WRIGLEYVILLE — The latest Toppers Pizza franchise to open in Chicago will offer "a very fun environment for fun people" in Wrigleyville.
The 3404 N. Sheffield Ave. location opened Wednesday, and a grand opening event will follow Saturday. Customers who follow Toppers on Facebook, Twitter or Instagram can get a free MyZa (9-inch personal pizza) or single order of Topperstix from 10:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday.
Wrigleyville store general manager Amber Stark said preparations for the store opening took about two months, and "everything has been so smooth. It's been perfect."
The Wrigleyville location is one of 10 Chicago-area stores the company planned to open this year. Franchises in Wicker Park, South Loop and Greektown are up and running. A Lincoln Park franchise, 2428 N. Lincoln Ave., is expected to open March 28, while a Beverly location should open in the next few months.
For those who haven't heard of the Wisconsin-based fast casual chain, Toppers Pizza prides itself on fresh ingredients (including dough made daily at each franchise) and late-night hours (open until 3:30 a.m. every day). The fast-expanding chain, which began in Champaign in 1991 before relocating to Wisconsin, has 60 locations in 11 states.
"It's usually very popular with the college crowd, and you can tell [Wrigleyville] is a very fun environment," Stark said. "We're known for our specialty house pizzas, which are a lot of fun."
Specialty pizzas like a loaded tater tot "Tot-zza" and a mac 'n cheese pizza are very popular, as are the cheesy bread Topperstix, which can be covered in bacon, pepperoni or chocolate. For those looking for the best of both worlds, Tall Boy pizzas are built on a Topperstix crust.
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