‘A Twist on a Southern classic.’ New restaurant opens this weekend in downtown Macon

Wes and Fabi Kostovetsky knew they wanted to bring something new to Macon when they opened their first restaurant.

They also knew they wanted a franchise that already had a proven plan.

When they came across Chick’nCone, it was love at first bite.

This Pennsylvania-based chain of fast casual restaurants offers crispy chicken bites inside a slightly sweet, hand-rolled waffle cone.

The couple purchased the franchise rights for Macon and Warner Robins, and they’re opening their first Chick’nCone this weekend in Macon.

“A twist on a Southern classic” is how Wes described this portable chicken and waffle delight.

The new restaurant at 860 Forsyth St., Suite 102, opens at 11 a.m. Saturday. It’s in the former Which Wich location next to a Dunkin’ coffee and doughnut shop.

“We just wanted to bring something different to Macon — something unique,” Fabi said.

The Macon location is the first Chick’nCone to open in Middle Georgia. The closest other Georgia locations are in the Atlanta area.

The food

Chick’nCones are made to order from fried chicken tenders that are chopped into bites, tossed with one of six signature sauces and then hand-stuffed into ice-cream-like waffle cones. The cones are made fresh daily on site.

Ranging from sweet to mild to spicy, sauces include:

• Cinna-maple — Maple sprinkled with cinnamon.

• Kick’nranch —Ranch with a little kick.

• Yell bbq — A sweet and tangy mustard-based barbecue sauce.

• Buffalo blue — Hot wing sauce with a hint of blue cheese.

• BBQ — A traditional tomato-based sweet barbecue sauce.

• Peri peri— A spicy South African chili sauce.

Also served up is the Chick’nSandwich, described in the menu as a toasted brioche roll filled with chicken tenders coated with choice of sauce. The restaurant also offers its Chick’nTenders for dipping.

Another option is the Chick’nBowl, a bed of fries topped with mac and cheese, chopped chicken tenders and choice of sauce.

Sides include Caj’nFries, shoestring fries with Cajun seasoning; Caj’nCorn, buttered off-the-cob corn marinated in Cajun seasoning, and a creamy mac and cheese.

Also offered are Waffle Crunch Shakes, which are vanilla, caramel or chocolate milkshakes made with pieces of waffle cones. Seasonal flavors are offered, too.

The restaurant serves Pepsi products and iced tea but will not offer craft beer or boozy slushies as do some other participating Chick’nCones. The Macon location is near a church, with Macon-Bibb ordinances precluding the sale of alcohol within proximity to a church.

A good fit

The simplicity of the Chick’nCone menu also appealed to Wes, who has a background in the restaurant industry.

Opening a franchise over a mom-and-pop restaurant appealed to him to as well.

“The good thing about franchises is they kinda have a plan, right?” he said. “There’s a path to go down where when you open up a mom-and-pop place, I think there’s more challenges with it, and I think with our first one, we wanted to have structure and support.”

Additionally, the couple also felt the restaurant’s location across from Atrium Health Navicent was also ideal.

Wes has long wanted to open his own restaurant, and Fabi, who works part-time at a dental office, desired to help him achieve his dream.

“I’m very hands on,” Wes said. “You’ll see me in here.”

Fabi, who plans to keep the part-time job that she loves, also expects to help out at the restaurant wherever she’s needed.

A favorite story

Ironically, Wes and Fabi met in 2013 over a “customer complaint” at a south Florida restaurant that Wes desired to resolve well.

Fabi had arranged a birthday party at a Buffalo Wild Wings and the whole thing was a disaster, including the restaurant losing the birthday cake, she said.

Wes, a Macon native, who’s helped open and manage Buffalo Wild Wing as well as other restaurants, sought Fabi out to make the situation right.

They hit it off, and a long-distance relationship would ensue.

Wes ended up moving to South Florida and later the couple, who married in 2018, decided to move to Macon, where they, with their three children, make their home.

Wes and Fabi hope to open another Chick’nCone location once they’ve solidly established their first one in Macon.

“This is going to be a full-time gig for sure,” Wes said. “I think the ultimate goal is to open up another but this is going to be our 100% focus.”

Initial hours, which may be tweaked as Wes and Fabi see the community’s response to Chick’nCone, will be 11-7 daily.