Since the first Chick-In Waffle opened in Kansas City, Missouri, founder Dennis Alazzeh said the concept has been “a hit from day one.”
The original Westport location opened in January 2020, without much advertising beyond word of mouth. Even so, Alazzeh recalls, the restaurant quickly became popular with late-night comfort food lovers.
Now the restaurant is on its way to Johnson County. Chick-In Waffle’s first Overland Park franchise will open in early 2025.
Chick-In Waffle will be at 8667 W. 135th St.
- The restaurant will occupy a space on the southeast corner of 135th Street and Antioch Road, near Bikanervala and Red Robin.
- Sandwich shop Penn Station East Coast Subs previously occupied the space, until the restaurant closed this spring.
- Regular hours have not yet been finalized for the new restaurant, but it will be open every day of the week, its owner says.
The restaurant serves a southern staple in various flavors
- Chick-In Waffle’s menu offers “signature” waffles in a variety of flavors — from the “spicy chick” with Nashville hot sauce to the “tikka masala” with spicy tomato and cream sauce.
- In addition to chicken and waffles, the restaurant serves other items like chicken wings, sandwiches and loaded fries.
- Alazzeh said the best-sellers on the menu tend to be the “Chick-In Maple” (a waffle topped with buttermilk chicken, maple syrup and chives) and the spicy honey garlic fries, (fries topped with crispy chicken, spicy honey garlic sauce, cheddar cheese, jalapeños, and chives).
Chick-In Waffle’s founder is not new to the restaurant industry
Though it wasn’t necessarily his original plan to open up his own restaurant, Alazzeh grew up in the industry. His family owns and operates Middle Eastern eatery Jeruselum Cafe — another well-known Westport dining spot.
But the idea for Chick-In-Waffle didn’t surface until his wife, Sara Alazzeh, became pregnant five years ago. She’d been a notorious “health nut” before, Alazzeh said — until one day she purchased a waffle iron and made what is now the “Spicy Chick” on the Chick-In-Waffle menu.
Four years later, the brand has grown with a second Kansas City, Missouri location — along with one in Lawrence, Kansas, and another in Independence, Missouri. Chick-In Waffle has even made it out of the metro, with a franchise in Prescott, Arizona.
An Overland Park resident himself, Alazzeh said he’s looking forward to introducing Chick-In-Waffle to other Johnson Countians who might not normally make the drive into Missouri to visit the restaurant’s other locations.
“I think it’s cool to be able to bring this type of food that you normally would find in the city out to the suburbs,” he said. “It’s great for kids and families, for after soccer practice and football games. We like to do a lot of fundraisers with a lot of elementary middle schools with our (other) locations, so we’re very involved with the community. So I’m looking forward to that.”
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