4 SBA loans have financed Old Chicago locations since 2015, written by 3 different lenders across 3 states. Half were approved for $1.3M or less, the mix is 504-heavy, and 25% went to owners whose business was under two years old.
A lender that has already underwritten this brand knows the unit economics, the build-out costs, and the franchisor. That is worth more to you than a bigger bank starting from scratch.