Charleys Philly Steaks is celebrating a hallmark 600th restaurant opening and expanding its home-state presence with the opening of the new Lancaster, Ohio, location at 732 North Memorial Drive on September 12. The restaurant is the chain’s first Ohio location—and only the second in the nation—to feature a brand new menu concept with Chicken Wings and Tenders alongside its famous Philly Cheesesteaks.

The new Lancaster location officially opens to the public on Wednesday, Sept. 12 at 11 a.m., serving up traditional and boneless Chicken Wings and Tenders—new menu items for the brand. Charleys new Chicken Wings are tossed-to-order and made to savor with 10 chef-inspired flavors ranging from Angry Ghost and Nashville Hot to milder options like Zesty Lemon-Lime Rub and Sweet Teriyaki. Customers can order Classic Wings or Boneless Wings and choose from new sides including celery sticks, coleslaw, baked beans or Texas toast.

In addition to its expanded menu, this location features a drive-thru—one of only two in the chain—and an all-new warehouse/farm-style interior design, combining raw industrial elements with warm organic finishes.

The first 50 customers to visit on Grand Opening day will receive one Free Small Philly Cheesesteak Combo Meal or a 6-piece Boneless Wing Combo Meal, and everyone who visits throughout the day can enter a raffle to win Free Food for a Year!

“This Charleys Grand Opening is special to us for so many reasons,” says Charley Shin, CEO of Charleys Philly Steaks. “Charleys Philly Steaks has called Ohio home for the last 32 years, so it’s only fitting that we open our 600th location in a community like Lancaster, Ohio. We’re also excited to be rolling out this new menu, since it will be a focal point for us as we continue expanding across the US.”

Charleys Philly Steaks aims to open an additional 400 stores and celebrate its 1,000th restaurant opening by 2022. The vast majority of the new Charleys locations are planned for strip centers. The company already has restaurants in nearly every major mall in the country, and 2019 will mark the first year that its development in strip centers exceeds that in mall food courts.

“We’ve heard from our customers who really love the brand and have had great experiences with Charleys Philly Steaks that they want us to be more accessible,” adds David Kusz, Director of Marketing. “We’re focusing heavily on strip center development with a mix of free-standing buildings over the next several years so that we can be available to customers outside of their mall shopping experiences.”

Why Chicken?

Charleys Philly Steaks long has offered all-natural, white-meat chicken as part of its Chicken Philly menu offerings. The company’s foray into Chicken Wings and Tenders is a focus on offering customers more of what they love. The move is also aligned with trends in protein consumption, with chicken consumption in the United States almost equal to pork and beef combined and forecasted to grow.

The new Lancaster location (store #600) will be only the second in the nation to serve Charleys expanded Chicken Wings and Tenders menu. It’s also the second Charleys Philly Steaks location with a drive-thru window. Fittingly, Lancaster also opened the second Charleys Philly Steaks location ever back in 1988 at the River Valley Mall location, which still operates today.