UWG alum John Crossley decided to bring Pita Pit to Carrollton when he was still a student at the university. While doing a project for a small business entrepreneurship course, Crossley chose Pita Pit as a place that would benefit the community.
The restaurant has over 500 locations in over 66 countries and is known for being placed near the bars of college towns. Since the target market is college cities, the restaurant can be found near well-known universities, such as University of Georgia, University of Auburn and the University of Florida.
Crossley says the restaurant was strategically placed in the square so that students do not have to travel far for food after leaving the bar.
“I always told myself whenever I graduate from college, if no one has opened a restaurant for kids to eat at late at night, I would do it,” stated Crossley.
Pita Pit serves an array of traditional Greek and Mediterranean wraps, sandwiches and salads. The brand gets the name Pita Pit from the choice to use pita bread instead of the traditional oven baked bread. For the meat lovers, the restaurant offers Philly cheesesteak pitas, buffalo chicken pitas and a Dagwood club pita that includes turkey, ham and prime rib.
Customers can also choose between the vegetarian options, such as the spicy black bean pita and falafels. They can also order gluten- and dairy-free pitas. Since they specialize in fresh and healthy selections, the new restaurant will be the first late night eatery that is not a fast food chain in Carrollton. It will close around 3 a.m.
In addition to The Border and Max and Henry’s, Pita Pit will also have a day of the week where students can bring their student ID and get a discount. It has not been decided how much yet. Along with the discount, on Wednesdays, the restaurant will offer customers double the meat for 99 cents. This deal is nationwide and popular.
Pita Pit resembles Subway and Moe’s, in which the customer choose what they want while watching someone prepare it. The difference is the freshness of the meat and produce. The meat is sliced twice a day, once before lunch and once before dinner, and then put in the refrigerator. When the meat is ordered, it is taken out and placed on the grill to cook while the customer builds their sandwich.
Within the next few weeks, Crossley will be looking to hire people for the Carrollton location. After the hiring process, the store will be complete.
Pita Pit is expected to finish in late November or early December of 2016. Barring any setbacks, the restaurant will be complete in January when students return for the spring semester. Crossley expressed wanting to do a soft opening for friends and family and a grand opening for students and the community where they can get a taste of what the restaurant has to offer. The restaurant will do some pre-grand opening marketing, which will provide sandwiches to hospitals, police stations and schools to promote the business. Crossley also will have features on Facebook for free coupons.
