In the heart of Manhattan, a new fast casual chicken concept by four young up-and-coming restaurateurs will offer food enthusiasts the fresh flavors of Greece, along with the health benefits embodied in the Mediterranean Diet. Butterflied Chicken, located at 18 West 45th Street, within a block of the Theatre District, is the first concept to bring traditional butterfly-grilled chicken to New York City, and will open on Thursday August 17th. Everything on the menu will be local, natural, organic, and sustainable; and nothing on the menu will be fried, except of course, the fries.
“Our mission is to bring to New York the incredible dishes and flavors that visitors to Greece have enjoyed on vacation,” says co-founder Andreas Aktipis, a first generation Greek American, and second-generation restaurateur in a statement. “Lots of lemon, oregano from the mountains of Greece’s Peloponnese, and the world’s finest extra virgin olive oil are at the core of our flavor profile,” he says.
“As is done at the best psistaries (barbecue) restaurants in Greece, the chicken is butterflied, marinated and grilled over an open flame,” adds co-founder George Charokopos, an Athens-based hospitality entrepreneur.
At the center of Butterflied Chicken’s menu is free range whole chicken sourced from local farms in New Jersey and Pennsylvania that is grilled over an open flame and chopped into quarters on butcher blocks in the eatery’s open kitchen. The menu includes several chicken options beyond the butcher cuts, including Chicken Souvlaki, a Chicken Burger and a handful of handcrafted seasonal bowls. Additionally, the menu includes several vegetarian options, traditional Greek dips, and salads. Ingredients are fresh, hand crafted, and sustainably sourced. The restaurant will also serve wine & beer.
With Andreas and George driving the operations of the enterprise, their sisters, Anastasia Aktipis and Katerina Charokopos, are the creative forces behind the concept’s branding, marketing and design.
“We are old family friends who have bonded over meals for years,” says Andreas, who adds that it was over one such meal that he and George came to the realization that they needed to share their passion for traditional Greek-style grilled chicken with the public. With a nod from the veteran restaurateur of the family, Stavros Aktipis of Manhattan’s Kellari, the four young friends got together to bring a healthy Greek fast casual environment to New York with “a focus on how good Greeks do chicken”.
