What began as a local test kitchen for fast food chain Chick-fil-A will soon leave nearly 100 people unemployed — at least temporarily — according to a spokesperson for the food company.

Little Blue Menu, a College Park eatery, was opened by the Chick-fil-A brand on Sept. 14, 2023, as part of an effort to test new menu items such as wings, burgers and pizzas. Now, a little over a year and a half later, the business will be shutting down to undergo a remodel. The closure is estimated to start May 1 and last until sometime in the fall, according to the spokesperson.

“We are taking extra steps to care for Little Blue Menu employees by providing severance packages, which means staff will be terminated during the remodel period,” they said.

A Work Adjustment and Retraining Notification, which alerts the Maryland Department of Labor to incoming layoffs and closures, announced Thursday that 91 jobs would be terminated.

The remodel of Little Blue Menu is intended to make updates to the restaurant and add a dining room for guests. The added space for customers comes after the business went viral for its more expansive menu, building on well-known Chick-fil-A items. Pizzas were drizzled with the restaurant’s popular sauces, and new territory was taken on onion rings, sweet potato tots and dessert pastries.

The business was inspired by Chick-fil-A founder Samuel Truett Cathy’s first restaurant, where he presented new food offerings on a small blue menu. Described by the company as an “innovative kitchen brand,” Little Blue Menu promised in a 2023 press release to become a “hub for employment,” creating 125 full- and part-time local jobs in College Park.

Workers impacted by the impending closure will have the opportunity to re-apply for jobs at the restaurant when it returns to service in the fall, the spokesperson said.