A CT couple started a restaurant so popular food sells out. It’s growing locations across the state

“Everything tastes homemade. Everything is made to please the customer," a customer said.

Talk about a career change.

Enfield couple Lou and Shateema Sterling worked in insurance and now oversee a growing chicken and waffle franchise.

Rooster’s Chicken & Waffles was the duos first restaurant in Wethersfield in 2020 and by the end of this year as many as 10 locations will be open throughout the state and in Massachusetts.

The most recent Rooster’s Chicken & Waffles opened on Friday in Waterbury at 170 Chase Ave. in Waterbury Plaza.

The official grand opening will be in early June but last Friday, the Sterling’s had a soft opening that attracted a line that snaked outside of the door. All chicken was sold that day and since then, Lou Sterling said business has been steady.

The Sterlings commute from their Enfield home and help manage new locations until everyone is trained and up and running.

The Sterlings also have locations in Wethersfield, New Britain, Middletown and a pair in Massachusetts in Chicopee and Westfield. Locations in Bristol, Hartford and West Springfield and Wilbraham, Mass. are expected to be open this year.

The Hartford site will be 101 Main St. — a prominent downtown location — and is projected to be ready in July.

“We are continuing to grow and continuing to expand,” Lou Sterling said. “The Waterbury location is a home run. I can tell you right now it’s a home run. The feedback we’ve gotten has been great.”

Made in the Capital city

Lou Sterling, 37, grew up in Hartford and was a 2005 Bulkeley High School graduate. Shateema Sterling grew up in Georgia. The couple has four children with ages ranging from 4 to 14 and have been married for 12 years.

Both have a financial background and worked at Farmers Insurance and The Hartford as insurance agents. The Covid pandemic shifted the couple’s careers and lives forever. They decided to go into the food business.

“No one was buying insurance during the pandemic,” Lou Sterling said. “We said to each other why not go into the restaurant business. Everyone was doing DoorDash and getting food delivered at that time…It was just an idea and we started with one location. That went well and we thought why not expand? We had a few individuals who we would talk to as mentors, and they guided us. That was it.”

“It’s been a wild crazy four years of ups and downs,” Shateema Sterling said. “I’m joyful I get to meet so many different people and find something you can grow with. I think that’s the goal for everyone. You want to find a career you can grow with and not go from job to job.”

Chicken with Southern charm

All the recipes are from Shateema Sterling’s grandmother. She grew up in Macon, Georgia before moving to Connecticut 14 years ago.

“My wife said, ‘I have my grandmothers’ black book,” Lou Sterling said. “She got passed down all of her grandmothers recipes. We also make our own sauces and breading. Big things are coming we are getting ready to become a nationally recognized company.”

“Our menu is from that book and people love the food and are excited to share it,” he said. “It was a leap of faith. We just took a risk and say we are going to bet on ourselves and that’s basically what happened.”

Shateema said she didn’t learn to cook until her early 20s.

“Food is a big part of Southern culture and it’s a way to bring the family together,” Shateema Sterling said. “It’s very important.”

Menu

Lou Sterling said the most popular selections by customers are chicken tenders and waffles and well as Chicken Wings and Waffles.

What makes it so good?

“The taste and seasoning,” Sterling said. “The crisp of the chicken and the juiciness of the tender. We just don’t give you a chicken strip we give you a big jumbo tender. We prep it so while it fries it expands. When you get a three-piece tender and waffle you are getting a four-course meal.”

Waterbury resident Linda Joyner was picking up lunch on a recent afternoon. It was her second visit since the soft opening.

“The food is fresh, and you can tell the grease is changed and there are all fresh ingredients,” Joyner said. “Everything tastes homemade. Everything is made to please the customer.”

“I was there the first day they opened, and I tried it, and I was welcomed,” she added. “That was the best part of it. We were greeted with smiles and the food was so good.”

Her favorites are garlic parmesan chicken wings, mac & cheese and mashed potatoes.

“Very hands on”

Shateema said is shy by nature but said one of her strengths is her connection to the customer.

“We are very hands on, and we believe in customer service and hospitality is key,” Shateema Sterling said. “We know what goes into keeping the customer coming back. We are both personable and down to earth.”

Shateema Sterling said she expects the company to continue to grow.

“We woke up one day and wanted to give this a try,” she said. “It’s been a very big difference, but the goal was always finding a way to use our hospitality and customer service skills. That’s all insurance was – customer service.”

“The people of Waterbury have been great, and all have said they have loved the food,” she said. “You can never have too many good food places. If your food is good and hospitality is good the customers will keep coming back. That training on customer service is very important.”