Buffalo Wild Wings opening new style of restaurant in Fresno — no booze, lots of takeout
Buffalo Wild Wings is opening a new location in Fresno. But don’t expect the same boisterous sports bar and restaurant where you may have knocked back a few beers and wings during a game.
This one is a smaller location focused on to-go food, part of a trend that’s happening in restaurants nationwide. It’s slated to open later this month near First Street and Nees Avenue.
Called Buffalo Wild Wings GO, it won’t have a bar or serve alcohol. It has about 14 to 16 seats.
It’s a pared-down version of the regular restaurant, with 90% of the same menu, said Vishal Lal, who is part of the Lal and Brar families who own the franchise.
“It’s more of a to-go concept. ... It’s more of a quick stop,” he told The Bee.
It will have TVs playing sports channels though.
It’s not the type of place that’s built for chilling out for watching sports for four hours, but customers are welcome to sit and stay if they want, he said.
The location is shooting to open Sept. 27, though that could change. A grand opening is in the works with the first 50 people in line getting free chicken wings once a week for a year.
When the restaurant opens, customers will be able to order online and pick up themselves, or through various takeout and delivery services such as Uber Eats and DoorDash.
Traditional Buffalo Wild Wings locations (Fresno has two) are around 6,000 square feet with a sports bar and restaurant. The new location is 1,400 square feet.
It’s in the former Rollie Rollie Thai Rolled Ice Cream shop on the northeast corner of the intersection, in the same building as Starbucks.
Why so small?
Buffalo Wild Wings GO is the company’s newest style of restaurant. It recently opened its 100th location in New York City.
There are GO locations in San Diego, the Los Angeles area and in Northern California.
The Lal and Brar families plan to open more. They have the franchise rights to open the restaurants from Madera to Delano.
Smaller restaurants and an increase in food delivery are trends that have been happening ever since the COVID-19 pandemic, said Patrick Monreal, a commercial broker who helped craft the restaurant’s lease and president of The Saito Company.
“It’s just catering toward the people that like staying at home, but like the same dining experience as they get at Buffalo Wild Wings,” he said.
Monreal is also the owner of the Einstein Bros Bagels franchises that opened in Fresno recently. Though the one near River Park has a fair amount of seating, the one near Highway 99 and Herndon Avenue has very little. It’s designed for to be a grab-and-go spot, often for people getting on the highway.
Such smaller spots are less expensive for restaurateurs to operate, especially when it come to rent. Restaurants have faced financial challenges recently, including climbing costs of food, employee pay, employment taxes and more, Monreal said.
“For restaurants to stay alive, they’ve got to expand and create new ideas through smaller concepts like this,” he said.
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