White Castle Clears First Hurdle for South Brunswick Location

South Brunswick is closer to having a White Castle fast food restaurant on Route 1 after the Zoning Board of Adjustments granted the developer approval for a use variance at its last meeting.

Developer White Castle Systems, Inc. on a 9.92-acre site in an area zoned for commercial use. 

The restaurant would be located at 5053 Route 1 south, adjacent to and before the Brunswick Square Mall. The site would have 49 seats in the dining room with a proposed 49 parking spaces in the preliminary site plan. 

However, Tom Bray, Regional Director for White Castle, said the family-owned chain derives the bulk of its business from customers using the drive-thru window.

"The drive-thru is all about convenience," Bray told the zoning board last month. "That's why 55 to 60 percent of our business is drive-thru."

The proposed plan would have room for about 9 cars to stack up in the drive-thru lane, with about six to seven cars typical for the drive-thru lane at any one time, according to Bray.

Bray estimated that the restaurant would employ 25 to 30 people, with six to seven employees on duty at one time. The location is expected to provide employment for young people seeking entry-level work.

"We would create some jobs right here in South Brunswick," Bray said. 

The location would be open 24 hours per day, as are all White Castle restaurants. 

The developer still needs to gain site plan approval and also has some work to do on the site plan before coming back to the zoning board, according to Public Affairs Coordinator Ron Schmalz. 

No date has been set for the application to return before the zoning board yet.

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