New in St. Charles: Starbird and Lou Malnati's are both open

St. Charles has two new places to eat, one on each of its busiest corridors. Starbird opened on Randall Road on Oct. 19, and Lou Malnati's Pizzeria is now open at Fox Haven Square.

Starbird, 845 S. Randall Rd.

Starbird started in San Francisco in 2016 and has locations across California, plus Colorado and Seattle. The St. Charles restaurant is its first in the Midwest and the first of five Chicago-area locations planned with franchise operator Keystone Management Group.

The menu is built around chicken tenders that the company says are antibiotic-free and hand-breaded daily. There are also crispy chicken sandwiches, nuggets, wings, wraps and salads, with sauces made in-house. A few menu items listed on Starbird's website:

• Big Star: crispy chicken, tomato, lettuce, dill pickles and Star Sauce.
• Nashville HotBird: Nashville hot chicken with slaw, dill pickles and Greek yogurt ranch.
• Thai Chicken salad: sweet Thai crispy tenders with cucumbers, carrots, herbs, crispy shallots and sesame.

Hours: Sunday to Thursday, 10:30 a.m. to 9 p.m. Friday and Saturday, 10:30 a.m. to 10 p.m. Phone: (630) 549-0202. Pickup, delivery and catering orders are available through Starbird's website.

Lou Malnati's, 3050 E. Main St.

Lou Malnati's is in an outlot of Fox Haven Square, near the northeast corner of Kirk Road and East Main Street. Its location page says the restaurant is now open. The grand opening was set for Oct. 27.

Hours: Monday to Thursday, 11 a.m. to 11 p.m. Friday and Saturday, 11 a.m. to midnight. Sunday, 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. Phone: (630) 216-6080. Happy hour runs 3 to 5 p.m. Monday through Thursday, dine-in only.

This one is a full-service restaurant, not just a carryout counter. The 6,200-square-foot space seats about 200 people across a main dining room, a private dining room, a full-service bar and an outdoor patio. Dine-in, carryout and delivery are all available, according to the company.

Two local touches: Lou Malnati's says it worked with the St. Charles History Museum to hang historic photographs of the community in the dining rooms, and this is the first Lou's to show off the company's refreshed look, with updated menu design and interiors, according to FSR magazine.

The menu is the familiar one: deep dish, thin crust, appetizers, salads, pastas and desserts. Lou Malnati's opened its first restaurant in Lincolnwood in 1971 and has about 70 locations in the Chicago area, Wisconsin and Arizona.

Why the east side is busy

Lou's is part of the city's push to remake the eastern corridor. Fox Haven Square is a $22 million development with restaurants, entertainment, shopping, fitness and a pickleball complex, according to the Kane County Chronicle. A short drive east, the City Council this fall approved The Shops at Pheasant Run, which would add more businesses near Main Street and Kautz Road.

Planning a visit? Opening weeks get busy, so check each restaurant's website for current hours before you go.