Pizza Hut settles in at new location

By Jennifer Eisenbart

Editor

In what used to be classic greasy spoon territory Tuesday, a national pizza chain found a new home.

The Burlington Pizza Hut officially moved into new digs Tuesday at 1080 Milwaukee Avenue, the site of the former George Webb and then Stormin’ Norman restaurant in Fox River Plaza.

The old site of the restaurant is currently vacant, and Mayor Bob Miller said that no plans for a new business there have crossed the desk at City Hall yet.

But on Tuesday, Pizza Hut looked at home. With one table full of gift bags for the first customers at the new location, a television screen indicating the status of carryout orders and a new manager, the new location seemed to be running smoothly.

“We really needed to upgrade and look a little bit more modern,” said Eric Juntunen, Senior Director of Operations for Wisconsin Hospitality Group, which has 81 Pizza Hut restaurants in the state. “The other store, it served us well over the years, but it was a little dated.”

The chain wanted a more up-to-date look, but also wanted to better serve carryout orders. A screen over the front counter shows all carryout orders and whether they are complete.

Also gone are the salad bar and buffet options, but the pizza chain will offer a new line of wings with several different flavors.

“We’ve added a lot of different things over the years,” Juntunen said. “We tried to build some new technology into the operation.”

Ken Rath will manage the new location. To contact the restaurant, call 763-8432.