DeKALB – A little more than a month after it closed its doors, the Beef Shack in DeKalb is set to reopen under new leadership, said franchise president Daniel Perillo.
“I think we reached a deal with a new franchise operator to reopen,” Perillo said Wednesday. “And we’re hoping to get it up and running by the end of the month.”
The cheesy beef sandwich-shop at 1180 W. Lincoln Highway, across from Northern Illinois University and between Happy Wok Chinese restaurant and Red Roof Inn & Suites, closed just before Christmas, according to a sign that was posted on the door. Perillo said the hope is to have the restaurant open in the same spot by the end of the month.
The Illinois chain’s website www.beefshack.com also no longer lists DeKalb’s location, although it does include restaurants in Elgin, Joliet, Huntley, and Bartlett. Its original St. Charles location, which also closed Sunday, will reopen in a new, bigger space, and is listed as temporarily closed.
The restaurant chain plans to open additional locations in Schaumburg, Downers Grove, and Addison this year.
According to some on social media who attempted to order food in late December, the DeKalb restaurant closed days before Christmas.
Perillo said the former owners were good people, but he wanted to take the restaurant in a new direction.
“The operations weren’t exactly what we wanted,” Perillo said. “And we had to make a change over there. But they’re nice people, it just didn’t work out. Now we’re ready to move forward and get it open.”
The restaurant opened in DeKalb in the summer of 2018 after several other short-lived restaurants in that space, taking over Mexican eatery Bowlritto after that business vacated the property the previous spring.
The plan is to make Beef Shack a national franchise, he said.
“Our goal is to have multiple stores in multiple states,” Perillo said. “We have 200 Rosati’s around the country. We plan on in the next five years to probably have anywhere from 60 to 80 Beef Shack stores.”
The chain is known for its Cheezy Beef on garlic bread. It also sells burgers, Chicago style Vienna Beef hot dogs, sandwiches, salads, and shakes.
“The food is fantastic,” Perillo said. “That’s why we decided to buy the concept years ago.”
Shaw Media reporter Eric Schelkopf contributed to this article.
Source: The Daily Chronicle
Be First to Comment