Will Chick-fil-A develop a 2nd Puyallup-area location? Here’s what records show so far
While Puyallup might not have a Trader Joe’s, plans could be in the works for a second Chick-Fil-A in that area.
Customers of South Hill’s House of Kee 15305 Meridian Ave. E., took to its Facebook page this week to ask whether it was staying or leaving in light of permit filings earlier this year with the county, and a “For Sale” sign lingering in front of the property.
While the restaurant’s last update on Oct. 29 alerted its fans that “the unsliced BBQ pork loin is sold out,” it remained mum on any sale news.
A proposal, first reported by the Puget Sound Business Journal, was filed with Pierce County Planning & Public Works on March 21, revised April 8. It called for Chick-fil-A to purchase two parcels — currently a parking lot and the House of Kee.
Erin Babbo, Pierce County communications manager, told The News Tribune on Monday in response to questions that “an initial customer meeting was held in April 2023 for a Chick-fil-A, but there are no applications for permits at this time.”
The company has proposed demolishing the House of Kee and building a new 2,656-square-foot drive-thru only restaurant operation, according to initial plans filed with the county.
The plan said the site would “provide 61 parking stalls with 26 exterior seats and no interior seats.” The application said the site would operate 6 a.m. to 9 p.m. Monday through Saturday, closed Sundays, with a proposed opening for August 2024.
Initial opening dates listed are tentative, ultimately depending on speed of permitting and development.
A site plan was submitted to county planners Aug. 1 showing the potential layout.
The new location would be just a few miles from the chain’s first Puyallup-area location, 104 39th Ave. SW., across from the South Hill Mall area.
A Chick-fil-A media representative Monday afternoon told The News Tribune she was “working on an answer” but did not follow up with any further comment as of late Tuesday afternoon.
House of Kee, which serves Cantonese and Mandarin cuisine, did not respond to a request for comment. The restaurant posted on its Facebook page Oct. 14 that it would be closed for its annual vacation at the end of October until Dec. 5, reopening 4 p.m. Dec. 6.
In August, the restaurant posted on social media that it was experiencing a shortage of wait staff, reducing service at that time.
On Monday, a “For Sale” sign remained on the property. A real estate listing entry online showed the site’s current listing entering the market February 2022. The listing, with an asking price of $3.5 million, was last updated Oct. 4, 2023.
Its main business sign Monday read, “We are on vacation.”
The real estate listing notes that the site’s “Urban Village Mixed-Use Zoning allows for up to 70-feet of retail, office, residential with 60 residential units per acre.”
The restaurant’s website describes its business as “second generation family owned” operating in Pierce County for more than four decades.
The family’s restaurant business in Puyallup launched in 1977 with its first Sea Dragon restaurant on East Main, according to the restaurant’s website. In 1982, the second Sea Dragon restaurant opened in South Hill, which eventually became the House of Kee.
The restaurant’s founder, Peter Kee, died October 2022 at age 90.
If Chick-fil-A does pursue plans for a second Puyallup-area site, it would be the chain’s sixth in Pierce County, with other locations in Tacoma, Fircrest, Bonney Lake and Lakewood.
Meanwhile, other chicken chains are entering the market chasing local dollars as competition intensifies.
Jollibee opened at Tacoma Mall Oct. 29.
Near the mall and Tacoma Chick-fil-A, Super Chix permits have been submitted to the City of Tacoma for 4201 S. Steele St. This comes after franchise owners Mohammad and Elina Khadar opened their first Washington Super Chix site in August in the Frederickson area.
Puyallup native Tony Puckett is working to open his first Big Chicken site at 2601 N. Pearl St. in the Westgate North Shopping Center sometime between February and April, with a second site at some point potentially at Tacoma Mall.
