- A new restaurant called The Broasted Bird has opened inside a BP gas station in Cudahy, Wisconsin.
- The restaurant specializes in genuine broasted chicken, a pressure-fried method that makes it less oily than standard fried chicken.
- In addition to chicken, the menu includes items like burgers, a fish fry, and a Philly steak sandwich.
Something fowl has come to Cudahy.
But that’s a good thing if you like broasted chicken.
Jeso Shuaipi has been a chef for over two decades at various restaurants. Now, he’s branched out on his own for the first time, opening The Broasted Bird at 5606 S. Packard Ave. in Cudahy. The restaurant is inside the BP gas station.
He isn’t totally alone as his brother, Kadri Shuaipi, and his wife, Chelsea, are also involved with the business.
The restaurant’s soft opening was Oct. 3 and the brothers both said their food will be available for delivery through popular apps like GrubHub, DoorDash and Uber Eats in early to mid-October.
Hours are 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. Sunday through Thursday and 11 a.m. to midnight Friday and Saturday.
Cooking their whole life
Kadri said their father put them in the kitchen when they were 13 years old, calling the kitchen a space they grew up in. Kadri had a focus on pizza while Jeso’s specialty was in Italian cooking.
The brothers brought broasted chicken to Cudahy because “you can’t find it,” Kadri said.
Jeso said he’s using the original recipe from Genuine Broaster Chicken which has been around over 60 years. Jeso said he was employed with the Beloit-based company when he was working in Illinois.
What is broasted chicken?
Although similar to standard fried chicken, broasted chicken is prepared and cooked somewhat differently. Jeso said the chicken is brined ahead of time and it’s breaded on-site before pressure frying. Cooking time is about 10 minutes.
On the FAQ page for Genuine Broaster Chicken, it says the pressure-frying method of cooking broasted chicken “instantly locks in all the juices” by “cooking all sides of meat (at) once.” The term “broasted chicken” is trademarked by the company so no other restaurant can use it to describe pressure-fried chicken.
Jeso said the pressure cooking essentially keeps the oil out of the chicken, making it “a healthier fried chicken.”
“Once they try broasted chicken, they’ll never want any other chicken,” Jeso said when asked about someone trying broasted chicken for the first time.
Original and spicy chicken are on offer with the latter being “a mild spice,” according to Jeso.
More than just chicken, The Broasted Bird also offers burgers, a fish fry, a Philly steak sandwich and more. Kadri said the menu will grow over time.
The Broasted Bird: From ducts to fryers
Jeso said he was helping a friend in the HVAC industry do duct cleaning at the location when he got the idea for the eatery. It was during that job he saw the kitchen space which had sat unused for about a year, according to station owner Shazad Amad.
A few discussions later, Jeso was installing new fryers, walls, fume hoods and more. He said everything in the kitchen space and the small seating area is new.
Amad said the “chicken is lovely … so delicious.”
This is just the beginning for The Broasted Bird with both Jeso and Kadri saying they want to make this a chain. They’re already eyeing two more locations.
The second will be at the Mobil Airport Petroleum station on Howell Avenue, where the brothers look to convert the car wash into their restaurant with hopes to open it around New Year’s.
The third location, which the brothers hope to open in summer 2026, will be at a Citgo station in Milwaukee near Loomis Road and Layton Avenue.
Contact Erik S. Hanley aterik.hanley@jrn.com. Like his Facebook page,The Redheadliner, and follow him on X@Redheadliner.
