Chick-fil-A Opening Sure to Be an All-Night Party

The owner of the new is expecting a crowd that rivals Black Friday when the eatery opens Jan. 12.

That's because of a company tradition: Whenever a new Chick-fil-A opens, the first 100 adults in line receive a one-year supply of free meals -- 52 certificates.

The "First 100" celebration typically draws fans 24 hours in advance to set up tents, TVs, laptops and games as they wait for the restaurant to open.

"It's just a fun atmosphere," said Brian Wellman, owner-operator of the new Chick-fil-A. "We have activities during the night, and we serve them breakfast."

Construction is wrapping up on the stand-alone, 4,317-square-foot restaurant at 16584 Royalton Rd. The eatery will seat 136, have a drive-through window and include an indoor play area that features an interactive section for toddlers.

Wellman and his wife, Vicki, are now hiring up to 80 employees for the store. Anyone interested in working there can stop by to fill out an application.

The couple, who have a daughter in college and a son who is a sophomore at , moved here from Tennessee, where Brian was director of operations for Technicolor, which replicates, packages and distributes DVDs for major movie studios.

"I left that to own my own business, work with my family and engage with a community," he said. "Chick-fil-A stands for all those things, so it's a really good fit."

And here's a strange coincidence: Wellman, who used to live in Stow, knew Dan Mazzola, the owner of the new next door on Royalton Road. Mazzola also owns the .

The Wellmans have moved 14 times in the last 25 years, making their home in 12 different states, but they always wanted to come home, saying the sense of community here is strong.

"Ever since we left Stow, we wanted to come back to northeast Ohio," Wellman said. "The Cleeland area is our favorite place of all of those."

The Strongsville restaurant is one of 75 stand-alone, in-line and drive-through locations Chick-fil-A plans to open across the country in 2012. 

Since the "First 100" event began in October 2003, Chick-fil-A has given away more than $13 million in free food.