Guatemalan Fast-Food Chain Pollo Campero Adds New Outpost at Penn 1
By Abigail Nehring January 4, 2024 6:02 pm
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A fast-food chain with a Guatemalan-inspired menu is getting ready to open its doors at Vornado Realty Trust (VNO)’s Penn 1 tower.
Pollo Campero signed a 10-year lease for 3,521 square feet on the ground floor of the 57-story tower at One Pennsylvania Plaza, according to Compass’ Brett Weinblatt and Ralph Hanan, who arranged the deal for Pollo Campero.
Asking rent was $425 per square foot, Weinblatt and Hanan said.
The deal was first posted on Traded New York.
Pollo Campero was founded in 1971 in Guatemala and has more than 350 locations around the globe today, according to its website. The restaurant’s menu features chicken in many forms — fried chicken, citrus-grilled chicken, chicken empanadas, chicken sandwiches and salads — plus sides such as baked beans, yuca fries and sweet plantains.
The billionaire family behind the chain has their eyes on an aggressive U.S. expansion with plans to drop $190 million to open new outposts nationwide over the next three years, Business Insider reported.
The Penn Plaza location will be Pollo Campero’s third Manhattan outpost after opening spots at 601 Eighth Avenue near the Port Authority Bus Terminal and at 966 Avenue of the Americas in Herald Square.
“They’ve been rolling out more locations in New York over the last year or two,” Weinblatt said. “Pollo’s diligence and professionalism got us across the finish line.”
Vornado handled the deal in-house. A spokesperson for Vornado declined to comment, saying only that the landlord “has been rolling out retail throughout its Penn District holdings.”
Additions over the past six months include Rose’s Pizza and Insomnia Cookies, which opened locations inside Penn Station; Blue Ribbon Steak & Sushi, which debuted in Penn 1; and Yono Sushi by BondST, which opened in Moynihan Food Hall.
Abigail Nehring can be reached at anehring@commercialobserver.com.
