A&W To Open New Restaurant On 95th Street

OAK LAWN, IL — If it has been a while since you last had a Papa burger, A&W is coming back to Oak Lawn. Village trustees approved a request for a special-use permit to redevelop a former bank building into a fast casual, sit-down restaurant with a drive-through window. The Oak Lawn location is slated to open in late summer 2020.

Developer and franchisee Lee Fry is aiming to open 10 A&W restaurants in Illinois and Wisconsin, with three planned for 2020, the first being in Oak Lawn. Lee Fry Companies specializes in commercial and land sales, leasing and development. The Westmont-based company’s extensive portfolio includes retail and multi-tenant developments in Elmhurst, Bolingbrook, Evanston and Aurora.

Fry said he is expanding the 100-year-old A&W brand in the Chicago area and southeast Wisconsin. While many people recall the carhops carrying trays laden with burgers and mugs of root beer out to their cars, a majority of the 600 U.S. A&W restaurants operating today offer sit-down dining rooms with drive-through windows.

“We fell in love with the A&W brand and the way they operate,” Fry said. “It’s a restaurant that’s very family-oriented. We are thrilled to have this opportunity to bring this history back to Oak Lawn.”

Plans call for repurposing the former Huntington Bank at 5665 W. 95th St. Both sides of the existing structure are connected by a pedway, which will be dismantled. The rest of the building will be enclosed and no demolition will be involved.

“We’re extremely familiar with restaurant build outs and equipment,” Fry said. “We’ve repurposed buildings and turned them into potential opportunities for food operations. It’s hard to find properties that are well located and accessible.”

This is the brand’s second go-round in Oak Lawn. An A&W that operated on Cicero Avenue and 87th Street in combination with Long John Silver closed several years ago. The chain was sold to a consortium of A&W franchisees in 2012. The restaurants have gone back to their franchisee-owned roots with a heavy emphasis on customer service.

“Family culture was extremely important in our decision to invest in the brand ” Fry said. “We look forward to sponsoring fundraisers, youth sports and schools.”

Fry projects the restaurant to generate $900,000 in sales the first 12 months. The Oak Lawn location will be managed by Fry’s son-in-law, Anthony DiMauro, a food-and-beverage industry veteran. The restaurant will employ 24 to 28 part-time workers.

In addition to hamburgers, the restaurant will offer fried chicken, grilled chicken, Coney dogs, chicken fingers and, of course, root beer floats. Root beer will be made on-site daily, as well as handmade ice cream and hand-blended milk shakes. Delivery service will be available though GrubHub, Uber Eats. and others.

A&W was founded on June 20, 1919 with the first mug of root beet served at a homecoming parade for returning World War I veterans. A&W is believed to be the first successful fast food franchise operation. The chain is also credited with inventing the original bacon cheeseburger in 1963.