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Wendy's Remodeling Adds Fireplace, TV to Lawrence Avenue Restaurant

By David Byrnes | December 26, 2014 5:28am | Updated on December 29, 2014 9:55am

LINCOLN SQUARE — The Wendy's on Lawrence Avenue is sporting a new look, one boasting a big-screen HDTV and a faux fireplace.

The restaurant at 2053 W. Lawrence Ave. re-opened last week after two months of renovations that also gave the exterior a facelift.

“We’re trying to make a much more casual, more inviting experience,” said Shawn Knox, Chicagoland district manager for Wendy's.

Outside, the restaurant has a new facade and sign. Inside, in addition to the TVs and fireplace — an electronic device that projects light on a screen to simulate flames — the dining area has been redone to provide a more comfortable eating experience: Gone are the lines of tables and old rugs of the former Wendy’s, replaced by sleeker booths and alcoves to make it cafe-like.

An automated soft drink machine and lounge seating are also part of the new approach.

Knox, who oversees several Wendy’s restaurants in the Chicago area, said the renovations were part of an ongoing nationwide effort by the parent corporation to update the hamburger chain's image.

“Part of Wendy’s corporate initiative the past couple years has been making the older restaurants more modernized,” Knox said.

As such, many other Wendy’s stores — both franchised and company owned — have or will undergo similar renovations. According a Columbus Dispatch report, Wendy’s seeks to renovate up to 85 percent of its North American locations, or nearly 1,190 restaurants, by 2017. Facelifts range in cost from $450,000 to $650,000, the report said.

Some Wendy's that have been remodeled have seen sales increases of 10 percent to 20 percent, according to the trade publication Restaurant Finance Monitor, or as much as $320,000 annually for an average store.

The renovations echo similar efforts made recently by Burger King and McDonalds, the No. 3-ranked Wendy's largest competitors.

The Wendy's on Lawrence is 32 years old, Knox said.

 “It was time for an upgrade,” he said.

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