Fazoli’s unlimited breadsticks started in Lexington. Here’s how you can get 6 for free.
Fazoli’s, the quick-service Italian chain that started in Lexington in 1988, is celebrating National Breadstick Day the only way it knows how: with free dough. Hot, buttery garlic dough, that is.
Starting on Oct. 25, National Breadstick Day, and running through Oct. 27, customers can get six free breadsticks with any in-store or online purchase, not just when you dine in, as long as you use the code BREADSTICK6.
“We have developed quite a following and reputation for our breadsticks, so it is only fitting that we roll out a deal that will stick for our fans — a three-day celebration,” said Tisha Bartlett, vice president of marketing at Fazoli’s, in a news release. “With both a deal and menu item that are equally craveworthy — there is no reason to not visit your local Fazoli’s to dig in!”
Fazoli’s is known for its unlimited breadsticks for dine-in customers. That popular concept was created by Fazoli’s Hall of Fame member Kuni Toyoda when he owned five franchises in Lexington in the early 1990s. Toyoda would go on to develop some of Lexington’s most popular restaurants over the years including Bella Notte, Nothing But Burgers, Crust (later known as Bella Forno), Smashing Tomato and Bella Cafe & Grille.
Toyoda built the chain to 319 restaurants in 32 states by 2006 when he sold Fazoli’s to Sun Capital Partners. It later grew to more than 400 locations but times turned.
Fazoli’s still has a corporate office in Lexington, located on Palumbo Drive. The office serves as support for the brand, which includes a culinary test kitchen, supply chain, accounting, IT, training, human resources and administration. There are about 25 employees there.
How Fazoli’s started in Lexington: History of the Italian fast-food restaurant
1988: Jerrico, the Lexington parent company of Long John Silver’s, Jerry’s and Florenz restaurants, opens a fast-food Italian restaurant called Gratzi’s on North Broadway.
1989: Jerrico changes Gratzi’s name to Fazoli’s after a survey shows that consumers confuse the name Gratzi’s with hockey great Wayne Gretzky. Jerrico said “Fazoli’s” is a made-up name that means nothing.
1990: Former Jerrico executive Kuni Toyoda and Duskin Ltd., a Japanese firm that was a Long John Silver’s franchisee, form Seed Restaurant Group Inc. Seed buys the five original Fazoli’s for $3 million from a group of investors who had taken Jerrico private.
1991: The first Fazoli’s outside Kentucky opens in Orlando, Fla. The first Fazoli’s franchise opens in Ashland.
1994: Fazoli’s 50th restaurant opens.
1995: Fazoli’s 100th restaurant opens. Fazoli’s has 164 restaurants by year’s end.
1996: Seed opens Bella Notte restaurant on Nicholasville Road.
1999: Fazoli’s sales average $1.1 million per restaurant. The company opens three Sub-Oven restaurants in Indianapolis.
February 2000: Fazoli’s announces nine consecutive quarters of growth at stores open a year or more.
December 2000: Fazoli’s opens its first restaurant outside the United States, one of 20 to open over the next five years in the Philippines.
April 2001: Fazoli’s in Lexington’s Zandale shopping center test launches pizza that customers can bake at home.
2002: The privately owned company has more than 400 restaurants and is a leader among casual dining restaurant chains. But low-carbdiets start to hit the company’s bottom line.
April 2002: Fazoli’s and McDonald’s announce a joint venture that gives McDonald’s a three-year option to buy Fazoli’s, but the companies cancel the agreement the following year.
October 2006: The company, with 319 restaurants, are sold to Sun Capital Partners. CEO Kuni Toyoda resigns and says he is going to focus on his three Lexington restaurants, Bella Notte, Nothing But Burgers and Smashing Tomato.
July 2008: New CEO says company has 286 restaurants in 26 states, with annual sales of about $300 million. Five years earlier it had more than 400 restaurants and $394 million in annual sales.
July 2015: Sentinel Capital Partners purchases the chain. At the time, there are 213 Fazoli’s restaurant locations in 26 states.
Nov. 2021: Los Angeles-based and publicly traded company FAT Brands Inc. announces it’s buying Fazoli’s for $130 million.
May 2024: Federal prosecutors in Los Angeles indict Lexington-based Fazoli’s parent company Fat Brands and three officials in a $47 million “sham loan” scheme that defrauded shareholders. In a statement, the company says the accusations are unjust.
Oct. 2024: According to a press release, the company is the largest quick-service Italian chain in America, still with more than 200 restaurant locations in 26 states.
This story was originally published October 24, 2024 at 5:00 AM.
