Nay&Jays opening Frontier Mall location!
Nay&Jays artwork/logo displayed on the side of their food truck - Optopolis |
Local food truck, Nay&Jays, is expanding their business to include a physical location in the Frontier Mall; more specifically, it is set to take the space of the former Chick Fil A inside Frontier Mall.
History of CFA & Nay&Jays
First, Chick Fil A. CFA is the original tenant of space 89 (formerly, space 71). Store #192, Cheyenne's CFA opened in the week of March 15th, 1981 as noted in an article from Wyoming State Tribune-Eagle, dated March 17, 18, 1981 (courtesy of Wyoming State Archives). At that time, CFA didn't franchise their operations, but even back then, they closed on Sundays, and CFA operators were only allowed to operate a single store.
LEFT: Chick Fil A seen open on January 27th, 2020. RIGHT: CFA Curbside Delivery sign seen on July 8th, 2020. - Optopolis |
In 2020 and sometime after the mall temporarily closed during the pandemic, Chick Fil A attempted to have a make-shift drive thru/curbside pickup area in the mall parking lot as was observed by Optopolis, but that was seemingly to no avail. Although the exact closure date isn't currently known at Optopolis, the restaurant closed permanently between early July and late October of 2020. Since that time, the space has mostly been vacant aside from occasional use as storage by the mall and other entities.
As for Nay&Jays. Nay&Jays is a locally owned and operated food truck (trailer) that has set up at various locations around Cheyenne. Their food truck serves food like pizza puffs (similar to pizza pockets), fries, hotdogs, patty melts, and more--even flavored, shaved ice. They operated at numerous locations in the capitol city including on the 400 block of East 4th Street, at Family Dollar on Central Avenue, and in The Foodtruck Stop next to the Pershing Roundabout.
Nay&Jay's food truck as seen in early January 2025 - Optopolis |
Local illustrator, Calista M. Art, designed Nay&Jay's trailer artwork as, "one of [Calista's] first commissions." The then-new food truck was in the early stages of opening as of June 2020. Although they were operating by July 8th, 2020, they held their official Grand Opening on August 1st, 2020 at Lions Park Amphitheater.
Nay&Jays "coming soon" to former CFA at Frontier Mall
Mid-afternoon on January 9th, 2025, Optopolis noticed a group of people inside the former Chick Fil A space which initially sparked Optopolis' intrigue of what might be happening at the space; the gate was open, and the overhead lights were illuminating the interior of the CFA space. The following day, Optopolis discovered a "coming soon" sign posted to the gate of the former CFA, which is located between La Mekicana and soon-to-be Twinkle Twinkle Little Store, just down the hall from Bomgaars (formerly JAX).
A view of the former Chick Fil A seen on January 9th, 2025 - Optopolis |
Although Nay&Jays hasn't made an official announcement of this new leg of their journey, Optopolis was able to confirm with Nay&Jays that the new location is indeed set to open at Frontier Mall. CBL Leasing and Advertising Manager, Ashley Haefs, just-yesterday-also-shared that Nay&Jays is set to come to Frontier Mall.
According to their listing on Frontier Mall's website, the new Frontier Mall Nay&Jays is expected to serve food similar to what was previously available in their food truck. At this time, the opening date isn't yet known to Optopolis, and as of January 14th, the Chick Fil A space still appears to be mostly if not entirely void of any new furnishings.
Nay & Jays' "coming soon" sign seen at the former CFA. This sign is also now posted in various locations throughout Frontier Mall on some of the small, self-standing advertising signs. - Optopolis |
Upon asking Nay&Jays, the, "food truck will continue to operate." So, no, the food truck leg of Nay&Jays is not going away at this time; it will continue business as usual. That being said, signs have been posted throughout Frontier Mall indicating that Nay&Jays is coming soon, "located next to Twinkle Twinkle Little Store."
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