Hand-breaded fried chicken thigh served on a golden slice of Texas toast and skewered with two pickles.
That's The Budlong version of Nashville hot chicken, the latest red-hot food trend to hit suburban shopping malls.
Look no further than Oakbrook Center in Oak Brook. After spreading its wings in Chicago, The Budlong Southern Chicken joint recently opened inside the District, the mall's equivalent of a food court.
Craveworthy Brands, a company founded last year by former Jimmy John's CEO Gregg Majewski, acquired the city-born restaurant chain and has since retooled the menu, logo and color scheme with an eye toward expansion.
"We've been eager to share our brand's new look with suburban Chicagoland residents, who have long-awaited for us to arrive outside the city," Majewski said in a statement Monday. "The District showcases our concept in a new light, demonstrating the flexibility of our model to flourish in any type of setting. Malls as well as nontraditional settings like arenas, college campuses and airports provide fantastic opportunities for us to extend the brand outside of our traditional-style restaurants."