A Unique Approach to Dining

Mike and Iris Mayer are firm believers that not all chicken fingers are created equal. In fact, the couple welcomes everyone to decide for themselves by sampling the version served at their Marco Island eatery, Island Chicken.

The “finger-esque,” fried portions of chicken are not just the restaurant’s house specialty. They’re also the sole meat selection on a menu that also includes crinkle cut fries, coleslaw, Texas toast, soft drinks, iced tea and lemonade iced brownies. Joining them is the Mayer’s secret “signature sauce.”

Island Chicken opened in mid-October as a take-out restaurant, with limited outdoor seating.

Misconceptions about chicken fingers are common, with some people viewing them as small, unappealing and relegated to the children’s menu at a fast-food restaurant, said Mike Mayer. 

“They’re thinking about the small, breaded, cheap quality chicken fingers,” he explained. “A lot of people don’t understand exactly what our product is. Our chicken fingers are fresh, never frozen and they’re good sized. The weights are up to three-ounces apiece, so they’re pretty big chicken fingers.” 

“Chicken fingers as a menu focal point is unique among the dining concepts found in Southwest Florida and elsewhere in the state,” according to Mike Mayer. But it is found in other parts of the country, including Texas, where the couple lived before moving to the island. 

“At first, when we started to bring the concept from Texas to Marco Island,” he said, “a lot of people were like, ‘Your menu only includes chicken fingers. You have nothing else? How can you survive just doing chicken fingers?’ This concept is not new. There are a number of different chains across the United States that have the same menu we do. But a lot of people aren’t aware of them because they’re not in Florida yet.” 

The couple said that after retiring and moving here from San Antonio in 2017, they were surprised to find fast food purveyors were few and far between on the island. 

“Everything is a sit down or take-out restaurant,” said Mike Mayer. “The workers on the island, they don’t have the time to wait for take-out, when it could take 20 or 30 minutes and a lot of them only have a 30-minute lunch. We thought that this segment was underserved.”

The Mayer’s both had long careers as pharmacists and have also owned several franchise businesses in the past, including Great Clips Hair Salon and Monster Tree Service locations, which they’ve sold. 

However, this is their first experience as restaurant owners or employees, aside from Mike Mayer’s stints working in restaurants as a youth. 

As is often the case, the couple found retirement to be less than satisfying after decades occupied by busy professional and family lives. So, they decided to re-enter the world of work and to add some variety to Marco’s quick dining options. 

“The main reason why we decided to do the chicken business is because of the need we saw for it here,” said Iris Mayer. Her husband said the chicken finger dining concept is ideal for people new to the restaurant industry, like themselves, because of the limited menu as well as favorable start-up costs. He described the Marco location as a “prototype,” one they hope to replicate by selling franchises in the future. 

Aside from having franchising as a goal, the Mayer’s are also looking at ways their business can serve the community through charitable efforts, be it with schools, churches or nonprofits. 

“I hope we can support the community, in the way of food, to help people that work on the island, that serve the island and residents, to have another choice,” said Mike Mayer. 

Island Chicken is open daily from 11:00 AM to 9:00 PM. The restaurant is located at 905 North Collier Boulevard. The phone number is 239-228-2100. For more information, or to view the menu and order online, visit myislandchicken.com.