Tuesday, October 18, 2016

Church's Chicken across From Suburban Plaza has Closed

From: http://www.tonetoatl.com

The Church's Chicken at the corner of North Decatur Road and Church Street, near Decatur, has closed.  The restaurant, which seemed destined for closure given the development around it, quietly shuttered within the past 48 hours.  Permanent signage has been removed from all portions of the property aside from two forgotten promotional signs in the grass out front.


The Decatur area restaurant was reportedly a franchised unit, owned and operated by "FRIS CHKN LLC," a franchisee who once had nearly 200 Church's restaurants. 

Church's, previously part of AFC Enterprises, was once paired with its larger rival, Popeyes Chicken & Biscuits.  Following AFC's 2004 sale of Church's to First Islamic Investment Bank  (today known as Arcapita), the two brands once again became independent entities with Popeyes Louisiana Kitchen Inc (the new name of AFC) growing far larger.  Interestingly, both corporations are based in metro Atlanta.

Overall, Church's, which still operates a number of metro Atlanta locations, has been on retrenchment rather than expansion mode in the metro area.  Following the North Decatur closure, the next closest Church's are on Candler Road, Moreland Avenue, Mountain Industrial Boulevard and Bankhead Highway, none especially convenient for those in the Decatur area.

Church's, which once operated a location on Ponce de Leon Avenue and Boulevard, opened in a converted KFC in 2011 before closing in early 2013. 

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