Grill, On the Border Mexican Cantina and Maggiano’s Little Italy.

The Ledo Road location was ideal, he continued, because it’s a bit off the beaten path and separates the restaurant from its competitors. Meanwhile, he said, the model of building the restaurants within Wal-Mart’s “footprints” gives the stores easy access to the community.

“We feel confident that the (store sales) in Albany will meet or exceed the national (average),” he said.

Representatives from the Lee County Chamber of Commerce and the Albany Area Chamber of Commerce each had ribbon cuttings.

Also at the grand opening was George Menking and his family. Menking, who had in tow a newborn great- granddaughter, is one of Bonnaroo’s partners.

“We enjoy all the towns and are getting to know Georgia,” he said, noting that he’s yet to miss a ribbon cutting.

The Ledo Road Chili’s is open 11 a.m.-11 p.m. Sunday- Thursday and 11 a.m.- midnight Friday-Saturday.

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