Yet another Chick-fil-A Dwarf House will soon meet its maker. The Atlanta-based fast food chain confirmed plans in March to demolish their existing Dwarf House on Highway 92 in Woodstock and replace it with a slightly larger and far more boring "Truett's Chick-fil-A." The company has in recent months opened rebuilt former Dwarf House restaurants in Newnan and Rome and in January closed its Stockbridge Dwarf House to complete the same "scrape & rebuild" process.
The new "Truett's Chick-fil-A" building, planned to be just under 7,000 square feet, will be a bit larger than the current restaurant and will feature a slightly larger drive-thru as well. Demolition is projected to begin early 2020, with five months of construction before the new facility opens. Company representatives assured Woodstock planning commissioners that the company plans to preserve the iconic small "dwarf" red door that faces Highway 92, but is that enough?
When reached for comment, Chick-fil-A representatives refused to comment on the likelihood that remaining Dwarf Houses in Duluth, Fayetteville, Jonesboro, Riverdale and / or the original in Hapeville could in coming months/years suffer a similar fate.
Chick-fil-A Dwarf Houses, like traditional Chick-fil-A restaurants, and others in the quick-serve restaurant industry, were once architecturally interesting, appealing, and distinctive restaurants, easily identifiable by their unique features and aesthetics. Now it seems one could switch logos out on a dozen or so restaurant buildings and each could look normal.
Restaurants of a bygone era such Burger Chef operated out of some of the most iconic structures with eye catching signage to match.
Even chains that do still exist like Whataburger, Pizza Hut, Arby's, McDonalds's and Taco Bell, among others, now open boxy, bland and unexciting buildings that don't stand out and instead blend in with everything else. One would think, at a time when there are more eating options perhaps now than ever before, operators would want to set themselves apart where they can but, alas, many place the costs of construction above all else.
All five of the aforementioned chain restaurants are examples of brands that once had identifiable buildings and that over time have devolved into sterile and plain looking structures.
As one real estate investor recently told ToNeTo Atlanta, "no one wants to be in an old Taco Bell or Long John Silver's" and it seems as though restaurants are making it easier for those who assume their buildings if they close to re-concept the space. The real reason, of course, is cost. Basic boxes may be boring but they sure are economical.
Arby's, Burger King, McDonald's, Hardee's, Captain D's, Del Taco, KFC, and Taco Bell, among other chains, are all building or rebuilding some of the most boring restaurants ever, each one less and less distinguishable from its neighbor.
All the monotony in so many restaurant buildings reminds us of the song "Little Boxes" by Malvina Reynolds, originally recorded in 1962 and more recently popularized as the theme song for the hit Showtime TV series Weeds.
The most memorable and applicable lyrics are:
"Little boxes on the hillside, Little boxes made of ticky tacky Little boxes on the hillside, Little boxes all the same, There's a pink one and a green one And a blue one and a yellow one And they're all made out of ticky tacky. And they all look just the same."
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| A rebuilt Chick-fil-A under construction in Peachtree Corners in March |
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| A completed rebuilt Chick-fil-A on South Cobb Drive in Smyrna |
Although the song was written about residential development of the era, it seems entirely applicable to quick-serve restaurant construction today.
Hopefully, Chick-fil-A will not replace ALL of their Dwarf House restaurants, but if they do, at least they'll have a small red door.
What are your thoughts on Chick-fil-A's recent string of scrape and rebuild projects? Do you think it's a mistake for so many brands to create buildings that all look so similar? What is your favorite restaurant restaurant building?
Please share your thoughts below