Tex-Mex and southern chicken salad are coming to this growing Beaufort center

Karl Puckett
·2 min read

Two new fast casual restaurant chains — one featuring Tex-Mex, the other southern style chicken salad — are coming to Beaufort Station, the $60 million shopping center that’s rising at a major Beaufort intersection.

Zack Means, a senior vice president of Divaris Real Estate Inc., confirmed Thursday that Surcheros Fresh Mex and Chicken Salad Chick are latest stores to sign leases in the 31-acre regional shopping center.

The 200,000 square-foot Beaufort Station, under construction at Parris Island Gateway and Robert Smalls Parkway, will be one of the largest shopping centers between Savannah and Charleston. It’s scheduled to open next summer.

The Georgia-based Surcheros has 28 restaurants in Georgia and Florida. The Beaufort location will be its first in South Carolina.

Chipotle Mexican Grill, Inc., another chain restaurant known for its burritos, tacos and quesadillas, opened in April at Beaufort Plaza on Boundary Street.

Chicken Salad Chick makes southern-style chicken salad made from scratch and bills itself as the nation’s only fast casual chicken salad restaurant concept. It has 225 restaurants, with plans to exceed 250 locations in 2023. Several are located in South Carolina, including on Discovery Drive in Bluffton.

The shells for stores at Beaufort Station in Beaufort are beginning to rise. The regional shopping center is expected to open next summer. Karl Puckett/kapuckett@islandpacket.com
The shells for stores at Beaufort Station in Beaufort are beginning to rise. The regional shopping center is expected to open next summer. Karl Puckett/kapuckett@islandpacket.com

The featured tenants, which were previously named, are Aldi Grocery Stores, PetSmart, TJ Maxx, HomeGoods, Five Below, Rack Room Shoes, Hobby Lobby, Ross Dress for Less, Ulta Beauty and Old Navy. They were previously announced.

Mattress Firm, America’s Best Contacts and Eye Glasses, Le Nails and Parker’s Kitchen, the convenience store and gas station, also are planned.

Negotiations are continuing with additional tenants including more restaurants, Means said.

Beaufort Station will include featured tenants Aldi Grocery Stores, PetSmart, TJ Maxx, HomeGoods, Five Below, Rack Room Shoes, Hobby Lobby, Ross Dress for Less, Ulta Beauty and Old Navy. Smaller tenants, not shown on the map, will include Mattress Firm, America’s Best Contacts and Eye Glasses, Le Nails and Parker’s Kitchen. The developer The Morgan Companies also is in talks with four restaurants.