But Schlotzky's Inc. bills its restaurant opening this week at the La Frontera mixed-use development in Round Rock as upscale quick-service.
"We wanted to create an upscale dining experience that is the opposite of what people think of when they think of quick service," says John Wooley, Schlotzsky's Inc.'s chief executive.
The company cites extensive landscaping, in-store Internet access and a new décor as examples of how the restaurant steps up the scale. The food remains the same: sandwiches and pizzas and pastries and desserts.
At 3,700 sf, the new store is larger than most other Schlotzsky's. It is one of 32 restaurants the company owns out of 700.
The store's drive-through is surrounded by vines, wisteria, arbors and berms designed by Bud Twilly Landscape Architects, which, when in full bloom, "will make the most beautiful drive-through in Texas," Wooley says.
The restaurant's décor has darker woods than other Schlotzsky's restaurants and a "Tuscany-inspired" color palette. As in other Schlotzsky's, the new restaurant has computers hooked up to the Internet. At the Schlotzsky's homepage, customers will find links to newspapers such as the Wall Street Journal, the New York Times and the San Jose Mercury News. There are links to Texas newspapers, too.
Within a month, a computerized ordering system will greet customers at the door. Developed by Schlotzsky's and IBM Corp., the kiosk will allow customers to order and pay with a credit card.
"It's perfect for La Frontera, given the high-tech quotient in Round Rock," says Robin Hanna, Schlotzsky's chief information officer. "Engineers and software people like us love to go where the new technologies are."
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