*A tale of 2 cities? Earlier we told you about how Roscoe’s Chicken and Waffles is shaking off a bankruptcy filing and is expanding in Los Angeles. However, in Atlanta that city’s chicken and waffles business is going in the opposite direction.
The Gladys Knight’s Chicken and Waffles location in Lithonia near the Mall at Stonecrest has permanently closed its doors. The location held its final day of service on Aug. 21, 2016, atlantarestaurants.com reports.
This news comes after a tumultuous summer for the chicken and waffles chain. In June, state revenue agents raided and temporarily closed all three locations, and arrested owner Shanga Hankerson – son of Gladys Knight – on theft counts, and filed civil racketeering charges against him.
The last day of service at the Stonecrest location was confirmed by an employee at the flagship spot on 529 Peachtree Street downtown. That restaurant remains in operation as does the location at 3752 Cascade Road in southwest Atlanta.
READ RELATED STORY: Gladys Knight Sings Happy Birthday to Cop Who Pulled Her Over
A Department of Revenue official told Channel 2 back in June that Knight is not part of the investigation into her son’s questionable business ethics, saying she is — “totally in the clear, nothing about her” — and no other employees are facing charges.
Hankerson owns the restaurant chain, with locations in Midtown, Lithonia Springs, and Southwest Atlanta. His mother lent her name to the restaurants, similar to a celebrity endorsement. Knight was not involved in any way with the operation of the restaurants.
Gladys Knight’s Chicken & Waffles has had a presence in Atlanta since 1997. After the 1999 opening of the Midtown location, Knight shared her excitement about the concept with her son Shanga, who served as CEO.
“I told Shanga, and this has been our sort of motto ever since, ‘I don’t care whose name is on the outside of a building. Once that gets them in there, it’s quality of food and service, service, service, service’…I said, ‘If the food is not happening, forget the name on the outside.”
Watch the full video below:
We Publish News 24/7. Don’t Miss A Story. Click HERE to SUBSCRIBE to Our Newsletter Now!
