Baked Wings opens in Loves Park, already planning second Illinois location for 2023
An idea hatched during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic came to fruition Monday as Baked Wings opened its own storefront at 6390 E. Riverside Blvd.
Restaurateur Scott Frank began selling fresh baked chicken wings in 2020 as a side business at his Pomodoro Italian Restaurant, 6500 E. Riverside Blvd., after his food sales representative, Bryan Suh, introduced him to the term ‘ghost kitchen.'
Ghost kitchens, also known as virtual restaurants, are food service businesses that serve customers exclusively by delivery and pick-up based on phone and online ordering. They are separate food vendor entities that operate out of an existing restaurant's kitchen.
“We came up with Baked Wings, and I convinced him (Suh) to quit his job and be my 50-50 partner,” Frank said. “He took a leap of faith. ... We’re super excited and obviously a little nervous, but this is hopefully the first of many.”
Suh is no stranger to the restaurant industry. His family founded Aunt Mary’s restaurant on East State Street and the Mary’s Market Cafe & Bakeries in Rockford.
Wings lovers who stop by Baked Wings will have their choice of Buffalo, Buffalo Hot, Chili Lime, Garlic Parmesan, Honey BBQ, Cajun, Lemon Pepper, Nashville Hot, Salt & Vinegar, Seven Pepper Hot, Ghost Pepper, Jerk or wings with no spices.
“We bake our bone-in wings instead of frying them,” Frank said. “We’ve got a very good convection oven we use for that. We also focus on 11 different dry rubs which makes the wings stay hot, crispy and travel well.”
More:From side business to storefront: Loves Park chicken wing restaurant opening soon
Baked Wings will be open seven days a week and will offer dine-in, carryout, drive-thru and delivery options.
The restaurant has a seating capacity of about 70 people and also has a full service bar.
“We are super excited to be part of the Loves Park community and offering jobs,” Suh said. “Customers have responded well so far.”
Frank is already contemplating opening a second Baked Wings location in early 2023.
“We’ll probably be looking somewhere within a 15-to-20-mile radius,” Frank said. “We’re in the middle of East State Street and Illinois 173, two great areas for restaurants and businesses. So, we’ll see. Our landlord owns properties down in DeKalb and Sycamore near NIU, so that’s going to be something that we’re definitely going to look at soon.”
Ken DeCoster covers business news and features. Contact him at 815-987-1391, kdecoster@rrstar.com or @DeCosterKen.
This article originally appeared on Rockford Register Star: Loves Park Baked Wings opens from "ghost" at Pomodoro Italian Restaurant
